Boris Johnson has defeated a Tory backbench rebellion and succeeded in getting the Commons to back a change to social care reforms, despite concerns it will hit poorer pensioners.
Senior Tory MPs warned the prime minister they would not back the new policy to cap care costs in England, but MPs voted 272 votes to 246, majority 26, in favour of new clause 49.
It comes after the prime minister defended a rambling speech he gave earlier on Monday to business leaders at the CBI, during which he lost his train of thought, made car engine noises and went off on a tangent about the Peppa Pig World theme park.
Asked by a reporter afterwards, “frankly, is everything okay?”, the PM claimed spectators got the “majority of the points he was trying to make” and that his address had been received “well”.
Critics suggested the speech will have done little to assuage Conservative concerns about Mr Johnson’s leadership, following weeks of sleaze accusations and dodgy decisions – including the Owen Paterson controversy.
