Philip Hammond has been officially deselected as a Conservative candidate by his local association after losing the party whip in Parliament.
According to reports in The Telegraph:
Mr Hammond was only reselected as the Conservative candidate for Runnymede and Weybridge in Surrey on Monday, with the local association emailing members to confirm the move.
Fewer than 48 hours later and the association u-turned after Mr Hammond was kicked out of the party on the orders of Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
The Telegraph understands Mr Hammond was not made aware of the decision to oust him as a candidate, which was taken after a conversation between Conservative Campaign HQ and the Runnymede association on Wednesday morning.
The email sent to local members read: “Last night Philip Hammond had the Conservative Whip removed by the Chief Whip.
“This means that he is no longer a Conservative MP and will not be eligible to stand as the Conservative candidate for Runnymede and Weybridge.
“A new Conservative candidate will be selected by the membership in due course.”
Mr Hammond’s deselection as a candidate marks a staggering reversal in his political fortunes, having been in charge of the nation’s purse strings just over six weeks ago.
Associations of other candidates are mulling over their next moves following the mass sacking of Conservative MPs.
A spokesperson for the Winchester Conservative Association, which was represented by former health minister Steve Brine until Tuesday evening, said officers are “monitoring events as they unfold and will act accordingly at the appropriate time”.
Eithne Webster, chairman of Sam Gyimah’s now former association in East Surrey, said she was “sorry” to see the former universities minister booted out of the party.
“Of course, it’s a personal tragedy for him, but that’s separate from the Conservative Party, ” she said.
Ms Webster admitted it was a “difficult” situation for her party, noting: “People who voted against May’s agreement didn’t have the whip removed.”
Speaking in the aftermath of having the whip removed on Tuesday night, former Conservative chancellor Ken Clarke claimed he no longer recognised his party, adding: “It’s the Brexit Party, rebadged.”
Ms Webster pushed back against that accusation, saying: “The Conservative Party as an institution is bigger than a single person.”
Mr Hammond’s spokesperson has been contacted for a comment.
This comes after political blogger Guido Fawkes revealed Hammond sliped up by letting the Government know the EU had provided him with legal advice during negotiations:
Guido sources say that in his meeting with the Prime Minister this morning, Philip Hammond let it slip in the heat of the argument that he had received legal advice. Speaking in the heat of the moment in a fiery conversation, the former Chancellor cracked out the line “well the EU’s legal department have told me…” when defending his decision to in effect vote no confidence in the Government. It was suspected by many Brexiteers that he was working in concert with Barnier, bold of Hammond to just come out and say it…
This comes as 21 other MPs were booted out the Tory Party after what many perceive as an attack on democracy.
Here is the list of 21 Tory MPs who voted against the government last night, and who have subsequently lost the whip:
- Guto Bebb
- Richard Benyon
- Steve Brine
- Alistair Burt
- Greg Clark
- Ken Clarke
- David Gauke
- Justine Greening
- Dominic Grieve
- Sam Gyimah
The Tories are also hinting that they are prepared to stand against the hated speaker of the Commons John Bercow who they accuse of seriously breaching his oath of impartiality.
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Unity News Network (UNN) Staff Writer | To find out more details about our staff, please head to the About Us section on our website.
