'Theresa May is in the killing zone': PM is warned she has 72 hours to save her job | Daily Mail Online

Sun, 21 Oct 2018 10:53

The Prime Minister (pictured today in Maidenhead) has been urged to confront disgruntled backbenchers at a crisis meeting on Wednesday

Theresa May was warned she is in the 'killing zone' today and could have just 72 hours to save her job.

The Prime Minister faces demands she attend a 'show trial' on her Brexit concessions and the state of the Government on Wednesday night.

Conservative MPs are attacking the PM from multiple fronts, with Brexiteers furious at the state of play in Brussels and backbenchers demanding an agenda away from the EU talks.

Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab laughed off the latest offensive against the PM but a possible contender to replace Mrs May believes there is 'assassination in the air', the Sunday Times reported.

Reports today suggest as many as 46 letters of no confidence in Mrs May have already been submitted to the powerful Conservative 1922 Committee, which controls leadership contests.

This is just two short of the 48 required to call a full no confidence vote. Mrs May would be forced out of 158 MPs vote against her.

Rank-and-file MPs last night told the Mail on Sunday Mrs May that she was in the 'last chance saloon' and called on her to face them at their 1922 Committee meeting on Wednesday.

She was given the chilling warning that she should 'bring her own noose' to the showdown as rivals step up their campaigns to succeed her in No 10.

A Cabinet minister told the Sunday Times the PM was 'endangering her own government' by refusing to take a different approach to Brexit.

They said: 'This is the first time I've thought it could fall over. She's not listening. That's kamikaze.'

Brexit Secretary Mr Raab dismissed the threat to Mrs May's position, insisting the claims have been made many times before during the Brexit talks.

He quipped she was hanging by a 'pretty strong thread' and insisted the PM was close to a good deal that would ease pressure on her.

Mr Raab said the threats are 'made every week' and told the BBC's Andrew Marr: 'We are at the end stage of the negotiation. It is understandable there are jitters on all sides of this debate.

'We need to hold our nerve. There is an end in sight in terms of a good deal.'

The lurid claims about Mrs May's fate come just over two years after MP Jo Cox was assassinated on the streets of her Batley and Spen constituency and amid growing alarm at violent rhetoric in politics.

Party sources claim that more than 100 Tory MPs, including some members of the Cabinet, would fail to back Mrs May in that subsequent ballot '' short of the total required to automatically trigger a leadership contest, but enough, they argue, to deal a fatal blow.

MPs last night told Mrs May (pictured today at church in Maidenhead) that she was in the 'last chance saloon' and called on her to face them at their 1922 Committee meeting

Brexit Secretary Dominic Raabn dismissed the threat to Mrs May's position, insisting the claims have been made many times before during the Brexit talks

Former Brexit Secretary David Davis today cements his status as the early frontrunner to succeed Mrs May by publishing in The Mail on Sunday what will be seen as his manifesto for No 10.

Rising star MP Johnny Mercer renewed his own attack on the Government today, writing in the Sunday Times he 'cannot continue to support an administration that cannot function' on issues from Brexit to the Grenfell Tower disaster and the Windrush scandal.

Brexit Minister Suella Braverman denied Mrs May had lost control of the party and played down the violent imagery, telling Sky News: 'Colleagues are free to express themselves in the way they wish.'

But former minister Robert Halfon warned the Conservatives had a 'serious image problem' and warned that voters think the party is just about austerity or Brexit.

On Sky News he called for a 'workers' budget' that makes the Tories the 'cutting-the-cost-of-living' party.

He said Labour was in a 'very powerful position' but insisted there was 'all to play for' if Mrs May changed the Tory party message.

Former Brexit Secretary David Davis has cemented his status as the early frontrunner to succeed Mrs May by publishing what will be seen as his manifesto for No 10

Brexit Minister Suella Braverman (pictured on Sky News today) denied Mrs May had lost control of the party and played down the violent imagery

Mr Davis' rallying cry over Brexit includes a thinly veiled threat to ban European airliners from British airspace in the case of a 'no deal' exit from the EU.

Amid an increasingly febrile atmosphere at Westminster:

No 10 aides were this weekend ringing Cabinet Ministers in a fresh attempt to 'sell' the idea of a longer post-Brexit transition period.Allies of Mr Davis said that discussions had started with his main rival, Boris Johnson, about whether to go head-to-head in a contest or negotiate a joint ticket. Members of the 1922 Committee privately discussed shortening any leadership contest from three months to just four weeks to limit the impact on Brexit negotiations.Mrs May's former deputy, Damian Green, said he was 'filled with foreboding' about the Tory plots.Brexiteers accused Speaker John Bercow of 'plotting to foil Brexit' during tennis matches with Labour MP Chris Leslie, an arch-Remainer.Up to 700,000 protesters calling for a public vote on the final Brexit deal marched in London, as civil servants started to 'war game' a second referendum.Ordinary citizens were warned to start making their own preparations for a no-deal Brexit.Rising star MP Johnny Mercer (pictured in Dorchester on Friday) renewed his own attack on the Government today, writing he 'cannot continue to support an administration that cannot function'

Mrs May caused dismay across her party last week by proposing to extend the Brexit transition period by a year, with even arch-Remainers condemning the plan.

