Tory whips accused of blackmailing anti-Johnson plotters

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The phrase ‘I’ve seen no evidence ’ is one of my favourite non-denials. Its meaning can span the breadth of probability, from the vanishingly unlikely (I’ve seen no evidence that Mercury is comprised of Gruyère) to the credible but as yet unproven (think back to the start of the pandemic and the debate surrounding the efficacy of face masks).

Today, Boris Johnson said that he had seen “no evidence” to support allegations made by the Tory MP William Wragg, that Conservative colleagues were being threatened with having funding for their constituencies withdrawn if they called for the Prime Minister to quit.

Wragg urged MPs to report any attempt to “blackmail” them to the Metropolitan Police.

Enter the now Labour MP for Bury North, Christian Wakefield. This afternoon he confirmed to BBC North West that Tory whips had threatened that Radcliffe in his constituency would not get a new school if he refused to side with the government on a particular vote, thought to be on free school meals.

Now, the whips in both parties use all sorts of persuasion techniques to corral their members to vote with them. But those threats (or promises of advancement) are meant to be kept secret.

The concern for Johnson – beyond the never-ending news cycle from hell – is not so much the specific nature of that threat, as distasteful as it may be, but the fact that the allegation was made public by one of his own MPs and confirmed by a defector.

It is further evidence of the breakdown in trust between Johnson and what is still a desperately unhappy parliamentary party.

Elsewhere in the paper, the pressure mounts on Shaun Bailey as Sadiq Khan calls on him to resign. Bailey, if you recall, has already stepped down from his roles as chair of two key Assembly committees following revelations he attended a party at Conservative HQ during lockdown.

In the comment pages, it’s been labelled “draconian and anti-democratic”. Alex Jones holds court on what’s next for the Policing Bill.

Meanwhile, Rupert Harrison points the finger at demand from China in explaining why gas prices are rising, warning the issue is not going away.

And finally, sex, drugs and nihilism – Euphoria’s unflinching portrayal of Gen-Z teenagehood has sparked a moral panic – but has it been blown out of proportion?

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