Mark Spencer is one of the most important people in Boris Johnson's premiership.
The Prime Minister selected the 52-year-old Tory MP as his Chief Whip when he became PM in 2019; it was the first government role Mr Johnson dished out.
It means Mr Spencer has been the PM's own Sheriff of Nottinghamshire, his eyes and ears in Parliament.
But Mr Spencer of course isn't a robot - he's an MP just like any other with his own history and controversies.
Those include comments about a "dying" benefit claimant that prompted shock when he uttered them four years ago.
Over the last month he has been embroiled over accusations of blackmail in attempts to defend Mr Johnson from potential leadership challenges.
We have a look at the man behind the job.
Who is Mark Spencer?
Mark Spencer is the MP for Sherwood, near Nottingham, where his family have lived for four generations.
The state-educated politician avoided the usual Oxbridge route of so many of his colleagues, instead qualifying at Shuttleworth Agricultural College in Bedfordshire.
He became chairman of the National Federation of Young Farmers’ Clubs in 1999 and attempted to enter politics in 2001 when he lost an election for the Nottinghamshire County Council seat of Hucknail.
Two years later he was elected to the Ravenshead ward of the Gedling District Council.
Mr Spencer entered parliament in 2010 when he won the Sherwood seat after Labour MP Paddy Tipping resigned.
He joined his family's farming business employing about 50 people growing potatoes, vegetables and free range eggs and selling them at a farm shop.
He also runs a garden centre and a Maize Maze. Yes, a maze made out of maize.
He entered politics in 2001 when he ran for Nottinghamshire County Council, rising later to be the shadow spokesman for community safety.
He then joined Parliament in 2010 where he was a backbencher for six years. His big break was in the Tory whips' office, which he joined in June 2016 just before Theresa May took power, and then quickly rose through the ranks.
What happened with Tory MP Nusrat Ghani?
Mr Spencer said he spoke to Nusrat Ghani after she was demoted from transport minister in 2020.
But he denied sayng her religion was raised as an issue.
Ms Nusrat told The Sunday Times a Government whip told her that her “Muslimness” had been raised as an issue during the cabinet reshuffle.
Mr Spencer posted on Twitter to identify himself, but denied the substance of the allegation.
Have any other remarks or actions got him in hot water?
Yes, but not necessarily for the reasons you would expect.
In 2015 he reportedly suggested anti-terror powers could be used against Christian teachers who try to tell students gay marriage is wrong.
According to the Telegraph, he wrote to a constituent about Extremism Disruption Orders saying: "I believe that everybody in society has a right to free speech and to express their views without fear of persecution.
“The EDOs will not serve to limit but rather to guarantee it: it is those who seek to stop other people expressing their beliefs who will be targeted.
“The new legislation specifically targets hate speech, so teachers will still be free to express their understanding of the term ‘marriage’, and their moral opposition to its use in some situations without breaking the new laws.
“The EDOs, in this case, would apply to a situation where a teacher was specifically teaching that gay marriage is wrong.”
Separately, Mr Spencer was one of 72 Tory landlords who voted against a Commons bid to force all homes to be "fit for human habitation".
The amendment to the Housing and Planning Bill was voted down on 12 January 2016.
Tory ministers said the amendment would cause "unnecessary regulation and cost to landlords", and councils "already have strong and effective powers" to police poor-quality homes.
Although Mr Spencer does not rent out a private home, he receives at least £10,000 a year in rent from a farm in his constituency.
Mark Spencer prompted fury in 2015 by suggesting a "dying" benefit claimant, sanctioned after he turned up four minutes late, should "learn the discipline of timekeeping".
The MP enraged colleagues with the remarks in a House of Commons debate on poverty in the UK.
Labour MP Lisa Nandy described how one claimant had his benefits docked for turning up four minutes late to a Jobcentre appointment.
She quoted a constituent who had said: "The gentleman can’t tell the time and is a recluse. He has been found sitting in his flat in the dark with no electric or gas.
"The lad turned up at my door the other night. He hadn’t eaten for 5 days. He looked like he was dying."
