TORY MP Sir Christoper Chope says the party is now “ungovernable” – and has called for a General Election.
In an interview with GB News, Sir Christopher also told why he was backing Boris Johnson to be the next leader.
He told Esther McVey and Philip Davis: “The last few months has shown that the Conservative parliamentary party is ungovernable, because we’ve destroyed two Prime Ministers and two party leaders.
“And the last party leader wasn’t even given the chance. The people who thought they were going to inherit the crown from Boris when they didn’t get it, decided that they would start from day one to undermine Liz. And now they’ve achieved their objective. And if they think they’re going to be able to succeed now and establish a new Conservative leadership, which is supported by the parliamentary party, I think they’ve got another thing coming.
“So the parliamentary party is now full of people who are at odds with each other, personally and politically. And the only way I think that the new leader will command respect from the party members is if that leader is somebody who has already been endorsed by the wider electorate. As indeed Boris was endorsed two and a half years ago. So I think the best thing for the party and for the country, actually, is to have a general election as soon as we’ve chosen our new leader.
On fears the Tories would face electoral oblivion Sir Christopher said: “That’s if you take the instant poll now, but think about it three or four weeks or five or six weeks hence, after a General Election campaign, which is concentrating on the state of the economy.
“The question will be, do you believe that the Conservatives are better able to deal with this economic and political crisis and the war in Ukraine? Or do you think Keir Starmer and his gang are? And I am confident that at the end of that process, actually, the majority of people will say ‘no, we think that the Conservatives are better able to take the country forward’.
“Otherwise, we’re not going to have any stability because we’re going to have a new leader who won’t command the support of the parliamentary party. And every time that new leader tries to do something, whether it be making reductions in expenditure or increases in taxes, there’s going to be a whole massive consensus of MPs saying, I’m not going to vote for that
On why he is backing Boris he added: “I did support Boris to the end, and I said we’d regret the day when we got rid of him. And unfortunately I’ve been proved right on that. But if Boris was to become our leader again, then he’d be able to argue, and we’d be able to argue, that he was continuing to fulfill a mandate that was given to him in the 2019 General Election, and he’s the only potential candidate for whom that will be true. So I think that’s another reason for backing Boris and I hope that he announces that he will be a candidate.
“My view is that some of the candidates are the very people who created this crisis. They have undermined two successive Prime Ministers, and why should I give my support to people who have been so disloyal to the Conservative Party and particularly to the members in the country? Why should I support colleagues who have destroyed those leaders?
