Ex-cabinet minister who called for Rishi Sunak to quit insists ‘there is no plot’ to oust the PM
THE ex-cabinet minister who demanded Rishi Sunak quit last night insisted “there is no plot” to oust the PM.
Sir Simon Clarke was slammed by Tory colleagues after going public with his demands for a change of leader – with no other Conservative MP joining his putsch.
But he defended his actions, saying: “No one likes the guy who is shouting iceberg, but I suspect that people will be even less happy if we hit the iceberg.
In a stark warning to No10, he added: “We are on course to do that.”
Sir Simon told the BBC he acted alone in calling for Mr Sunak to be replaced and is not part of an orchestrated plot.
The former Cabinet minister repeatedly declined to say who he wants to become Tory leader, but said there are a “number of people who could do it”.
He added: “I don’t want to tarnish anyone by saying this. I’ve done this on my own, I’ve been really clear that I’ve done it deliberately on my own so I don’t make anyone else the subject of the sort of criticism that I’ve incurred.”
Sir Simon said he had been on the receiving end of some “pretty hostile comments” and insisted his attack on the Prime Minister was not about his own leadership ambitions.
“This is absolutely not about Simon Clarke,” he said.
Meanwhile the PM came out swinging in the Commons yesterday, brushing off the assault on his faltering leadership.
He blasted Sir Keir Starmer as ultra-woke and “out of touch” with British values.
During a fiery PMQs, Mr Sunak hit out at the Labour boss for choosing to take the knee and declaring women can have a penis.
The PM said: “He talks about what Britain needs, what Britain wants, what Britain values are.
“This from a man who takes the knee, who wanted to abolish the monarchy, who still doesn’t know what a woman is, and who just this week, one of his frontbenchers, said that they backed teaching divisive white privilege in our schools.
“Looking at his record, it’s crystal clear which one of us doesn’t get Britain’s values.”
Mr Sunak also slammed Sir Keir for previously representing the now proscribed terrorist group, Hizb ut-Tahrir, as a lawyer.
Meanwhile the ex-Tory deputy chair who quit last week said he regretted not backing the PM’s landmark Rwanda bill.
No10 hinted Lee Anderson could be reinstated to his job in a peace offering to rebels.