London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, May 31, 2025

Tory backlash after minister calls Owen Paterson row a ‘storm in a teacup’

Tory backlash after minister calls Owen Paterson row a ‘storm in a teacup’

Environment secretary angers MPs already furious at being forced to vote to save former minister from suspension

A cabinet minister has triggered a backlash from Conservative MPs by dismissing the Owen Paterson lobbying and vote debacle as a “storm in a teacup”.

The environment secretary, George Eustice, made the claim despite fury among his party’s MPs about being forced to vote for an ultimately doomed attempt to save Paterson from disciplinary action.

An Opinium poll for the Observer shows ratings for Boris Johnson and his party down significantly since last weekend.

Eustice spoke as Labour demanded the resignation of Jacob Rees-Mogg, the leader of the the Commons, over his handling of the matter, and Keir Starmer declared the prime minister incapable of cleaning up politics because he was “in the sewer with his troops”.

In an interview with Sky’s Trevor Phillips on Sunday, Eustice sought to make light of what happened last week, saying: “I think what we’ve seen is a sort of Westminster storm in a teacup, if I may say so.”

Eustice said the government made a “mistake” in ordering its MPs to vote for an amendment that combined shelving the proposed punishment for Paterson, a Tory former cabinet minister found to have broken the rules banning paid lobbying, with a plan to review the way the standards rules for MPs are enforced generally. But he claimed there was widespread support for introducing a new right of appeal into the system.

Robert Largan, the Conservative MP for High Peak in Derbyshire, said the minister was mistaken to try to minimise the scandal. “I think a prime minister showing loyalty to people is a good individual quality but in my view, I think they got this wrong,” Largan told Times Radio.

The backbencher, who missed the vote on Wednesday but said he would have voted to suspend Paterson if he had been there, added: “I don’t think it’s very helpful to say: ‘Oh, it’s just a storm in a teacup.’ In my view, this was something that they’ve got badly wrong and they need to fix it.” Largan also said that, having read the standards committee report, he thought it was “very clear” Paterson had broken the rules.

Tobias Ellwood, a Conservative former minister and chair of the Commons defence committee, also dismissed claims that No 10’s error was a trivial one, telling the BBC’s World at One that it had been “a dark week for British democracy”.


He said that, taking into account other factors such as the government’s willingness to disregard international law, there was a “pattern of behaviour” on display and Johnson needed to think about his legacy.

Ellwood, who also abstained in the vote on Wednesday, continued: “I think we have lost our way and we need to find our moral compass and get back to what the British people want us to do – good policy, good governance, leadership, statecraft. That’s what is needed at the moment rather than manipulating the system for our own survival.”

The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, was campaigning in Paterson’s former seat on Sunday. At a rally in Whitchurch, Davey said: “People in North Shropshire, including many lifelong Conservative voters, are sick of having their concerns ignored and being taken for granted.”

The Tories held the seat with a majority of almost 23,000 in 2019, with Labour second and the Lib Dems third.

Starmer claimed the episode was illustrative of Johnson’s approach to probity. The Labour leader told the BBC’s Andrew Marr: “Boris Johnson is the prime minister who is leading his troops through the sewer – he’s up to his neck in this.

“I don’t think you or anybody else could with a straight face say this prime minister is the man to clean up politics and to have the highest standards in public life because he is in the sewer with his troops.”

Starmer suggested Johnson wanted to weaken the Commons standards regime because he was worried his own conduct would be criticised again. He released a letter he sent on Saturday to the House of Lords appointments commission asking it to confirm that it would oppose any attempt by Johnson to offer Paterson a peerage – a move No 10 appeared to rule out the next day.

Labour also singled out Rees-Mogg for particular criticism. The shadow leader of the Commons, Thangam Debbonaire, said his position had become untenable because of the role he played in getting Conservative MPs to vote for a motion that would spare Paterson the proposed 30-day suspension .

In an interview with Sky’s Trevor Phillips on Sunday, Debbonaire said: “If I was him, I would be considering my position, and that’s what I think he should do today.” Asked whether she was saying Rees-Mogg should resign, Debbonaire replied: “I think his position is untenable, yes.”

