World

Which Tory MPs are calling for Truss to go – and how could the PM be ousted?

Published

3 years ago

October 18, 2022

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Liz Truss’s premiership is hanging by a thread after a tumultuous first six weeks in office.

The prime minister sacked Kwasi Kwarteng in an attempt to quell the unrest on Conservative benches.

But new Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has since axed almost all of her ill-fated mini-budget – less than a month after it was unveiled.

Chancellor Hunt urges Tories to ‘give Truss a chance’

On Monday, Ms Truss apologised for the mistakes she made over the government’s economic policies and said she intends to lead the Conservative Party into the next election.

But, ultimately, this may not be her choice if MPs move against her – and five of her own backbenchers have already done just that.

Crispin Blunt

The Conservative MP for Reigate was the first MP out of the blocks to call for the prime minister to resign following her failed mini-budget last month.

Mr Blunt, a justice minister in the early years of David Cameron’s premiership, told veteran broadcaster Andrew Neil that Ms Truss should go “now” as “the game is up” after just six weeks.

Describing the “shocking few weeks” for the party, Mr Blunt told Mr Neil’s programme on Channel 4: “I would be very, very surprised if there are people dying in a ditch to keep Liz Truss as our prime minister.

“What we need to effect is a transition to a combination of the talents of Rishi Sunak, Penny Mordaunt and Jeremy Hunt in the top leadership positions in the party.

“They probably need to sit down and have a conversation between themselves about how to best effect the chance. And I think that the collective position from those three would command very great support among the parliamentary and among the party in the country who are just desperate to get this sorted out.”

Andrew Bridgen

The Conservative MP for North West Leicestershire was the second of Ms Truss’s backbenchers to call for her to resign.

Mr Bridgen, who supported Ms Truss’s rival Rishi Sunak in the leadership campaign over the summer, announced his position in a scathing blog post which declared that Ms Truss had “run out of friends”.

“Liz has sunk her own leadership and her predecessor’s potential comeback at the same time, all in record time,” he wrote.

“Beleaguered Liz Truss has now run out of friends. She only ever had the support of a third of the elected MPs. We should expect more fireworks in Parliament this week.

“Unless this is resolved quickly, we are heading for a general election.”

Beth Rigby analysis: ‘It can’t go on like this’ – it looks to be over for PM Truss

But Mr Bridgen is not a stranger to the no confidence system.

Back in May, he became the twenty-seventh Conservative politician to tell Boris Johnson to quit over the partygate scandal – a series of events held in Downing Street and across Whitehall in breach of coronavirus rules.

Jamie Wallis

The MP for Bridgend became the third Conservative MP to break ranks by calling for Ms Truss to quit.

Mr Wallis, who has been on the government’s backbenches since 2019, said the PM had “undermined Britain’s economic credibility and fractured our party irreparably”.

Sharing a letter to the PM on social media, he wrote: “In recent weeks, I have watched as the government has undermined Britain’s economic credibility and fractured our party irreparably.

“Enough is enough. I have written to the prime minister to ask her to stand down as she no longer holds the confidence of this country.”

Earlier this year, Mr Wallis released a highly personal statement saying he wants to transition to be a woman.

In his letter to Ms Truss, he called out senior members of the party for “exploiting the issue of transgender rights” during the leadership contest.

“Observing the hostile nature of the debate and then witnessing increased hostility towards transgender people on social media and in-person was distressing,” he wrote.

Mr Wallis acknowledged that “mistakes can be undone” but said he did not believe this was possible with Ms Truss as leader.

Angela Richardson

The MP for Guildford became the fourth Conservative MP to call for Ms Truss to depart Number 10, telling the Telegraph newspaper that it would be “better for the party and for the country to have a change in leadership at the top”.

Ms Richardson, who was also elected in 2019, said Ms Truss should resign and then a truncated leadership election should get underway “very quickly”.

“Whoever comes up top in the ballot, there should be a coronation. MPs should exercise common sense about that. This is a very pivotal point in time where mucking around is just not in the national interest,” Ms Richardson said.

