UK transport secretary backs Sunak as Tory leader for general election Despite plot rumors

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will lead the Tories into the general election this year, Transport Secretary Mark Harper has insisted amid reports of a plot to oust the Prime Minister.

With many Tories increasingly concerned about losing their seats, there have been claims that some MPs are considering replacing Sunak with Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt before the nation goes to the polls, according to The Standard.

Asked whether Sunak will still be Tory leader at the election, Mr Harper told Sky News’s Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips: “Yes he will. He will take us into that election and he will set out very clearly that we’re a Government with a plan.

“I’m going to be supporting him all the way through, and I’m confident that my colleagues will.”

The Transport Secretary also said: “Politics is a team game.”

Asked for his message to mutinous Tory MPs, Harper said: “What I would say to all of my colleagues is this: I spend my time as Transport Secretary focusing on doing what I think is the right thing for the country, making decisions that I think are sensible.

“That is the approach that the Prime Minister takes as well. He focuses on making the right decisions.”

Senior Tories have sought to downplay reports of backbench plotting, with a source close to Mordaunt rejecting claims about an effort to elevate her to the Tory leadership as “nonsense”.

Former Conservative Party chairman Sir Jake Berry denied any involvement, blaming Downing Street for briefing his name to the media.

He told Times Radio: “It’s categorically incorrect. I understand that No 10 is briefing it out purposely.