Tobias Ellwood apologized once more today for missing the vote on government confidence while on a trip abroad.
But when asked if he believed that his removal from the party whip was related to attempts to rig the leadership election, the Tory MP and chair of the defense committee avoided answering.
The Monday battle in parliament—which the government easily won—took place while Mr. Ellwood was in Moldova speaking with the president of that nation.
He has stated he is “sorry” to have been cut off from the Conservatives in Westminster and has blamed the heatwave for the disruption in transport.
However, the decision has angered some people since it prevents Mr. Ellwood, who was supporting Penny Mordaunt in the closing phases of the Tory leadership election, from casting a vote.
The decision was categorically rejected by the friends of the PM as having any impact on Liz Truss’s bid for No. 10. The Foreign Secretary and Ms. Mordaunt are competing with other Tory MPs for the second position, with Rishi Sunak very certain to win the parliamentary round.
Speaking to Sky News from Odesa, Ukraine, Mr. Ellwood expressed his remorse at losing the whip but insisted that he did not disregard the whip’s office and kept the party informed of his whereabouts.
‘There are a few options to get back, but there were problems with travel in the UK,’ he said.
‘I am very sorry I didn’t make it back.’
He said he did not want to speculate about the reasons why he specifically lost the whip, adding: ‘I’d be then fuelling the blue-on-blue (attacks), which I’m actually trying to avoid.
‘Let’s focus on how we can move forward and make sure that we conclude this leadership campaign to the highest professional standard that I think the British people want to see.’
Mr Ellwood had harsh words for his party, after a turbulent few weeks in British politics that has seen the Conservative Party unseat Mr Johnson as Prime Minister, a precursor to what has turned into an increasingly bitter contest to replace him.
‘The nation wants to be impressed and inspired, not demoralised, by what they’re witnessing right now,’ he said.
‘And we need to perhaps exhibit greater decorum, dial the temperature down a bit, showcase the ideas, the vision, focus on those things that are important, that the nation wants to see.
‘That’s what will earn us the right to stay in government, otherwise we’re just going to be letting ourselves down and indeed committing ourselves to probably a long spell in opposition.’
It remains unclear when Mr Ellwood will have the whip restored, as he voiced hope it would only be a temporary suspension.
However, Treasury minister Simon Clarke defended the punishment, calling Mr Ellwood’s action a ‘very serious mistake’.
‘He was in Moldova, rather than Ukraine. He was not on Government work, he is a backbench MP,’ he told Sky News.
Mr Clarke suggested that Mr Ellwood knew the consequences of missing the vote.
‘Look, I’m not a member of the whip’s office. What I will say is that there are clear arrangements in place which all MPs understand, which govern the conditions for absence from votes, most especially critical votes like a motion of confidence in the Government, which has the potential to trigger a general election,’ he said.