“It could be the case that everybody who is frustrated with the PM wants a different outcome – our biggest difficulty is settling on someone.”

She continued: “If you think about the significance of what has just been announced by the chancellor today, this feels like even more of an unwinding of what she put together with Kwasi.

“We should never have been in this position in the first place. And now it’s very hard for me to see how she can credibly continue.”

Ms Richardson has previously spoken up against the government, having resigned from her role as an aide to former housing secretary Michael Gove in January amid growing discontent within the party.

Sir Charles Walker

The outgoing MP for Broxbourne became the fifth MP to publicly call for Ms Truss to go, telling Sky News’ political editor Beth Rigby that the PM’s position is “untenable”.

Sir Charles, who has said he will stand down at the next election, said Ms Truss has “put colleagues, the country, through a huge amount of unnecessary pain and upset and worry”.

He continued: “We don’t need a disruptor in No 10. We need a uniter. I just think… it is just a situation that is… it can only be remedied I think, with a new prime minister.”

Asked whether Ms Truss could stay in her position, Sir Charles said: “Look, the prime minister has had a very torrid six weeks.

“Personally, I don’t think her position is recoverable. She would obviously take a different view.

“But if you read the mood of the parliamentary party, she has lost authority and you can’t lead a party if you don’t have some authority. She doesn’t have much of that.”

Sir Charles said he believes Ms Truss has “a week or two” left of her premiership.

He continued: “I’m just so cross. I’ve just had enough. And I think quite a few of my colleagues have had enough.”

How could Truss be ousted?

Under Conservative party rules, a new leader cannot be challenged through official procedures for at least a year after entering office. For Ms Truss, this would be until September 2023.

However, Conservative MPs who are disgruntled with Ms Truss’s leadership are still able to submit letters of no confidence in her to chairman of the 1922 Committee of backbench MPs, Sir Graham Brady.

It is thought that if many letters are received, Sir Graham could have a mandate to change the rules of the leadership election process so that one could take place imminently.

If senior Conservatives and the chief whip were to find that Ms Truss had lost the support of the majority of her party in parliament, it would be difficult for her to fight on.

A rule change could potentially be agreed for Tory MPs to draw up a shortlist of two candidates from the backbenches who would then agree between themselves who would be PM and who would be deputy without going to the Conservative members.

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Another option is that, as discontent from the backbenches grows, Ms Truss decides to fall on her sword and resign.

The Conservatives would then have to try and mobilise to unite behind a successor as quickly as possible.

Ms Truss could also call a general election to let the general public seal her fate, but would be unlikely to do so imminently with the Conservatives doing so badly in recent polls.

World

Trump ‘thinking’ of going to Turkey for proposed Zelenskyy-Putin talks – as Russia silent on attending

Published

15 hours ago

May 13, 2025

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Trump 'thinking' of going to Turkey for proposed Zelenskyy-Putin talks - as Russia silent on attending

Donald Trump has said he is “thinking” of going to Turkey on Thursday for potential peace talks between Ukraine and Russia’s leaders.

The US president, who previously claimed he could end the conflict in a day, has pushed for both sides to meet to bring the fighting to an end.

On Sunday, Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy called out Vladimir Putin to meet him on Thursday in Istanbul, but the Kremlin leader has yet to respond.

Speaking late on Monday, Mr Trump said: “I was thinking about flying over. I don’t know where I am going be on Thursday.

“I’ve got so many meetings.

“There’s a possibility there I guess, if I think things can happen.”

Mr Trump has headed to the Middle East this week on the first major foreign trip of his second administration, visiting Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE.

Mr Zelenskyy backed the prospect of Mr Trump attending the talks.

He said: “I supported President Trump with the idea of direct talks with Putin. I have openly expressed my readiness to meet.

“And of course, all of us in Ukraine would appreciate it if President Trump could be there with us at this meeting in Turkey.”

Russia playing for time?

However, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, speaking on Monday, refused to say who, if anyone, would be travelling to Turkey from the Russian side.

