LIZ TRUSS was hit by an open revolt of Conservative MPs today as her grip on power appeared to be weakening by the hour.
A growing number of Tory MPs went public this morning calling for the Prime Minister to quit after she sacked her Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, and extraordinary scenes of turmoil in the Commons over a vote on fracking. One London MP urged her to speak to her Cabinet about a "dignified exit".
More than a dozen MPs had broken cover by 10.30am to urge Ms Truss to stand down, with far more saying privately that she should go. In unprecedented turmoil at Westminster for a Prime Minister in No10 for just 44 days, one senior Tory MP said early this morning she had "12 hours" to save her administration. Transport Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan, doing the morning media round, defended Ms Truss but would only go so far as saying that she would still be Prime Minister on Monday.
The latest mayhem at the heart of Government started at 1.33am when a Conservative source announced that Chief Whip Wendy Morton and her deputy Craig Whittaker "remained" in post despite some Tory MPs believing that they had resigned last night over the chaotic vote on fracking.
Shortly after 7am, Tory MP Simon Hoare, chairman of the Commons Northern Ireland Committee, made clear the scale of the threat to Ms.Truss's leadership. "Can the ship be turned around? Yes, but there is about 12 hours to do it," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. "Today, tomorrow are crunch days." A few hours later, Hendon Conservative MP Matthew Offord told the EveningStandard: "I can't see the situation being sustainable. She does need to sit down and discuss it with her Cabinet and with others to manage some kind of dignified exit." More MPs then went public with calls for Ms Truss to resign.
This story is from the October 20, 2022 edition of Evening Standard.
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This story is from the October 20, 2022 edition of Evening Standard.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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