Conservative ministers and whips began spreading rumours about Christian Wakeford’s personal life minutes after the MP defected to Labour, it has been alleged amid growing concerns over dirty tactics in politics.
The Guardian has been told that senior members of the government spread the rumours in parliament after the MP for Bury South crossed the floor on Wednesday.
On Thursday, the senior Tory MP William Wragg urged MPs to report government ministers, whips and advisers to the Speaker – and even the Metropolitan police – for what he claimed was attempted blackmail of some colleagues suspected of opposing Boris Johnson. Johnson said he had “seen no evidence” of such threats.
A Labour source said the party had prepared Wakeford before his defection for the possibility of the Tories or hostile media trying to dig around in his private life. » | Rowena Mason, Aubrey Allegretti and Heather Stewart | Friday, January 21, 2022