Bring your own noose to your show trial: can political abuse sink any lower? By Glen Owen

Today's warning that Theresa May should 'bring her own noose' to her 'show trial' before the 1922 Committee highlights the level of visceral aggression which Brexit has brought to political discourse.

The 2016 EU referendum split the Tory tribe in two, and led to exile for David Cameron and George Osborne as Mrs May moved into Downing Street. Osborne's bitterness came out in his vengeful line about not resting until Mrs May was 'chopped up in bags in my freezer'.

Mrs May's catastrophic General Election campaign heightened the frustration of the Brexiteer wing, as No 10 was forced to negotiate with Brussels without a Commons majority. It might explain Boris Johnson's angry complaint in The Mail on Sunday that Mrs May had 'wrapped a suicide vest around the British constitution '' and handed the detonator to [EU negotiator] Michel Barnier'.

Its not just the Tories of course: Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell spoke about 'lynching' Cabinet Minister Esther McVey, while his colleague Clive Lewis told an audience member at a party event to 'get on your knees, bitch'.

Here are some of the most vicious comments to come from MPs in recent times...

'You realise it's a s***show'

Johnny Mercer on the current Government

'They were arguing 'Why are we sacking her? Why aren't we lynching the bastard?' '

John McDonnell recalling a public meeting demonstrating against Esther McVey

'[I won't rest until she] is chopped up in bags in my freezer'

George Osborne on Theresa May

'We have wrapped a suicide vest around the British constitution '' and handed the detonator to Michel Barnier'

Boris Johnson on Theresa May's Brexit plan

'I always think he looks like somebody has put their finger up his bottom and he rather likes it'

Anna Soubry on Nigel Farage

'A stupid, sanctimonious dwarf'

Simon Burns to Commons Speaker John Bercow

'Boris? Well, he's the life and soul of the party but he's not the man you want driving you home at the end of the evening'

Amber Rudd on the former Foreign Secretary during a heated TV debate

'I am not blind'

David Davis, asked if he had tried to embrace Diane Abbott

' Get on your knees, bitch'

Clive Lewis to an audience member at a Momentum event

'[Prince] Harry can't actually fly a helicopter... He just sits there going 'vroom vroom' '

Slur from Kensington Labour MP Emma Dent Coad

'Calm down, dear'

David Cameron to Angela Eagle in the Commons chamber

Critics claimed the 'betrayal' has triggered a fresh wave of Tory MPs sending no-confidence letters to 1922 Committee chairman Sir Graham Brady.

Downing Street held conference calls with Cabinet Ministers yesterday, making what one source described as 'another attempt to explain why we should sign up to an extended transition'.

The source said: 'It is another Olly Robbins idea [the Prime Minister's civil service Brexit adviser] which doesn't fly. People are not happy. It raises more questions than it answers.'

Even some May loyalists are now desperately worried that a leadership contest will be triggered. Opponents believe that, if she flops at the 1922 Committee 'show trial', or fails to turn up, her fate will be sealed.

One senior Brexiteer said: 'She should bring her own noose to the '22. Short of an uncharacteristically powerful, persuasive and coherent performance, then I think her time will be up.'

Last night, Downing Street refused to confirm whether or not Mrs May would appear at the crunch meeting, saying that she would have 'plenty of chances to answer questions in the Commons next week'.

Another Tory MP, a former Cabinet Minister, likened Mrs May to a 'lame cockroach' who 'keeps going' in an 'irradiated' environment.

Meanwhile, in his MoS article, Mr Davis says that Brexit is being treated as a problem when it is really a 'golden opportunity'.

Pro-Brexit Cabinet Ministers, led by Commons Leader Andrea Leadsom, pulled back from resigning after meeting at a so-called 'pizza summit' last week, but continue to harbour concerns that the Government is being boxed into a 'soft' deal by Mr Robbins.

Last night, Tory MP Andrea Jenkyns, who believes that Mrs May should stand aside, said: 'This is a moment for action, the right time to select a brave leader. How bad does it get before we act?

'Betraying Leave voters will have catastrophic consequences for our party and democracy, handing power to Jeremy Corbyn. Voters will not forgive us'. And fellow May critic Andrew Bridgen said: 'This week Theresa May will find that she is drinking in the last chance saloon and the bad news for her is that the bar is already dry.

'If she doesn't turn up to the '22 that will only make the letters go in even faster'.

Separately, Tory Brexiteers accused Commons Speaker John Bercow '' who has admitted voting Remain in the referendum '' of secretly plotting with anti-Brexit MPs to thwart the process.

The Speaker will potentially play a key role in the crucial Commons debate on whether to accept a final Brexit deal, with critics fearing he will allow Remain MPs to vote to force Mrs May back to the negotiating table '' or even postpone Brexit all together.

Tory MPs have accused keen tennis player Mr Bercow of plotting the moves during matches with former Labour Minister Chris Leslie.

Mr Leslie was unavailable for comment last night but friends denied he had been conspiring with the Speaker.