“Overall, we’re determined to seriously look for ways to achieve a long-term peaceful settlement. That is all,” Mr Peskov said.

This came after the “coalition of the willing”, including Sir Keir Starmer, threatened Russia with fresh sanctions if it failed to comply with an unconditional 30-day ceasefire starting on Monday.

Russia effectively rejected this proposal, instead calling for direct negotiations in Istanbul with Ukraine, at which Mr Zelenskyy challenged Mr Putin to make the trip himself.

Despite Russia’s claims towards wanting peace, Ukraine’s allies remained deeply sceptical about prospects for talks and whether Mr Putin was serious.

European Union commission vice president Kaja Kallas said: “We want to see that Russia also wants peace.

“It takes two to want peace, it takes only one to want war, and we see that Russia clearly wants war.”

Meanwhile, Russia continued its nightly attacks on Ukraine.

Overnight into Tuesday, Ukraine said Moscow launched more than 100 drones.

World

Trump set for truly consequential week for his presidency and his ability to effect change

Published

1 day ago

May 12, 2025

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Trump set for truly consequential week for his presidency and his ability to effect change

It has been an extraordinary few hours which may well set the tone for a hugely consequential week ahead.

In the time that it took me to fly from London to Saudi Arabia, where President Donald Trump will begin a pivotal Middle East tour this week, a flurry of news has emerged on a range of key global challenges.

• On the Gaza war: The Trump administration has confirmed it’s holding talks with Hamas, which says it will release a hostage amid renewed hopes of a ceasefire.

• On the Ukraine war: President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said he is prepared to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Istanbul – this announcement came minutes after Trump urged Zelenskyy to agree to the meeting.

• On the China-US trade war: The White House says the two countries have agreed to a “trade deal”. China said the talks, in Geneva, were “candid, in-depth and constructive”.

All three of these developments represent dramatic shifts in three separate challenges and hint at the remarkable influence the US president is having globally.

This sets the ground for what could be a truly consequential week for Trump’s presidency and his ability to effect change.

Ask Mark Stone a question

With his unique style, Trump is seeking to align numerous stars as he embarks on his first foreign diplomatic trip of his second presidency.

For days, it’s been unclear how the week ahead would unfold and which global challenge would be dominant.

The Saudi government has been instrumental as a broker in the Ukraine-Russia conflict and Qatar has been a mediator in the Gaza war.

Trump will visit both countries this week.

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Putin under pressure?

On Ukraine, Putin held a late-night news conference at the Kremlin on Saturday at which he made the surprise proposal of talks with Zelenskyy in Istanbul this Thursday.

But he rejected European and US calls for an immediate ceasefire.

The move was widely interpreted as a delay tactic.

Trump then issued a social media post urging Zelenskyy to accept the Russian proposal; effectively to call Putin’s bluff.

The American president wrote: “President Putin of Russia doesn’t want to have a Cease Fire Agreement with Ukraine, but rather wants to meet on Thursday, in Turkey, to negotiate a possible end to the BLOODBATH. Ukraine should agree to this, IMMEDIATELY. At least they will be able to determine whether or not a deal is possible, and if it is not, European leaders, and the U.S., will know where everything stands, and can proceed accordingly! I’m starting to doubt that Ukraine will make a deal with Putin, who’s too busy celebrating the Victory of World War ll, which could not have been won (not even close!) without the United States of America. HAVE THE MEETING, NOW!!!”

Within minutes, Zelenskyy responded, agreeing to the talks.

“We await a full and lasting ceasefire, starting from tomorrow, to provide the necessary basis for diplomacy. There is no point in prolonging the killings. And I will be waiting for Putin in Türkiye on Thursday. Personally. I hope that this time the Russians will not look for excuses,” Zelenskyy wrote on X.

The prospect of Putin and Zelenskyy together in Istanbul on Thursday is remarkable.

It raises the possibility that Trump would want to be there too.

Israel’s war in Gaza

On Gaza, it’s been announced that US envoy Steve Witkoff will arrive in Israel on Monday to finalise details for the release of Idan Alexander, an Israeli-American hostage being held by Hamas.

