Amber Rudd banned from rejoining Tories sparking furious row as she quits as an MP
REMAINER Amber Rudd has today been banned from getting the Tory whip back as she announced she would quit as an MP.
A furious row broke out between the ex-home secretary after she claimed she wanted to stand down but was on her way back into the party after a chat with Boris Johnson.
She dramatically announced she would not stand in the next election in her seat of Hastings, but said had tried to make amends with the PM.
She has been followed by Culture Secretary Nicky Morgan, who said she would not put up with the strain her job puts on her family any more.
Ms Rudd told the Standard: "I’m not finished with politics, I’m just not standing at this election."
She claimed she met with the PM and hoped to leave on a positive note after she resigned the whip and quit the Cabinet last month over a No Deal row.
"I spoke to the Prime Minister and had a good meeting with him a few days ago,” she revealed. “I’m really confident of my position. I will be leaving the House of Commons on perfectly good terms with the Prime Minister and I want him to succeed."
But just hours later Chief Whip Mark Spencer wrote her a scathing letter saying she wouldn't be allowed back in the fold and he didn't trust her not to turn on Boris again.
He said: "Receipt of the whip is an honour, not a right and it cannot be discarded or returned at will." Ms Rudd hit back, claiming Boris had asked her to stand again in the election "just last week".
Downing Street today denied that the pair had held formal chats about her getting the whip back.
“All the MPs who have been offered the whip back now have it back," the PM's spokesperson said. "The Chief Whip’s view is the whip is an honour not a right, and it cannot be discarded as if it has no meaning."
No10 sources said she had been treated differently to the 10 ex-Tories who had the whip restored earlier this week because they had been sacked by Mr Johnson while she chose to quit.
One said: "Amber Rudd is one of the key people who stopped Brexit happening, working closely with Grieve and Corbyn. We want people standing at this election who are committed to getting Brexit done."
MOST READ IN POLITICS
Ms Rudd said she wouldn't rule out a return to politics at some point in the future. However, she said there were "many other things I want to do."
Fellow former Cabinet ministers Philip Hammond and David Gauke face being booted out of Parliament just months after they left government after No10 refused to welcome them back in time for the election.
Ms Rudd is one of nearly 60 MPs not seeking re-election. Ex-ministers David Lidington, Patrick McLoughlin and Mims Davies are among 31 current and former Tory MPs quitting.
We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online news team? Email us at [email protected] or call 0207 782 4368 . You can WhatsApp us on 07810 791 502. We pay for videos too. Click here to upload yours.