Tory MPs must unite, says minister as infighting breaks out again after Priti Patel criticises Rishi Sunak
Tory MPs have been urged to “unite” by a Government minister after Priti Patel accused Rishi Sunak of presiding over the “managed decline” of the party.
i revealed on Friday that former home secretary Ms Patel had launched a veiled swipe at Rishi Sunak and other senior Conservatives, following the loss of more than 1,000 councillors at last week’s local elections.
In an exclusive interview, Ms Patel said: “Conservative Party aside, the party in its current form, the parliamentary party, seems to want to manage status quo and manage decline.”
She will be a keynote speaker at the inaugural conference of the Conservative Democratic Organisation on Saturday, the grassroots group set up by supporters of Boris Johnson.
There, she is expected to criticise “those in power and control in our party” who “rarely seem to be out there meeting people”, including during the local election campaign.
She said she will speak on behalf of the grassroots of the party, and will add: “As grassroots activists, we are the ones who are in touch with the people…Perhaps if they spent more time with us, they would be more in touch with the people and with our values.”
Speaking on Sky News on Saturday morning, Government minister Stuart Andrew refused to be drawn on Ms Patel’s criticism directly but called for the Tory party to “unite”.
He insisted the grassroots of the party were “determined” to support Mr Sunak in his leadership.
“I think what they want us to do is to unite to work together, tackle those issues, and go on to work towards winning the next election,” he said.
Addressing the major losses the Tories suffered in the local elections, Mr Andrew said: “They were difficult elections, of course they are, and I know from my own constituency that hardworking councillors had a really difficult night but they equally want us to focus on the issues that matter to the people in this country. That is what we are doing, that is what we need to concentrate on.”
“It’s great to have debate but let’s also focus and unite behind those key issues so we can work towards victory at the next election,” he added.
Mr Andrew hit back at Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer’s criticism of the party as “unconservative” and “failing to understand people’s need for stability, order and security”.
Mr Andrew said: “I’ve heard Keir Starmer relaunch himself so many times I’ve lost count and when I speak to people on the doorstep, I have to say that he’s not particularly resonating with them.”
In light of the Bank Of England lifting its inflation forecast, Mr Andrew admitted the country was going through an “incredibly difficult period”.
Senior Tory MP Tobias Ellwood, who represents Bournemouth East, also hit out at party colleagues for stoking division.
The Defence Committee chairman wrote in The Times: “A drag anchor of a right-wing caucus is in our ranks, and it has already written off any prospects of victory in 2024.
“As statecraft finally returns to No 10, guiding us into far calmer waters, less-than-subtle plots are afoot to shift our party to the right during the blame game that invariably follows electoral defeat.”
He criticised an excessive focus on tax cuts, “Europebashing” and culture wars, warning: “This is a recipe for disaster, as disloyal as it is reckless. It fails to recognise the fighting chance we have of winning.”
