Boris Johnson is expected to face criticism from Tory backbenchers as MPs return to Westminster with lists of grievances – from the government’s multiple U-turns, to planning reform and the forthcoming budget. Here’s what restive MPs have on their minds.
A summer of U-turns
From lockdown hawks to mask-sceptics, a huge number of Conservative backbenchers have privately and publicly expressed concern at the sheer number of U-turns over the summer recess, usually begun with a categorical denial that the government’s position will shift, followed by unilateral change or a change in Scotland or Wales, and finally an about-turn. From the A-level grading chaos, to the enforcing of face-covering in shops and certain schools, Johnson’s No 10 operation is seen to be days behind the curve.
Key critics: Charles Walker, deputy chair of the 1922 Committee, Bernard Jenkin, chair of the liaison committee.
Foreign aid
This is a thorny issue for many Tory MPs, a significant number who have always wanted to see the back of the 0.7% spending target will see the pandemic as an opportune moment to cut back on this spending, but others feel equally as strongly about the moral case for aid and as a tool of soft power. Downing Street has denied the aid budget, now subsumed into the Foreign Office with the demise of the Department for International Development, is a target for savings but rightwing papers have briefed that it could be used to plug holes in defence spending – though that would require primary legislation.
Key critics: Former development secretary Andrew Mitchell, former cabinet minister and the chair of the One Nation Tory caucus, Damian Greene.
Planning reform
The reforms, which will give default planning permission in areas earmarked for development, are likely to result in a significant rise in housebuilding in Tory shires, leading some MPs to call for the government to reprioritise building on brownfield sites. Affluent, leafy suburbs, typically Tory, are likely to be the top targets for building because the reforms require councils with the least affordable housing to release the most land. The Tory MP Neil O’Brien was the first to publicly criticise the reforms and Conservative-run councils are extremely wary of the reform, which requires them to relinquish most of their planning powers.
Key critics: MP Neil O’Brien, a former No 10 aide, and multiple Conservative council leaders.
Tax rises
Rishi Sunak has some difficult choices ahead in the budget about how to claw back rivers of cash spent coping with the coronavirus pandemic. He has been reportedly eyeing potential increases to corporation tax, cheered by the former shadow chancellor John McDonnell, but which has caused horror at the Institute of Directors, which has warned it “risks stamping out the recovery”. The Sun suggests a rise in fuel duty – but this is often a move mooted ahead of budgets then quashed as a sweetener to Tory backbenchers. An increase in capital gains tax is also likely to be opposed by Tory MPs, criticised as a hit to middle income-earners.
Key critics: Robert Halfon, chair of the education select committee and anti-fuel duty campaigner and Conservative-aligned business groups.
Brexit
Opponents of a no-deal Brexit still do exist in parliament, including former cabinet minister Greg Clark and former ministers Steve Brine and Stephen Hammond, but most have been muted since the December election result. Pressure to shun any deal from the EU is likely to come from Brexiters who have already made noises of discontent about the withdrawal agreement signed by the prime minister before the UK’s exit in January, particularly over the UK’s financial liabilities. In July, a report by the Centre for Brexit Policy, endorsed by Bill Cash and Owen Paterson, demanded the junking of the withdrawal agreement, which it called a “poison pill”.
Key critics: Former cabinet ministers Iain Duncan Smith and Owen Paterson.