The development comes after it was confirmed that Mr Witkoff has been holding discussions with Israel, Qatar and Egypt and, through them, with Hamas.

The talks focused on a possible Gaza hostage deal and larger peace discussions for a ceasefire.

Just days ago, Israel announced a new military plan to move back into Gaza.

When do candid talks become a trade deal?

Meanwhile, officials from the United States and China have been holding talks in Geneva, Switzerland, to resolve their trade war, which was instigated by Trump’s tariffs against China.

Late on Sunday evening, the White House released a statement claiming that a trade deal had been struck.

In a written statement, titled “U.S. Announces China Trade Deal in Geneva”, treasury secretary Scott Bessent said: “I’m happy to report that we made substantial progress between the United States and China in the very important trade talks… We will be giving details tomorrow, but I can tell you that the talks were productive. We had the vice premier, two vice ministers, who were integrally involved, Ambassador Jamieson, and myself. And I spoke to President Trump, as did Ambassador Jamieson, last night, and he is fully informed of what is going on. So, there will be a complete briefing tomorrow morning.”

Beijing Global Times newspaper quoted the Chinese vice premier as saying that the talks were candid, in-depth and constructive.

However, the Chinese fell short of calling it a trade deal.

A Qatari gift

In a separate development, US media reports say that Qatar is preparing to gift Trump a Boeing 747 from its royal fleet, which he would use as a replacement for the existing and aging Air Force One plane.

The Qatari government says no deal has been finalised, but the development is already causing controversy because of the optics of accepting gifts of this value.

World

Why Trump blinked in US-China trade war

Published

1 day ago

May 12, 2025

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Of all the fronts in Donald Trump’s trade war, none was as dramatic and economically threatening as the sky-high tariffs he imposed on China.

There are a couple of reasons: first, because China is and was the single biggest importer of goods into the US and, second, because of the sheer height of the tariffs imposed by the White House in recent months.

In short, tariffs of over 100% were tantamount to a total embargo on goods coming from the United States’ main trading partner. That would have had enormous economic implications, not just for the US but every other country around the world (these are the world’s biggest and second-biggest economies, after all).

Trump latest: US and China slash tariffs in trade war de-escalation

So the truce announced on Monday by treasury secretary Scott Bessent is undoubtedly a very big deal indeed.

In short, China will still face an extra 30% tariffs (the 20% levies cast as punishment for China’s involvement in fentanyl imports and the 10% “floor” set on “Liberation Day”) on top of the residual 10% average from the Biden era.

But the rest of the extra tariffs will be paused for 90 days. China, in turn, has suspended its own retaliatory tariffs on the US.

The market has responded as you would probably have expected, with share prices leaping in relief. But that raises a question: is the trade war now over? Now that the two sides have blinked, can globalisation continue more or less as it had before?

That, it turns out, is a trickier and more complex question than it might first seem.

For one thing, even if one were to assume this is a permanent truce rather than a suspended one, it still leaves tariffs considerably higher than they were only last year. And China faces tariffs far higher than most other countries (tot up the existing ones and the Trump era ones and China faces average tariffs of around 40%, while the average for most countries is between 8% and 14%, according to Capital Economics).

In other words, the US is still implementing an economic policy designed to increase the cost of doing business with China, even if it no longer attempts to prevent it altogether. The fact that last week’s trade agreement with the UK contains clauses seemingly designed to encourage it to raise trade barriers against China for reasons of “security” only reinforces this suspicion. The trade war is still simmering, even if it’s no longer as hot as it was a few days ago.

And more broadly, the deeper impact of the trade rollercoaster in recent months is unlikely to disappear altogether. Companies remain more nervous about investing in factories and expansions in the face of such deep economic instability. No-one is entirely sure the White House won’t just U-turn once again.

That being said, it’s hard not to escape the conclusion that the US president has blinked in this trade war. In the face of a potential recession, he has pulled back from the scariest and most damaging of his tariffs, earlier and to a greater extent than many had expected.