Cameron, backed by Lord Howard, to lead fightback…
“David Cameron will mount a “passionate and powerful” fightback against Iain Duncan Smith as he attempts to regain control of the Tory party amid its deepest crisis for two decades. The Prime Minister will on Monday use a Commons appearance to defend his record as a “compassionate Conservative” who has “done the right thing for Britain” after Mr Duncan Smith resigned and accused him of putting wealthy Tory voters ahead of Britain’s working poor.” – Daily Telegraph
- Civil war engulfs the Tories – Daily Mail
- Battle to contain internal strife – FT
- Resignation sparks rift at the heart of the Conservative Party – Daily Telegraph
- Echoes of old Europe splits – FT
- Party faces biggest crisis since the 1990s – The Sun
…as Duncan Smith denies being motivated by the EU
“Iain Duncan Smith has denied that his resignation was down to the EU referendum vote. The former Work and Pensions Secretary said claims that he wants to cause the Government maximum damage ahead of the vote are a “deliberate attempt to discredit me”. In an interview with the BBC Mr Duncan Smith accused David Cameron and George Osborne of abandoning the Conservative manifesto pledge to rule for One Nation.” – Daily Telegraph
- Contempt and loathing which caused the Quiet Man to snap – Daily Mail
- Ex-Conservative disability activist is joining Labour – The Guardian
- Tory MPs swing behind Duncan Smith as 16 criticise Budget – Daily Mail
- Former leader now ready to ‘speak up’ on EU and welfare – The Times (£)
- Resignation boosts Brexiteers – Daily Express
- Departure threatens to derail Universal Credit – FT
- Pensions minister savaged by colleagues after opening fire on Duncan Smith – The Sun
- Victorian morality, reforming zeal, and gross incompetence – Amelia Gentleman, The Guardian
Crabb:
- New minister claims Party will ‘get past’ turbulence – Wales Online
- Personal experience of welfare system may help new Work and Pensions Secretary – FT
- Crabb urged to resign charity post – The Times (£)
- Cairns braced for ‘baptism of fire’ – Wales Online
The Times claims Cameron blames Osborne, and reports ConHome’s call for Gove to be made Deputy Prime Minister…
“A senior backbench Tory MP said: “Of course Cameron should consider moving Osborne after June. The interesting question is what happens after June 23. In the event of Brexit we ought to hang on to Cameron for stability and calm. If Remain win, it’s got to be possible there will be a challenge.” ConservativeHome, the grassroots website, will call today for Michael Gove, the justice secretary, to be made deputy prime minister.” – The Times (£)
- Divisions set to emerge between Prime Minister and Chancellor – Daily Telegraph
- Biggest challenge to Cameron and Osborne in six years – The Independent
- Prime Minister’s furious four-letter tirade after persuasion failed – The Times (£)
- Lord Howard backs Cameron’s ‘passionate’ fightback – Daily Telegraph
- Prime Minister would ‘welcome’ leadership challenge – The Independent
Osborne:
- Chancellor’s leadership prospects hang by a thread – Daily Mail
- Davis declares Osborne’s hopes ‘dead in the water’ – The Sun
- Chancellor could face first Budget defeat since 1994 – Daily Mail
- Osborne cuts £1.1 billion from NHS repairs fund – The Independent
Sugar Tax:
- Coca Cola set to lead legal challenge to sugar tax – Daily Mail
- Campaigners and industry attack excluding non-fizzy drinks – The Times (£)
…and Oborne says the Justice Secretary has “the best credentials to reunite the sides of the Tory civil war”
“So do not discount the chances of Michael Gove. Amidst all the bitterness and feuding, the Justice Secretary is the only member of the cabinet who is admired and trusted by both sides of the Tory divide. He is a close personal friend of Cameron and Osborne, yet regarded as a hero by the Tory eurosceptics.” – Peter Oborne, Daily Mail
- Ignore the spin, look at the killer facts in this resignation letter… – Tim Montgomerie, The Times (£)
- …actually, this is all about Europe – Daniel Finkelstein, The Times (£)
- The Tories are split in two; this is where it gets really nasty – Matthew d’Ancona, The Guardian
- This explosion could do untold damage to Cameron’s reputation – Daily Telegraph
- Former leader thrusts his dagger at chinks in the Tories’ armour – Bruce Anderson, FT
- Forget policies, what really matters is knowing who hates whom – Dominic Lawson, Daily Mail
- It’s no wonder real Tories are tiring of Cameron and Osborne – Charles Moore, Daily Telegraph
Sketches:
- Labour should have picked Duncan Smith as their leader – Michael Deacon, Daily Telegraph
