May rounds on Cabinet rebels who defied whip and killed no deal
Calls for Prime Minister’s chief of staff to be sacked over claims he told MPS they could abstain on vote
‘The Whips Office were absolutely furious that Barwell went above their heads. He went rogue’
THERESA MAY and the Chief Whip yesterday turned on Remainer rebels during a Cabinet meeting for defying a three-line whip and helping Labour rule out no deal.
The Prime Minister is said to have expressed her fury with Amber Rudd, David Gauke, Greg Clark, David Mundell and Claire Perry after they abstained in the critical vote.
Mrs May is understood to have criticised leaks from the Cabinet and accused some ministers of “posturing” and being “self-serving”.
Julian Smith, the Chief Whip, said there was no excuse for breaking collective responsibility and praised Sarah Newton, the former work and pensions minister, for doing the honourable thing by resigning.
Greg Clark, the Business Secretary, is said to have attempted to explain his decision by arguing that the whipping arrangements were confused. At this point Mr Smith is said to have walked out of the Cabinet meeting.
Geoffrey Cox, the Attorney General, and Michael Gove, the Environment Secretary, are both said to have made “unifying” interventions in a bid to displace tensions. It came as MPS called for Mrs May’s chief of staff to be sacked amid mounting speculation that he told Remainer Cabinet ministers they could abstain on Wednesday night’s crucial vote.
Gavin Barwell was accused of “going rogue” and overruling whips amid an increasing clamour for the 13 ministers who went against the Government to lose their ministerial jobs.
The four Cabinet members were among 18 MPS on the Government payroll to defy the three-line whip on the motion to take no deal off the table. It remains unclear who, if anyone, told them they could abstain.
Downing Street has denied the claims concerning Mr Barwell’s involvement, with a senior source saying: “This is absolute nonsense. He is not involved in anything like that. He has not spoken to any ministers.”
There were counterclaims that the Whips’ Office told people they could abstain. However, multiple sources have told The Daily Telegraph that Mr Barwell, an ardent Remainer, instructed Andrew Bowie, the Prime Minister’s joint parliamentary private secretary, to “spread the word” that ministers could abstain on the Govern- ment’s no-deal motion. It led to a Government defeat by 321 votes to 278, leaving the Prime Minister’s authority in tatters.
A Tory MP said: “The Whips Office were absolutely furious that Barwell went above their heads. He went rogue – I don’t think the Prime Minister knew what he was doing.
“Andrew [Bowie] is completely broken – he had to be comforted by colleagues as he felt like he was put in an impossible position.”
Another MP said: “Gavin Barwell should be sacked for what he’s done. It is deeply unconstitutional.” According to one other source, a group of around 30 Remainer ministers were spotted together near the chamber before the crunch vote. Stephen Hammond, the health minister, confirmed ministers had been reassured they would not lose their jobs if they defied the party whip.
There were rumours last night that Mr Bowie, MP for West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine, considered resigning immediately after the vote and had been advised to “make himself scarce” amid rising speculation he had become embroiled in Mr Barwell’s “plot”.
One minister who abstained said: “Ministers were told they could abstain. I got that from colleagues, although I know Andrew Bowie was directly involved in telling other people that.”
Mr Bowie refused to confirm or deny whether he had spoken to Mr Barwell. He said: “I cannot comment on any of the decisions that were made last night. What I can confirm is I didn’t have a conversation with David Mundell.”
He also refused to confirm or deny whether he had held talks with the other Cabinet ministers who abstained.
He said: “I think a lot of things are being said (but) I don’t want to go into any of the minutiae. I did my job as PPS.”
Asked if Mr Barwell had given the green light for the four Cabinet ministers to remain in post, he repeated he could not disclose what had gone on.
Nigel Evans, joint executive secretary of the 1922 Committee of backbench Conservative MPS, called on Mrs May to regain control of her party. “She needs to reassert her authority. We have to have collective responsibility in government, otherwise it just simply doesn’t work.
“Apparently Cabinet ministers were confused as to whether they were on a three-line whip or not. Well, funnily enough, I received a text that told me on my phone that I was on a three-line whip. They received the same text. It’s amazing that you can be a Cabinet minister and still not know what a threeline whip text means.”
Other ministers who abstained included Claire Perry, Tobias Ellwood, and Stephen Hammond.