Nadine Dorries: Cameron and Osborne discussed how to "stop Boris Johnson" in 2001 meeting

24 May 2021, 18:19

Nadine Dorries: Cameron and Osborne discussed "how to stop Boris Johnson" in 2001 meeting

Tory MP Nadine Dorries has told Rachel Johnson on LBC that David Cameron and George Osborne back in 2001 discussed how to stop Boris Johnson from becoming Tory Party leader.

Speaking on Rachel Johnson's Difficult Women podcast, the Tory MP spoke of how she was taking notes at a meeting while working as a SPAD for Sir Oliver Letwin.

She explained that the meeting in question took place in 2001 and was between Michael Howard, Sir Oliver Letwin and "two new MPs".

Referring to the event, Mrs Dorries said: "Basically what they were talking about was stopping the party membership from getting the vote, so they couldn't choose the leader in the future.

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"And basically it was a 'how do we stop Boris Johnson' [meeting]. And those two young MPs at the table were David Cameron and George Osborne.

She added: "It was just after the 2001 election, and I realised that what they were doing was plotting a takeover of the Conservative Party and how they could guarantee the leadership of the future."

In response to Mrs Dorries' remarks, Lord Howard told LBC: "I have absolutely no recollection whatever of the meeting to which Nadine refers.

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"But there was a good deal of discussion at the time about the best method of choosing the Leader, given that the first election under the new system had just taken place (in which, incidentally, the candidate I supported was successful).

"However I think it extremely unlikely that any mention would have been made of Boris [Johnson] in any such discussion as he had only just become an MP."

LBC has also contacted David Cameron, George Osborne and Sir Oliver Letwin for comment.