- Ka-boom! He was set to search and destroy – Quentin Letts, Daily Mail
Editorial:
>Today:
>Yesterday:
Prime Minister urges voters to ‘think of their children’ and vote Remain
“David Cameron today appealed to voters to think about their children as they decide how they vote in the EU referendum. The Prime Minister said his ‘fear’ ahead of June’s historic poll was a low turn out handing victory to the Brexit campaign.” – Daily Mail
- CBI chief claims Brexit would leave UK economy weaker 15 years on – FT
- Big business lobby set to step up scaremongering – Daily Mail
- Head of CBI blasted over ‘one million jobs’ claim – The Sun
- Investors delay commercial property deals on Brexit fears – FT
- Major claims vote to Leave will poison Europe – The Sun
- More than half of French voters want their own referendum – Daily Express
More Cameron:
- Prime Minister accused of leaning on NHS chief to reduce cash demands – Daily Mail
- NHS denies being pressured to downgrade financial estimates – The Independent
- Cameron ignores his own British holiday plea to catch the sun – The Times (£)
Comment:
- Brexit would play into the hands of Putin – Oliver Kamm, The Times (£)
>Today: Nadhim Zahawi MP’s column: Tampon taxes, steel dumping – and why the time has come to leave the EU
Feldman proposes headhunters and ‘gold’ membership in party review
“A programme will be set up by Conservative Campaign Headquarters to run workshops and training sessions to train aspiring politicians in the skills they will need to participate in public life. The party also plans to create new elite forms of membership, which will give its most committed activists and supporters greater access to ministers and policymaking. “Gold” membership will buy VIP treatment at the Tories’ annual conference.” – FT
Davies faces investigation over betting account
“A pro-gambling Conservative MP who received “extremely favourable” treatment from Ladbrokes on his personal betting account faces an investigation by parliament’s watchdog. The Campaign for Fairer Gambling will submit a complaint to the parliamentary commissioner for standards today after Philip Davies, the MP for Shipley, wrote to Ladbrokes to demand that he be allowed to operate a potentially profitable gambling strategy normally denied to ordinary punters.” – The Times (£)
Proctor savages Watson over sex abuse conduct
“Harvey Proctor, the last living person under investigation by Operation Midland, has launched an extraordinary attack on Tom Watson, the Labour deputy leader, accusing him of making “self-serving” comments about the controversial VIP sex abuse inquiry. Writing exclusively for The Telegraph, Mr Proctor says the Labour deputy leader and fellow Labour MP John Mann should apologise in the House of Commons for what he described as “outlandish” remarks earlier in the police inquiry.” – Daily Telegraph
- The accused deserve far better protection – Harvey Proctor, The Times (£)
Levy threatens to quit as Labour anti-Semitism row deepens
“A senior Labour peer has threatened to quit the party unless Jeremy Corbyn makes it “absolutely clear” that antisemitism will not be tolerated. Lord Levy, who served as Tony Blair’s chief fundraiser, called on the Labour leadership yesterday to deliver a “categoric and specific” condemnation, insisting that the issue must be stamped out of every political party.” – The Times (£)
Scottish Labour strike radical pose in bid to fend off annhilation
“At the centre of her strategy is a challenge to the SNP’s left-leaning rhetoric, which critics say masks a spending programme that largely favours prosperous middle-class voters and an unwillingness to substantially raise taxes. Scottish Labour’s manifesto for the May election would be its “most radical ever”, Ms Dugdale said, adding: “I am a socialist.”” – FT
- Dugdale calls SNP’s Holyrood ‘conveyor belt for Tory cuts’ – The Guardian
- SNP MP in property row with Edinburgh businessman – The Scotsman
News in Brief:
- Obama touches down in Cuba for first Presidential visit in 88 years – The Sun
- Nine in ten hospitals are now unsafe – Daily Mail
- NHS spent £181,000 treating one illegal migrant – Daily Telegraph
- Greece rushes to clear islands ahead of migrant D-day – FT
- More than 3,600 faults in just six frigates in past four years – The Sun
- Public hit by 12 million nuisance calls daily – The Times (£)
- Special Forces and police on standby for ten terror attacks in London – Daily Mail
- Crowdfunding boosts UK judicial review bids – FT
- Inequality in Scotland ‘could hit third world levels’ – The Scotsman
- Alliance leader spurns 1916 commemoration invitation over ‘legacy of violence’ – Belfast Telegraph