Lord Heseltine Has Tory Whip Removed Over Lib Dem Support

20 May 2019, 20:13 | Updated: 20 May 2019, 20:37

Former deputy prime minister Lord Heseltine has had the Tory whip suspended for saying he would vote Lib Dem at the EU elections.

The pro-European Lord wrote in a newspaper article yesterday saying he couldn't support the Tories with a "clear conscience".

A spokesman for the Tories said: "Lord Heseltine has given more than half a century of service to the Conservative Party, and his longstanding and sincerely held views on Europe are well understood.

"But, with his long experience, he will know that publicly endorsing the candidates of another party is not compatible with taking the Conservative whip in Parliament.

"As a result, the Chief Whip in the House of Lords has informed Lord Heseltine that he will have the Conservative whip suspended. This will be reviewed if he is willing to support Conservative candidates at future elections."

In an article for The Sunday Times, the former adviser to David Cameron said: "The reason for my experiment with the Lib Dems is, of course, the Government’s position on Brexit.

"I cannot, with a clear conscience, vote for my party when it is myopically focused on forcing through the biggest act of economic self-harm ever undertaken by a democratic government."

His call for the Tories to move back to the political centre ground was supported by former PM Sir John Major.

Speaking to Sky News the long serving peer said if he did lose the whip "the sun will come up tomorrow morning and I will have reserved my personal integrity."

Two years ago he was sacked from five advisory roles after voting against the government on Brexit.