Tory whips offer “total loyalty” to Duncan Smith
Conservative whips on Friday declared their ‘total loyalty’ to Iain Duncan Smith, and rejected reports the party leader was certain to face a vote of no confidence.
Chief whip David Maclean slammed suggestions that whips were mounting a concerted campaign to unseat Mr Duncan Smith.
Press reports claimed some whips were urging MPs to write to the chairman of the backbench 1922 committee to call for a no confidence vote.
For a no confidence vote to take place, 25 Tory MPs must write to Sir Michael Spicer, expressing their objections about the present leadership.
Mr Maclean’s statement said: ‘As Conservative whips, appointed by Iain Duncan Smith, we remain totally loyal to the leadership of the Conservative Party.
‘We refute entirely suggestions in some of the press that Iain has lost the confidence of the whips office or that whips are encouraging a vote of no confidence or even encouraging colleagues to write to Sir Michael Spicer.’
‘The report that whips have decided to take matters into their own hands is nonsense. Attempts to misrepresent the position of the whips’ office to destabilise the leadership are dishonourable and will be recognised as such by the vast majority of colleagues.
‘I have today spoken personally to all the whips and they are unanimous in their support for the leader of the party.’
Mr Maclean, objecting to The Guardian’s front-page story, said it was ‘outrageous and wrong’ to suggest whips wanted a leadership election.
‘I know there is a lot of misinformation in the press just now about leadership election speculation but I am surprised The Guardian should fall for a piece of hype that is patently absurd,’ he said.
