Boris and Rishi 'had secret peace summit' before shock resignation as Sir Keir claims PM has 'lost control'
11 June 2023, 08:51 | Updated: 12 June 2023, 08:29
Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak had a secret peace summit which lit the fuse for Friday's bombshell resignation - after a row over the former PM's resignation honours list.
The Mail on Sunday reports that the two men met in Parliament on Wednesday to attempt to mend ties.
But after leaving the meeting confident that his honours list would not be interfered with - Rishi was said to renege on the promise, removing several names from the list which was once said to have included Nadine Dorries.
This cause the domino effect which led to Johnson, Dorries and loyalist Nigel Adams standing down immediately to give Sunak a triple by-election headache.
The claims coincide with comments from Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer in which he calls for a general election, adding Mr Sunak has "lost control of his government" following the trio of resignations.
Starmer writes: "Rishi Sunak must finally find a backbone, call an election, and let the public have their say on 13 years of Tory failure.
"This farce must stop. People have had enough," he continued, writing in The Sunday Mirror.
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The news follows comments from Sir Jacob Reese-Mogg, who received a knighthood as part of Boris Johnson's resignation honours list.
Writing in The Mail on Sunday, Sir Jacob said: "I am not, unlike some of my fellow Boris admirers, resigning my Commons seat. I will fight my North East Somerset seat at the next election and campaign for a Conservative victory nationally."
"I would most strongly warn Conservative Party managers against any attempt to block Boris if he seeks the party nomination in another seat.
"Any attempt to do so would shatter our fragile party unity and plunge the Conservatives into civil war."
Read more: Boris Johnson quits as MP and claims 'kangaroo court' privileges committee tried to 'drive him out'
Adams, a loyal ally of Boris Johnson, announced on Twitter on Saturday he will be standing down with 'immediate effect' - the third such resignation in 24 hours.
The latest Tory resignation follows the former Prime Minister's decision to step down on Friday following committee findings into 'partygate' - a probe which Johnson branded a 'kangaroo court'.
The news means a by-election will now be triggered in Adams' constituency of Selby and Ainsty.
The North Yorkshire seat was won by the Conservatives in 2019 with a 20,137 majority.
The announcement was triggered after Adams, 58, posted to Twitter: 'Yesterday, Selby Conservatives selected an excellent new parliamentary candidate.'
"I’ve today informed the chief whip that I will be standing down as a Member of Parliament with immediate effect.
Adding: "It has been an honour to represent the area where I was raised, educated".
It proves but the latest headache for PM Rishi Sunak as yet another by-election is triggered following the resignation of Nadine Dorries and Boris Johnson.
Adams added in a second Tweet: 'I want to thank my constituents for their wonderful support since 2010.'
Nigel Adams was Minister of State in the Cabinet Office between 15 September 2021 and 5 September 2022, having previously held the position of Minister for Asia at the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) and Minister of State at the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.
He was first elected the Conservative MP for Selby and Ainsty in May 2010.
Yesterday, Selby Conservatives selected an excellent new parliamentary candidate.
— Nigel Adams MP 🇬🇧 (@nadams) June 10, 2023
I’ve today informed the chief whip that I will be standing down as a Member of Parliament with immediate effect.
It has been an honour to represent the area where I was raised, educated &
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The trio of resignations has been described by some as a targeted attempt to undermine Rishi Sunak's premiership.
It's also not expected to be the last resignation in the coming days in an apparent show of solidarity for Johnson.
58-year-old Johnson claims he is the victim of a "witch hunt" over Partygate - revelations that saw the PM accused of breaking lockdown rules and misleading the Commons.
Adams had previously said he would quit at the next General Election but followed in the footsteps of Mr Johnson and Nadine Dorries by resigning now.
Andrew Marr on Boris Johnson: 'The jig is up.'
Mr Adams and Ms Dorries had both been expected to receive peerages in Mr Johnson's resignation honours list, however, neither names featured when it was released on Friday.
It comes ahead of the publication of the partygate probe, which is expected to reflect negatively on Johnson.