Mr Bercow also denied any plot with Mr Leslie.

A spokesman said: 'The Speaker has an open door to MPs from all parties and all sides of the Brexit divide. He remains scrupulously fair and even-handed in all Commons debates.'

Mrs May's former deputy, Damian Green, said he was 'filled with foreboding' about the Tory plots

Former Brexit secretary David Davis launches the 'Battle of Britain' as he threatens No Fly Zone for EU planes in UK airspace

BY GLEN OWEN POLITICAL EDITOR FOR THE MAIL ON SUNDAY

David Davis today steals a march on Tory leadership rival Boris Johnson by setting out what will be seen as his manifesto for Downing Street '' including adopting a much more militant attitude towards Brussels.

With both former Cabinet Ministers on high alert this weekend for the sudden triggering of a no-confidence vote in Theresa May, the former Brexit Secretary uses a trenchant article in today's Mail on Sunday '' below '' to slam the Prime Minister for proposing to extend the transition period for withdrawing from the EU by a year.

Arguing that Mrs May has 'managed to anger not just Leavers but ardent Remainers as well', Mr Davis calls for a change in tactics to a more uncompromising approach.

Our tongue-in-cheek portrayal of David Davis as a Battle of Britain ace

And he uses fears that a no-deal exit from the EU could lead to planes being grounded as ammunition for his case.

In his article Mr Davis argues: 'European flights would still need our airspace in order to fly to the USA. That should be enough to focus minds on a sensible outcome'.

Mr Davis also says that the temporary economic disruption of a no-deal withdrawal could be offset by fiscal policies, such as encouraging UK companies to spend a chunk of their £613 billion cash pile.

His intervention comes as he and Mr Johnson jockey for position, three months after they both resigned from the Cabinet over Mrs May's Chequers plan to keep the UK close to Brussels' rules on goods.

Supporters of Mr Johnson have been irritated by the surge in Mr Davis's activity, arguing that his time as Brexit Secretary makes him complicit in the current crisis and that he would be 'painfully out of his depth' as Prime Minister.

But allies of Mr Davis are attempting a more conciliatory approach, suggesting that Mr Johnson could run as Mr Davis's deputy on a joint ticket.

Both men signed an open letter last week saying that Mrs May would not be forgiven by the British people if Brexit was reduced to a 'choreographed show of resistance followed by surrender'.

Former Brexit Secretary David Davies speaks to journalist Sophy Ridge of Sky News during the annual Conservative Party Conference

But when asked about the joint ticket idea yesterday, one pro-Boris MP said sarcastically: 'How kind of them.'

Speculation about how close rebels are to triggering a no-confidence motion in Mrs May has been growing since the Prime Minister signalled she was prepared to extend the transition period of Britain's withdrawal from the EU.

Under current rules, 15 per cent of Tory MPs must write to the chairman of the backbench 1922 Committee, Graham Brady, to trigger the vote. That means 48 of the current 315 Tory MPs must take action.

One well placed Brexiteer, who has been keeping a list of who has written letters, put the figure in the early 40s at the start of last week. Two more letters were submitted on Thursday. A source close to the 1922 Committee said: 'At this rate it won't be long.'

If the 48 letters are received, Sir Graham would inform No 10 before ordering a secret ballot on whether Mrs May should stay as leader.

The Prime Minister could theoretically stay on if she won a simple majority, but realistically, if more than 100 Tory MPs failed to back her, then she would be under intense pressure to step down.

There would then be a leadership contest with candidates nominated and seconded by fellow MPs. If more than two contenders emerge, a series of ballots of MPs is then held, with the politician with the least votes removed at each stage.

When only two names remain, they are put to a vote among the wider party membership.

The contest usually takes three months, but members of the 1922 executive are understood to be looking at reducing it to under four weeks if it is called before Brexit, to allow the victor to take charge of the negotiations.

Tory MP Andrea Jenkyns, who has sent a letter to Sir Graham, said yesterday: 'It could all be done within two or three weeks by having digital hustings and fast-tracking the process'.

Brexit negotiations remain deadlocked over the problem of Northern Ireland. The Prime Minister explained to European leaders last week why she could not accept EU proposals for the Irish border, and they cancelled a planned summit for next month as 'not enough progress had been achieved' in the talks.

The former Brexit Secretary uses a trenchant article in today's Mail on Sunday to slam the Prime Minister for proposing to extend the transition period for withdrawing from the EU by a year

Cabinet Ministers are also growing increasingly alarmed about whether the country is prepared for a no-deal Brexit, and have said that ordinary citizens needed to make their own preparations, too. One Cabinet source cited the example of haulage drivers, who will have to start applying now for special ECMT permits if they want to drive on the continent after March. 'They need to apply for them now '' and there is a limited number of them.'

Labour MP Ian Murray, from the Best for Britain 'soft' Brexit group, said: 'This is yet another burden facing truckers and businesses. The Government is creating a nightmare of red tape and extra burdens. They are writing a lot of reports and then not doing the practical things needed.

'They are kicking the can down the road and we are running out of tarmac.'