Street WHATSAPP PLOT TO DUMP TEZZA
General Election 2017: Mrs May facing high-tech attempt to undermine her authority as demos held at Downing
TORY MPs are actively plotting the downfall of Theresa May on WhatsApp, one former minister said.
Ed Vaizey, an ex-culture minister, told the BBC that MPs were discussing Mrs May’s position using the online messaging system.
Asked if there were phone calls being made between Tories about the next leader, Mr Vaizey said: “That’s so 20th century. It’s all on WhatsApp.
“We all talk on WhatsApp… lots of MPs are in lots of different groups.”
Prime Minister Theresa May looks set to be backed by the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) after Downing Street confirmed an outline “confidence and supply” agreement had been reached.
The 10 MPs from the Northern Irish party could prove crucial in supporting the Conservatives on key votes after Thursday’s election saw Mrs May lose control of the Commons.
A Number 10 spokesman said: “We can confirm that the Democratic Unionist Party have agreed to the principles of an outline agreement to support the Conservative government on a confidence and supply basis when Parliament returns next week.
“We welcome this commitment, which can provide the stability and certainty the whole country requires as we embark on Brexit and beyond.
“The details will be put forward for discussion and agreement at a Cabinet meeting on Monday.”
Mrs May’s final full Cabinet is expected to be finalised later.
Former housing minister Gavin Barwell, who lost his Croydon Central seat, was appointed as Mrs May’s new chief of staff in Downing Street.
The Prime Minister said Mr Barwell will bring “considerable experience” to the post.
His appointment comes after Mrs May’s closest aides Nick Timothy and Fiona Hill, who had served as joint chiefs of staff, both quit.
Mr Barwell said: “I voted for Theresa May to become Prime Minister.
“I believe she is the best person to heal the divisions in our country that last year’s referendum and the General Election have laid bare, getting the best Brexit deal for the whole country and leading us towards a brighter future outside the EU.
“I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to serve as her chief of staff.”
However, one minister, Lord Dunlop, refused to serve in Mrs May’s government quitting as junior Scotland Office minister yesterday.
He said the Tory gains north of the border were a good moment to end his political career.
Ruth Davidson, leader of the Scottish Conservatives, has dismissed reports that her party will break away. It had been suggested aides for the leader of the Tories in Scotland were working on a deal that would see a split from the UK party.
It follows the Scottish Tories recording their best result in a General Election for more than three decades on Thursday, with their tally of MPs increased from one to 13.
But writing on Twitter, the Scottish Tory leader dismissed the newspaper claim as “b****cks”.
He said: “Folk might remember I fought a leadership election on the other side of that argument.”
Ms Davidson was elected as leader of the Scottish Conservatives in 2011 after opposing a similar plan put forward by rival Murdo Fraser, now the party’s finance spokesman.
Speaking on BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland programme, he said: “It rang some bells for some things I said a few years ago but I’m assured that there’s not a lot of truth in this particular story.”
Meanwhile, Ms Davidson has said she has received assurances from the Prime Minister over gay rights should the Tories do a deal with the Democratic Unionist Party.
Ms Davidson, who is gay, spoke out after Mrs May outlined a plan to seek a deal with the socially hardline party.
Ms Davidson, who became engaged to partner Jen Wilson in May 2016, later told the BBC: “I asked for a categoric assurance that if any deal deal was done with the DUP there would be absolutely no rescission of LGBTI rights in the rest of the UK and in Great Britain.
“I wanted categoric assurances from the Prime Minister on, and I received them.”
‘MPs were discussing Mrs May’s position using online messaging services’