9 most vicious insults as Tory MPs turn on each other after Sunak told to quit

24 January 2024 , 07:54

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Rishi Sunak faces even louder calls to put the country out of its misery and call a general election (Image: POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Rishi Sunak has woken up to a fresh leadership crisis after his deeply-divided rabble of MPs spent the night tearing chunks out of each other.

The PM faces an avalanche of calls to put the country out of its misery and just call a general election, with top Tories very publicly trading blows. Mr Sunak will head to Prime Minister's Questions today with a brutal monstering by former ally Sir Simon Clarke ringing in his ears.

Sir Simon warned the Conservatives must get rid of the PM or face a "massacre" at this year's general election. But it sparked a fresh wave of insults and arguments overnight, which saw the backbench rebel labelled "self-indulgent", "selfish" and "divisive" by his own colleagues. Ironically the public call for the PM to be ousted came just days after election guru Isaac Levido warned backbenchers they face a mauling if the civil war continues.

Following Sir Simon's blistering broadside at the "uninspiring" PM, fellow Conservatives piled in accusing him of making a bad situation worse. Former Brexit Secretary SIr David Davis admitted: “This is getting silly.”

He continued: “The party and the country are sick and tired of MPs putting their own leadership ambitions ahead of the UK's best interests.” Meanwhile backbencher Tim Loughton ruefully wrote: "With colleagues like this who needs enemies?"

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In a leaked WhatsApp message, minister Andrew Bowie reportedly urged rebels to "get a f***ing grip". He went on: “Can we, for more than five minutes, dispense with the civil war and leadership speculation.”

It got worse for Sir Simon, as others refused to stick their neck out with him - highlighting the deep divisions within Tory ranks. Tobias Ellwood hit out, branding it "dangerous" and "selfish". And he said: "I suspect there will be very little support for Simon Clarke."

And former minister Sir Conor Burns posted on Twitter: "Voters won’t forgive self-indulgent infighting. We have a job to do and we should get on with it. Politics isn’t a game - we serve people and it is trust. Those who can’t accept that should shut up or shove off."

Dame Priti Patel wrote: "At this critical time for our country, with challenges at home and abroad, our party must focus on the people we serve and deliver for the country. Engaging in facile and divisive self indulgence only serves our opponents, it’s time to unite and get on with the job."

Sir Simon Clarke says insults won't stop him calling for a new leader (Getty Images)

And Damian Green, who chairs the influential One Nation group of centrist Tories, posted: "Simon Clarke is wrong and unwise to try to start another internal fight. Let’s start attacking our opponents, not each other."

Business minister Kevin Hollinrake that there was some "panic" behind Sir Simon's call for a new Tory leader. He told Times Radio: "Of course, some people panic at a difficult time. This is not the overwhelming view of the party."

A prickly Sir Simon later hit back at his angry colleagues, defiantly posting: "Personal insults don't change the facts." He wrote: "Every Conservative MP will need to live with the decision they make in the coming days for the rest of their lives. Failing to act would itself represent a decision. Look at the polls. Personal insults don’t change the facts. I have no further comment to make."

The public falling out has added pressure on the PM to call a general election. He is understood to favour limping through until November, but the latest psychodrama raises fresh questions over whether he can survive until then.

He was spared a potentially fatal rebellion over his Rwanda last week when just 11 Tories followed through on their threats to vote it down. The number would have been 12 but Lee Anderson - who quit as a Tory deputy chairman in protest - wimped out after other MPs laughed at him.

Labour's Sarah Owen said: "Neither Rishi Sunak or Simon Clarke are doing any of this for the good of the country. This binfire of a Tory melodrama is all about power, not about the people they are supposed to serve. We need a General Election now!"

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Labour’s campaign chief Pat McFadden said: “There are many good reasons for getting rid of this clapped out Conservative government and liberating the British people from endless bouts of Tory infighting is certainly one of them.

"Whilst the Conservatives fight among themselves, Labour will fight for a better future for the country, where economic growth is felt in every part of Britain, where we generate the wealth we need for the NHS, good schools and safety on our streets and where we renew the country after 14 years of Tory failure."

Dave Burke