Speaking to TalkRADIO host Julia Hartley-Brewer, Mr Gauke claimed one of the reasons Jeremy Corbyn is still reluctant to table a vote of no confidence in Boris Johnson is that the Labour leader is aware he does not have a majority behind him in the Commons. The Tory rebel claimed Mr Corbyn’s attempt to oust the Prime Minister would not be supported by any of the 21 MPs expelled with him by Boris Johnson from the Conservative Party last month. 

He said: “I certainly wouldn’t support a vote of no confidence.

“I would vote with the Government. I can’t speak to everyone because I haven’t spoke to everyone but I think the overwhelming majority if not all of them will vote with the Government.

“There isn’t a majority in the House of Commons, I’m pleased to say, for Jeremy Corbyn becoming Prime Minister.”

He added: “Certainly people like me and I think I can say confidently that for all of the 21 whipless Conservatives, hell would have to freeze over before we would support Jeremy Corbyn as Prime Minister.”

Hell would have to freeze over before we would support Jeremy Corbyn as Prime Minister

David Gauke

House of Commons leader Jacob Rees-Mogg said the 21 former Conservative MPs who had the Tory whip removed after voting against the Government should have the whip restored if they can show they are willing to support the Government to deliver a Conservative programme.

Speaking at a recording of ConservativeHome’s podcast Moggcast at the Conservative party conference in Manchester, Mr Rees-Mogg said: “I always believe in politics in being as generous as you possibly can be.

“But you cannot have a situation where people are trying to put Jeremy Corbyn in charge of the order paper.

“So, look, if they are willing to show that they are willing to support a Conservative Government deliver a Conservative programme, and pull back from what they did before, I think generosity is in the nature of Conservatism, and the Conservative party is a broad church and needs to remain a broad church.”

He continued: “Therefore we ought to be generous and we oughtn’t to be ideological about who belongs to the Tory Party, we need to welcome people who are willing to make interesting arguments, but we cannot have a situation where people hand over the order paper to the opposition.

“So how do we get on from here? Well let’s see if there are any other votes which give them the chance to come back, but I think a number of them are retiring and have no interest in coming back, so it won’t be everybody.”

It comes as SNP’s Westminster leader Ian Blackford warned those trying to prevent a no deal Brexit was now running out of time to attempt to “bring down” the Conservative leader.

He spoke out after talks between Labour, the Liberal Democrats, the SNP and others broke down over the crucial issue of who should be installed as a caretaker prime minister.

Labour’s Jeremy Corbyn has insisted that, as leader of the Opposition, he should take over if Boris Johnson is toppled by a vote of no confidence.

DON’T MISS:

Boris perfectly lists three EU demands for Irish border solution [VIDEO]
Boris Johnson’s proposals to EU suggest no deal Brexit says expert [ANALYSIS]
Steve Baker ready to vote for Johnson’s deal if it ends EU ‘supremacy’ [INSIGHT]

But Liberal Democrat leader Jo Swinson flatly rejected that possibility.

“Jeremy Corbyn is not going into Number 10 on the basis of Liberal Democrats’ votes,” she said.

However, Mr Blackford stressed that with the UK due to leave the European Union at the end of this month, time was running out for the opposition to act.

He told BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland programme: “I do think there is a danger we run out of time because when we call a motion of no confidence we have 14 days to put an administration in place. Once we get to the middle of October the options for us are beginning to close off.

“Everyone has to accept their responsibility. We are willing to do our part to bring Boris Johnson down – why are the other parties not prepared to do what is necessary to remove this man from office?

“We are not prepared to sit back and let Scotland be dragged off the cliff edge by Boris Johnson.”

Veteran politicians such as Ken Clarke or Dame Margaret Beckett have been mooted as possible contenders for the role of caretaker Prime Minister.

Source: Read Full Article