Rishi Sunak was persuaded not to quit as chancellor over his COVID lockdown fine after discussions with executives working for media mogul Rupert Murdoch, it has been claimed.
Mr Sunak is reported to have shared a draft resignation statement with allies after both he and Boris Johnson were fined for attending the then prime minister’s birthday celebration in Downing Street in June 2020.
Among those he reportedly spoke to were former Conservative leader and Times columnist Lord William Hague, and Lord Daniel Finkelstein, a former executive editor and current columnist at the newspaper – owned by Mr Murdoch’sNews Corp.
Mr Sunak also had a conversation about his potential resignation with Mas Siddiqui – an old friend, former Goldman Sachs colleague and News Corp director – according to The Daily Telegraph.
Allies of Mr Johnson have told people that Mr Murdoch intervened to persuade Mr Sunak not to quit, according to the paper, reporting on claims in a new book by its political editor Ben Riley-Smith.
However, a Number 10 source said Mr Sunak did not speak directly to Mr Murdoch at any time about his potential resignation.
It is unknown whether a message was passed directly from Mr Murdoch to Mr Sunak.
It’s the latest report to suggest that Mr Sunak was on the verge of resigning after he was fined by police for breaching COVID lockdown rules.
Image: A Downing Street source said Mr Sunak did not speak directly to Mr Murdoch. Pic: AP
Image: The PM reportedly spoke to Lord Hague as he considered his future
After days of furore directed at Rishi Sunak for the election betting scandal, now a Labour candidate is under investigation by the Gambling Commission for his own betting activity – and is immediately suspended.
Is this an equaliser in one of the grubbiest electoral sagas of recent elections? Quite possibly not.
There is no doubting the utter dismay in Labour HQ at the revelation that they too have a candidate caught up in the betting scandal.
However, if this scenario is as presented, it is hard to see an allegation being mounted that he had insider intelligence on the race – unless it can be proved he was deliberately setting out to lose.
An under-pressure Gambling Commission will investigate every candidate’s name on the spreadsheet from gambling companies of those who placed bets – but it is unclear from available facts where this will go.
The Tory betting saga, however, is more complicated and now on its 13th day.
It was almost two weeks ago that Craig Williams – Rishi Sunak’s closest parliamentary aide and former Montgomeryshire MP – admitted he had placed a bet on the election date – a date he might have known before the public at large.
He denies he committed any offence, and remains under investigation.
Laura Saunders, standing for the Tories just south in Bristol North West, has also been suspended for putting a bet on the date when her partner worked in Conservative headquarters on the election.
For most of that time, Mr Sunak has been insisting he could not suspend either candidate because of the ongoing probe by the Gambling Commission.
Ministers, as well as opponents, weighed in.
And on Tuesday he reversed that decision under that pressure.
This means there are questions about the prime minister’s own judgement and unwillingness to act on top of questions about the behaviour of those closest to him.
Image: Craig Williams and Laura Saunders have both been suspended from the Tories. Pics: PA/Laura Saunders for Bristol North West
This story has had massive cut through with the public, topping the charts for any news story in the UK – according to YouGov’s AI news tracker – for the last four days.
There is dismay from the cabinet downwards.
Labour’s own problems have undermined their own ability to go on the attack. But it is not clear that voters will see the two issues on the same scale.
The full list of the candidates running for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich is:
Charlie Caiger, independent; Tony Gould, Reform UK; Mike Hallatt, independent; Brett Alistair Mickelburgh, Lib Dems; Dan Pratt, Greens; Patrick Spencer, Conservatives.
The full list of candidates for Bristol North West is:
Caroline Gooch, Lib Dems; Darren Jones, Labour; Scarlett O’Connor, Reform UK; Mary Page, Green Party; Ben Smith, SDP.
The full list of candidates for Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr is:
Jeremy Brignell-Thorp, Green Party; Oliver Lewis, Reform UK; Glyn Preston, Lib Dems; Elwyn Vaughan, Plaid Cymru; Steve Witherden, Labour.
Four men have been arrested on suspicion of aggravated trespass in the grounds of the prime minister’s home, police have confirmed.
The incident took place at Rishi Sunak’s constituency address in Kirby Sigston, North Yorkshire, while he was attending events in London to mark the Japanese state visit.
A police statement said officers were “with the four men within one minute of them entering the grounds”.
The arrests are connected to a protest by campaigners from Youth Demand. It describes itself as a group of young people who want “the Tories and the Labour Party commit to a two-way arms embargo on Israel, and to stop all new oil and gas licences”.
A spokesperson for the group said three of those arrested were taking part in the demonstration, while the fourth person was an independent photographer.
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A North Yorkshire Police spokesperson said: “They were detained at around 12.40pm before being escorted off the property and arrested on suspicion of aggravated trespass.
“The men, aged 52 from London, 43 from Bolton, 21 from Manchester, and 20 from Chichester, remain in police custody for questioning and enquiries are ongoing.”
It comes after a separate incident last summer, when protesters scaled the roof of Mr Sunak’s home.
They held up banners which said “NO NEW OIL” and draped the building in fabric. It happened while the prime minister and his family were away on holiday in California.
Amy Rugg-Easey, 33, Alexandra Wilson, 32, Michael Grant, 64, and Mathieu Soete, 38, have pleaded not guilty to criminal damage, with a two-day trial set to take place in July.