At least 17 Tory MPs say they will vote to stop no-deal Brexit despite government pressure

Rebel Conservatives were defiant on Monday night about Boris Johnson’s threats of deselection and an early general election, with at least 17 Conservative MPs saying privately or publicly that they have not been deterred from voting to stop a no-deal Brexit.

The work and pensions secretary, Amber Rudd, voiced unease at the persuasion tactics being used to deter votes on a proposed bill to stop no deal. She said removing the whip was a “drastic step” and she had made clear to Johnson that she did not agree with threats. She added that sanctions should also apply to Brexiter MPs if they voted against a future deal.

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“We should not be a party that is trying to remove from our party two former chancellors, a number of ex-cabinet ministers … the way to hold our party together and to get a deal is to bring them onside and explain to them what we’re trying to do and why,” she said.

“I don’t think it’s fair either to consider removing the whip from a group of people who oppose no deal – which is not the government position – but is a legitimate Conservative position and not to remove the whip from people who have consistently voted against the withdrawal agreement and may yet vote against the agreement that Boris Johnson brings back before 31 October.”

The former chancellor Philip Hammond wrote to Johnson on Monday saying the rebel group regretted they had not been able to discuss any progress towards a Brexit deal with him – after a planned meeting with the prime minister was abruptly cancelled on Sunday night.

Johnson has said that MPs are fundamentally undermining the government’s negotiating position with a bid to stop no deal, stressing that talks are progressing.

But Hammond said Johnson must set out the steps taken since his visit to Berlin last month to draw up alternative arrangements to the Northern Ireland backstop and publish the UK’s proposals for revisions to the withdrawal agreement.

Hammond, whose name is on the anti-no-deal bill set to be presented to parliament this week, said the prime minister must confirm those proposals had been communicated to the EU and commit to publishing the response, as well as setting out the “specific progress” in talks with the EU.

MPs who have said they are undeterred by the threats from the government include Hammond, the former justice secretary David Gauke and the former ministers Alistair Burt, Stephen Hammond, Richard Harrington and Guto Bebb.

Some Tory MPs met on Monday afternoon in a Portcullis House office in Westminster to discuss Tuesday’s vote, with at least one deciding not to attend Johnson’s No 10 garden party for MPs which was held at the same time. “Who wants to stand around surrounded by a gang of English nationalists?” the MP said.

None of the expected rebels had been approached by the whips by Monday afternoon. One said he had learned of the government’s plan to sack MPs who failed to vote with Johnson by reading a news website.

“No 10 has left many of us with little choice but to go into the chamber prepared to vote against the deal. But there is an expectation that the whips will try to win over some individuals … with the usual mix of threats and promises,” an MP said.

Another said Johnson could face a backlash from some remain constituency parties if they try to impose a pro-no-deal MP during an election.

One source close to the rebel group said the mood had hardened, especially since briefing began that Johnson was planning a snap election after MPs were deselected. “This is a pathetic attempt to find an excuse for a general election,” one former cabinet minister said. “Ironically this is doing what Corbyn wants – is Dominic Cummings a sleeper agent?”

Others said they had been explicitly turned against the government because of the shock cancellation of the meeting with Johnson. “The only thing that would change my mind is if I was shown detail of a deal that is being brokered,” one former minister said. “But it is like the emperor’s new clothes.”

However, several Tory MPs who have been vocally against no deal are not prepared to vote to give the rebels control of the order paper, especially given the briefing from No 10 that this move would be seen as a confidence vote against Johnson.

The Guardian understands this group includes MPs such as Dame Caroline Spelman, one of the sponsors of a motion against no deal earlier this year, and the former foreign office minister Alan Duncan.

Tory whips are attempting to draw a distinction between MPs who are voting with their conscience to stop no deal and those who will vote to hand control of the order paper to rebel and opposition MPs in order for a bill to pass.

It is the latter group that No 10 says it believes are in effect voting against the government in a confidence vote – by taking the power to control parliamentary business away from a Conservative administration – and it is those MPs who will lose the whip.

Senior Tory sources said they believed it was possible to significantly reduce the number of rebels with the threats of an election and a confidence vote – and that there could be enough Labour Brexiteers to deliver a victory for the government.

However, it is understood a number of Labour MPs who have in the past voted against moves to derail Brexit, including Gareth Snell, Melanie Onn and Yvonne Fovargue, are not planning to defy the Labour whip.

“I think there are a number of us who will back another delay with gritted teeth and with no optimism but watching how this government is behaving, it is extremely hard to believe they are pursuing any meaningful Brexit deal,” one Labour MP said.

“Many more of us could possibly vote for a Brexit deal now if one was on the table but we see no evidence that is realistic and we believe no deal would be deeply damaging.”