Boris retaliates: Archcritic Tobias Ellwood is stripped of Tory whip for failing to vote in confidence in government last night – despite official visit to Moldova
- Ellwood lost the whip after failing to vote in last night’s confidence vote
- Ex-soldier is chairman of the Defense Committee and is currently in Moldova
- He was one of 12 Tories who abstained, comfortably won by PM
Boris Johnson took revenge on one of his loudest Tory critics today for not supporting his government.
Former minister Tobias Ellwood was stripped of the party whip after failing to vote in the House of Commons confidence vote last night.
But the move will likely be seen as driven purely by the Prime Minister’s desire to return to a back seat who has made little secret of his distaste for him.
Mr Ellwood, a former soldier, is chairman of the Defense Committee and is currently in Moldova on an official visit in that capacity.
The 55-year-old father of two was one of 12 Tories who abstained from the confidence vote last night, which Johnson comfortably won 349 to 238, thanks to his massive majority.
This morning he appeared to show his support for Penny Mordaunt in the Tory leadership race, by retweeting her campaign video. By stripping him of the whip, he can no longer vote.
Johnson’s team is believed to be tacitly backing rival Liz Truss, with several ministers expressing their support, including Nadine Dorries and Jacob Rees-Mogg.
A spokeswoman for the Tory Whips Office said: ‘Tobias Ellwood MP has lost the Conservative Party whip after failing to vote in support of the government in last night’s confidence vote.’
But in a statement, Mr Ellwood said he was “deeply sorry” that he lost the Tory whip but was unable to return from a meeting with the president of Moldova due to “unprecedented disruption”.
Former minister Tobias Ellwood was stripped of the party whip after failing to vote in the House of Commons confidence vote last night.
But the move will likely be seen as driven purely by the Prime Minister’s desire to return to a back seat who has made little secret of his distaste for him.
Mr Ellwood, a former soldier, is chairman of the Defense Committee and is currently in Moldova on an official visit in that capacity.
The 55-year-old father of two was one of 12 Tories who abstained from the confidence vote last night, which Johnson comfortably won 349 to 238, thanks to his massive majority.
In a statement, the senior MP said: “Following my meeting yesterday with the President of Moldova, I was unable to travel back due to an unprecedented disruption both here and in the UK.
“I am very sorry to lose the whip, but I will now continue with my meetings in Ukraine to promote the Prime Minister’s efforts here and specifically aim for the reopening of the port of Odessa – so that essential grain exports can resume. ‘
Ministers and supporters with valid reasons to stay away from parliament when there are votes are usually combined with people in similar positions in opposition parties, in order to keep the balance of the voting groups fair.
The process is discretionary and sometimes does not apply to large votes, such as a confidence vote.l
It is not clear why Mr Ellwood was not linked last night. He is a Remainer and longstanding critic of the Prime Minister who has long called for his replacement as Tory leader, although he did not enter the leadership contest to replace Mr Johnson.
Mr Ellwood is a former army captain who made headlines in 2017 when he came to the rescue of PC Keith Palmer who was fatally stabbed by terrorist Khalid Masood outside the Palace of Westminster.
He was veterans minister at the Department of Defense under Theresa May, but returned to the back seats to head the defense committee after Mr Johnson took office.