DAME Andrea Jenkyns said “enough is enough” as she announced she had submitted her no confidence letter in Prime Minister Rishi Sunak “to stand up and fight for true Conservatism”.
The MP for Morley and Outwood in West Yorkshire previously served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Skills until October 2022, when she was sacked by Sunak has sent a letter to 1922 Committee chairman Sir Graham Brady.
It comes after Sunak risked a row with the Tory right by sacking controversial home secretary Suella Braverman.
Jenkyns, an arch-Brexiteer who briefly served as a minister in Boris Johnson’s zombie government, said that forcing Johnson out was “unforgivable enough”, but “to purge the centre-right from his cabinet and then sack Suella who was the only person in the cabinet with the balls to speak the truth of the appalling state of our streets and a two-tier policing system that leaves Jewish community in fear for their lives and safety.”
The Tory MP is the deputy chair of the European Research Group, the influential group of Conservative backbenchers seen as instrumental in controlling UK Government Brexit policy.
She made a name for herself after she raised a middle finger at crowds outside Downing Street as she arrived to watch Boris Johnson resign.
Jenkyns would then be appointed to his zombie government, serving as a minister through the summer before Liz Truss took over as prime minister.
In her letter, she further wrote: "I do this to stand up and fight for true Conservativism, we must be a party that delivers low taxes, be trusted on the economy and turbo charge our skills to power our economy, We must be strong on law and order, take control of our borders, be energy independent as a nation and stand up for our freedom of speech.
"I hope other Conservative MPs follow suit, this is our last chance, to stop Starmer, the man who tried to put Jeremy Corbyn into Number Ten, we need to stop this socialist cabal who will change the face of Britain beyond recognition."
It takes 54 letters of no confidence to trigger a secret ballot, with a simple majority required for either side to win.
Sunak said the Cabinet reshuffle had built a “united team”. In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, the Prime Minister said: “Today we have built a united team ready to deliver the changes this country needs for the long term.
“Professionalism, integrity and experience – this is a team that will be bold in making the right decisions for our great country, not the easy ones.”