Sajid Javid has become the latest senior Tory declaring he will not stand at the next general election.
The former Chancellor and health secretary announced he had made the decision ‘after much reflection’.
He is the biggest name yet to say they will be leaving Parliament, with Labour miles ahead in the polls – albeit two years out from a likely ballot. Conservative chiefs have given a deadline of Monday for sitting politicians to say if they want to stay on.
Veteran Tory MP Charles Walker, who has also said he will step down, warned that the party will ‘pay the price’ for mistakes and faces 10 years in opposition.
The bombshell news came as Rishi Sunak suffered a bloody nose in the Chester by-election – with Labour increasing its majority while the Tories recorded their worst performance in the seat for 190 years.
In the PM’s first major electoral test, local councillor Samantha Dixon emerged victorious by a 10,974 vote margin – well up on the 6,100 secured in 2019.
Although Labour was expected to win, the swing of nearly 14 per cent from the Conservatives will set alarm bells ringing in Downing Street.
Keir Starmer’s MPs quickly started trolling Mr Sunak as a ‘serial loser’, although Tories said there was some comfort in their share of the vote remaining above 20 per cent.
Sajid Javid has become the latest senior Tory declaring he will not stand at the next general election
The former Chancellor and health secretary announced he had made the decision ‘after much reflection’
National polls have shown Labour leading the Tories by well over 20 points recently
Mr Javid sealed Boris Johnson’s fate when he resigned from Cabinet in the summer, with Rishi Sunak following him out of the door.
The former City banker was a candidate in the ensuing Tory leadership contest, but crashed out early. It was the second time he had failed in a bid for the top job.
In a letter to Paul Uppal, chairman of the Bromsgrove Conservative Association, the Bromsgrove MP said the decision not to stand in his fifth election was one he had ‘wrestled with for some time’.
He added: ‘I am very proud of what we have achieved for Bromsgrove District and of my work in Parliament and Government.
‘This decision will not mark the end of my Parliamentary activity, particularly for the causes I care deeply about. Nor will it impact my duties as a local MP on behalf of constituents across Bromsgrove.
‘Being the local MP and serving in Government has been the privilege of my life and I am immensely grateful for the opportunity to serve.
‘I always sought to make decisions in the national interest, and in line with my values, and I can only hope my best was sufficient.
‘I will of course continue to support my friend the Prime Minister and the people of Bromsgrove in any way I can.’
Boris Johnson has informed his constituency association that he intends to be the Tory candidate in Uxbridge & South Ruislip when election happens.
After he pulled out of the contest to succeed Liz Truss, leaving the way clear for Rishi Sunak to become PM, there was speculation Mr Johnson would opt to leave Parliament and take on more lucrative work in the private sector.
However, a slew of other MPs have already said they are going.
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They include Dehenna Davison, who stunned politics by capturing the Red Wall fortress of Bishop Auckland three years ago.
William Wragg and Chloe Smith are also among the senior figures stepping down.
Sir Charles said the vote in Chester was a ‘sort of live fire exercise’ for the Tories’ performance in the polls.
‘We certainly weren’t going to win it,’ he told Times Radio.
‘And I think the scale of the loss reflects where we stand in the opinion polls at the moment. So, in a sense, this by-election was a sort of live fire exercise for where the opinion polls currently have us.’
Sir Charles said the Tory party is in a ‘better place’ than it was six weeks ago when Liz Truss was leading the country.
But he said he thinks it is ‘almost impossible’ for the Conservatives to come back to win the next general election.
‘Now, I hope what Rishi Sunak does is make sure Labour doesn’t wipe the floor with us, that we perhaps win 220 seats, and we form a viable opposition,’ he said.
Sir Charles said: ‘I suspect you’ll see quite a lot of people standing down as we get nearer the general election.
‘I think many of my colleagues won’t have made their minds up yet. But I think it’s inevitable.
‘I think politics is quite a gruelling vocation to be in. But many of my colleagues will be thinking look, do I want to do much more of this?
‘Do I want to go down to electoral defeat and have a sort of gruelling six week campaign? Or if they’re in really safe seats do I want to be in opposition for 10 years?’
Rishi Sunak suffered a bloody nose today as Labour boosted its majority in the Chester by-election
Local councillor Samantha Dixon emerged victorious for Labour in the Chester by-election by a 10,974 vote margin – well up on the 6,100 secured in 2019.
Boris Johnson (pictured) has informed his constituency association that he intends to be the Tory candidate in Uxbridge & South Ruislip at the election
The result in Chester is the third by-election defeat in a row suffered by the Conservatives, although governing parties rarely do well in such contests.
The previous two took place on the same day in June, with Labour snatching Wakefield and the Liberal Democrats securing an historic victory in Tiverton and Honiton.
The setback, which comes just over a month into Mr Sunak’s tenure as prime minister, will not be fatal for his leadership.
But it underlines the scale of his task to remain in office at the next nationwide poll.
The country is facing a gloomy outlook, after Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s autumn statement last month ushered in a fresh round of belt-tightening in the public finances as the UK heads into a recession and soaring inflation squeezes incomes.
With many households struggling with rising energy bills, rail strikes and a planned walk-out by nurses also threaten to cause severe disruption in the run up to Christmas.
Lord Robert Hayward, a Conservative peer and elections analyst, said there were ‘no shocks’ at the City of Chester by-election.
But he said the Tories will be ‘relieved’ they got more than 20 per cent of the vote.
‘I think, generally as expected, no shocks but definite satisfaction for the Labour Party,’ he told Sky News.
He added that there is ‘no question’ the Tories have a ‘real challenge on their hands’.
‘But having said that, Rishi comes across to the public at large as managerial,’ he said. His ratings are way ahead of the Tory party’s. His ratings which will worry the Labour Party, are on a par with Keir Starmer, depending on which poll you actually look at.
‘There are some indications that there are opportunities there for the Tory party. But Rishi has to convince the public at large that he can manage out of this crisis, whichever crisis one’s looking at – and there’s a lot of them.’
Mr Sunak is seen as having steadied the Tory ship since taking over following the disastrous Liz Truss premiership.
But there have been few signs of a bounce in the polls, with YouGov research yesterday suggesting Labour’s lead has grown to an eye-watering 25 points.
The Conservatives were on 22 per cent support, down three points on last week, and trailing far behind Labour on 47 per cent. Worryingly for Mr Sunak backing for Reform UK was up four points at 9 per cent.
