Goldsmith quits over Sunak's climate 'apathy'

Extraordinary row after minister uses his resignation letter for personal attack on PM | Environmental groups and charities urge Sunak to listen to criticisms of 'paralysis'

- Rowena Mason, Helena Horton, Patrick Greenfield

Extraordinary standoff after Goldsmith quits as minister over Sunak's climate 'apathy'

Rishi Sunak was embroiled in an extraordinary standoff with Zac Goldsmith yesterday after the Tory peer quit the government, accusing the prime minister of being "simply uninterested" in the environment and the climate emergency.

Goldsmith resigned as a Foreign Office minister with a highly personal attack on Sunak, saying voters would punish the prime minister at the polls over his "apathy in the face of the greatest challenge we have faced".

The peer, a close ally of Boris Johnson, said his position had become "untenable" after Sunak dropped a key animal welfare bill, broke a promise on environmental aid spending and went to a party hosted by Rupert Murdoch rather than last week's climate summit in Paris.

Sunak hit back shortly afterwards in a letter suggesting Goldsmith's departure was linked to No 10 asking him to apologise for having undermined the privileges committee's inquiry into Johnson.

"You were asked to apologise for your comments about the privileges committee as we felt they were incompatible with your position as a minister of the crown. You have decided to take a different course," the prime minister wrote in an unusually blunt response.

But Goldsmith said No 10 had subjected him to "misleading briefing" as he had been willing to acknowledge his error.

He insisted that his resignation had been a long time coming because of Sunak's "lethargic" approach to the environment, in contrast to that of Johnson.

Environmental groups and opposition MPs said Sunak should listen to Goldsmith's criticisms of the government's record on the environment regardless of the controversy over the privileges committee.