Tory MPs oust Duncan Smith
Iain Duncan Smith has been ousted as Conservative Party leader after he narrowly failed to gain the necessary 83 votes in today’s crucial ballot of Tory MPs.
Mr Duncan Smith received 75 votes of support from his parliamentary colleagues, with 90 Conservative MPs expressing no confidence in his leadership.
An election has been declared for a new party leader, with nominations closing at noon on Thursday 6th November.
In a statement following the verdict, IDS said that he would give the new leader his ‘absolute loyalty and support – whoever it is’.
He added that he would defend ‘with vigour’ the policies that he and his Shadow Cabinet had developed over the past two years.
‘Although I will not now be the first Prime Minister of the first Conservative government of the 21st century, I believe I have provided a serious and strong policy agenda for that government’, Mr Duncan Smith remarked.
He said that he would continue to fight from the backbenches for social justice for those ‘in some of the poorest communities up and down the land’.
Today’s leadership contest was triggered after at least 25 Tory MPs wrote to Sir Michael Spicer, the chair of the party’s 1922 Committee, requesting a vote on the future of their embattled leader.
The contest for the next Conservative leader now gets underway in earnest.
Shadow Chancellor Michael Howard remains the bookies’ favourite to take over the difficult mantle after Shadow Deputy Prime Minister David Davis – widely expected to put his hat in the ring – announced that he would not be standing in the race.
‘A long and protracted leadership contest will worsen the divisions and faction-fighting and make the sort of problems we have had in the last few years even worse in the run-up to the next general election’, Mr Davis told a press conference following this evening’s result.
He added that he would be throwing his support behind the current Shadow Chancellor.
Michael Portillo – keenly admired by those on the reforming wing of the party – and former Tory chancellor and pro-European Ken Clarke are both reported to be unlikely to stand.
Mr Duncan Smith’s tenure had come under increasing pressure in recent weeks after the party’s annual conference in Blackpool was overshadowed by talk of plotting to overthrow the former Maastricht rebel.
IDS came to power in October 2001 following the resignation of William Hague after the Tory Party suffered its second general election defeat to Tony Blair’s New Labour.
At the time, Mr Duncan-Smith saw off such Tory grandees as Michael Ancram and Ken Clarke to secure a convincing majority among the 300,000 or so constituency party members.
During his tenure as leader, IDS was widely accused of having failed to deliver the kind of media and Commons performances needed to land the necessary blows on the Labour government or to endear him to the British public.
However, commentators have noticed a more assured public demeanour of late following reports he had undergone voice coaching.
Under party rules, Mr Duncan Smith is barred from standing in the forthcoming leadership contest.
The first ballot will be held on Tuesday 11th November.
