I’ll sort it! May says sorry for meltdown
THERESA May settled Tory nerves over her leadership last night and made a heartfelt apology to MPs for last week’s general election meltdown.
In a rousing meeting she promised gathered MPs: “I’m the person who got us into this mess and I’m the one who will get us out of it.”
And in a joke about her widely mocked “strong and stable” election slogan, the Prime Minister added: “I am strong, stable and contrite.”
Mrs May was cheered and applauded for nearly 30 seconds as she arrived at the packed first meeting of the powerful 1922 Committee of Conservative backbenchers since the poll disappointment.
The Tory leader told MPs she had been “stuffing envelopes” for Conservative campaigns since she was 12 years old and had dedicated herself to the party.
“I will serve you as long as you want me to,” she said in an emotional speech.
She also said she was determined to press on with Britain’s exit from the EU and hit out at Labour “duplicity” for sending out differing messages about their Brexit plans to different groups of voters.
Mrs May took more than two dozen questions from MPs during the meeting, with many raising concerns about the failings of the Tory election effort.
They did not, however, question her position.
Some were concerned that Labour had proved more adept at targeting particular groups of voters and getting their message across.
One backbencher leaving the meeting said: “There was no dissent that I heard. We are united in understanding the last thing the country wants is another general election or a Tory leadership election.”
Mrs May was said to have accepted that the party’s manifesto
DUP LEADER VOWS TO ACT ‘RESPONSIBLY’
DEMOCRATIC Unionist Party leader Arlene Foster has pledged to wield influence responsibly and in the UK’s interests ahead of today’s talks with the PM.
The Tories’ failure to secure an overall majority gave the DUP’s 10 MPs a crucial role in keeping Theresa May’s government policy promise for an overhaul in social care had been badly mishandled, angering many core Tory voters.
And the PM was applauded for replacing her controversial advisers Nick Timothy and Fiona Hill with former minister Gavin Barwell as her chief of staff, describing the shake-up as “changes close to home”.
She promised to make far more effort to consult colleagues about policy and political strategy.
“She said that she will make more effort to spend more time with colleagues,” one MP said.
The MP added: “She was apologetic, she took responsibility and she accepted there will be a lot of changes in the way things are run.” afloat. On the table is for the DUP to support the Tories in financial and security votes. In return the DUP is expected to want a bigger say in Brexit talks.
Mrs Foster said yesterday: “I will be mindful of our responsibility to help bring stability to the nation.”