Debbonaire said that despite the government U-turn on Thursday, Rees-Mogg had left the Commons “in a state of chaos”. She said the motion passed on Wednesday declining to back the standards committee report into Paterson still applied, and that the government should let MPs vote to rescind it before the Commons begins a short recess on Wednesday.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Satirical Sketch Sparks Political Spouse Feud in South Korea
Indonesia Quarry Collapse Leaves Multiple Dead and Missing
South Korean Election Video Pulled Amid Misogyny Outcry
Asian Economies Shift Away from US Dollar Amid Trade Tensions
Netflix Investigates Allegations of On-Set Mistreatment in K-Drama Production
US Defence Chief Reaffirms Strong Ties with Singapore Amid Regional Tensions
Vietnam Faces Strategic Dilemma Over China's Mekong River Projects
Malaysia's First AI Preacher Sparks Debate on Islamic Principles
White House Press Secretary Criticizes Harvard Funding, Advocates for Vocational Training
France to Implement Nationwide Smoking Ban in Outdoor Spaces Frequented by Children
Meta and Anduril Collaborate on AI-Driven Military Augmented Reality Systems
Russia's Fossil Fuel Revenues Approach €900 Billion Since Ukraine Invasion
U.S. Justice Department Reduces American Bar Association's Role in Judicial Nominations
U.S. Department of Energy Unveils 'Doudna' Supercomputer to Advance AI Research
U.S. SEC Dismisses Lawsuit Against Binance Amid Regulatory Shift
Alcohol Industry Faces Increased Scrutiny Amid Health Concerns
Italy Faces Population Decline Amid Youth Emigration
U.S. Goods Imports Plunge Nearly 20% Amid Tariff Disruptions
OpenAI Faces Competition from Cheaper AI Rivals
Foreign Tax Provision in U.S. Budget Bill Alarms Investors
Trump Accuses China of Violating Trade Agreement
Gerry Adams Wins Libel Case Against BBC
Russia Accuses Serbia of Supplying Arms to Ukraine
EU Central Bank Pushes to Replace US Dollar with Euro as World’s Main Currency
Chinese Woman Dies After Being Forced to Visit Bank Despite Critical Illness
President Trump Grants Full Pardons to Reality TV Stars Todd and Julie Chrisley
Texas Enacts App Store Accountability Act Mandating Age Verification
U.S. Health Secretary Ends Select COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations
Vatican Calls for Sustainable Tourism in 2025 Message
Trump Warns Putin Is 'Playing with Fire' Amid Escalating Ukraine Conflict
India and Pakistan Engage Trump-Linked Lobbyists to Influence U.S. Policy
U.S. Halts New Student Visa Interviews Amid Enhanced Security Measures
Trump Administration Cancels $100 Million in Federal Contracts with Harvard
SpaceX Starship Test Flight Ends in Failure, Mars Mission Timeline Uncertain
King Charles Affirms Canadian Sovereignty Amid U.S. Statehood Pressure
Trump Threatens 25% Tariff on iPhones Amid Dispute with Apple CEO
Putin's Helicopter Reportedly Targeted by Ukrainian Drones
Liverpool Car Ramming Incident Leaves Multiple Injured
Australia Faces Immigration Debate Following Labor Party Victory
Iranian Revolutionary Guard Founder Warns Against Trusting Regime in Nuclear Talks
Macron Dismisses Viral Video of Wife's Gesture as Playful Banter
Cleveland Clinic Study Questions Effectiveness of Recent Flu Vaccine
Netanyahu Accuses Starmer of Siding with Hamas
Junior Doctors Threaten Strike Over 4% Pay Offer
Labour MPs Urge Chancellor to Tax Wealthy Over Cutting Welfare
Publication of UK Child Poverty Strategy Delayed Until Autumn
France Detains UK Fishing Vessel Amid Post-Brexit Tensions
Calls Grow to Resume Syrian Asylum Claims in UK
Nigel Farage Pledges to Reinstate Winter Fuel Payments
Boris and Carrie Johnson Welcome Daughter Poppy
×