"Am I after her job? Am I going to stick the knife between her shoulder blades and steal the crown? No, of course I'm not, the veteran Tory cabinet minister told the laughing audience as he opened the awards ceremony. You know that I'm not. Have I had a snazzy new haircut and lost loads of puppy fat? No. Have I stopped saying aask' and started saying assk'? Am I producing viral vigilante videos? If I was, maybe you would suspect I'm on manoeuvres."
"Earlier this year one of the Tory leader's disgruntled backbenchers set up a countdown clock on social media of the days left until Conservative rules allow rivals to mount a challenge. That clock reaches zero on Sunday. At that point, the Tory leader's critics will be able to submit letters to trigger a contest. The rules changed last year to increase the threshold, meaning 30% of the party's 119 MPs are now needed, up from 15%, creating a higher bar for those trying to oust"
An opulent speakeasy-style event at Raffles hotel on Whitehall hosted the Spectator's parliamentarian of the year awards, attracting senior Conservative figures. Much of the champagne-fuelled gossip focused on whether Kemi Badenoch's job was at risk amid an existential challenge from Reform UK. James Cleverly teased about ambition while Robert Jenrick, Badenoch's biggest threat, has been pitching to the right and manoeuvring openly. A disgruntled backbencher set up a countdown clock to when Conservative rules allow rivals to mount a challenge; that clock reaches zero on Sunday. The rules now demand 30% of the party's 119 MPs to trigger a contest, up from 15%.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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