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Daily Mirror

Politics

Dan Bloom

Full list of 36 Tory MPs who didn't vote on fracking ban as Liz Truss faces rebellion

Liz Truss Tory Fracking Wendy Morton Ben Wallace Boris Johnson Chris Skidmore Kwasi Kwarteng Nadine Dorries rese Coffey

Veteran Tories face being punished for defying Liz Truss in a move that could hasten the Prime Minister’s seismic exit.

Thirty-six failed to vote last night in a major division on fracking - a big wedge issue for Tory MPs.

And those who did not have a good excuse now face “proportionate disciplinary action”.

No10 have not yet clarified whether that’ll mean the whip is removed from them, or they just get a slap on the wrist.

So what happened?

Labour forced a vote last night on taking control of the Commons order paper later in the year, for the purpose of passing a Bill that would ban fracking.

Liz Truss' short premiership has been marked by self-inflicted market turmoil and U-turns (UK PARLIAMENT/AFP via Getty Imag)

The 2019 Tory manifesto promised a moratorium on fracking - the process of cracking rocks for shale gas - until science could establish it was safe.

But Liz Truss tore that up and instead said it could go ahead if it gets local consent.

All day yesterday, Tory whips had warned the vote would be a ‘confidence’ issue in the government - meaning it would collapse if Liz Truss lost.

Minutes before the vote, a minister then announced it would not be a confidence issue after all.

That prompted bedlam in the voting lobbies with MPs ‘effing and blinding’, a witness said. Sources close to deputy PM Therese Coffey denied claims she ‘manhandled’ wavering MPs into the voting corridor.

Sources close to Therese Coffey rubbished claims she ‘manhandled’ wavering MPs into voting (Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

How did MPs vote on fracking?

Labour’s bid to take control of the Commons to ban fracking failed, by 319 votes to 228.

In favour were 167 Labour MPs, 32 SNP MPs, 14 Lib Dems and several other smaller opposition parties or Independents. No Tories voted in favour.

Against were 317 Tories and two MPs from the DUP.

But the real story is the 36 Conservatives who did not vote.

In a confidence motion a deliberate abstention would count as a rebellion - even if it’s not nearly as serious as actively voting against.

Liz Truss has already lost two high-ranking members of her cabinet (UK PARLIAMENT/AFP via Getty Imag)

Will all the Tory MPs who did not vote be punished?

No. Some will have had a good reason. Only Tories who deliberately abstained, such as Tracey Crouch and Net Zero chief Chris Skidmore, face punishment.

‘Slips’ - where MPs get a free pass not to vote - were banned.

But pairs - where MPs have someone from an opposite party who agrees not to vote as well - were allowed.

This included for some MPs on the Business Committee who were on a Parliamentary delegation to Japan.

And strangely it included for Boris Johnson, who was on a family holiday in the Caribbean.

To give you an idea, 27 Labour MPs did not vote and 36 Tories did not vote.

There’s never an official public record of whether abstentions were deliberate or allowed - we can only find out by what MPs say themselves.

Theresa May 's spokeswoman confirmed she was paired and therefore allowed to miss the vote.

Former PM Boris Johnson was sunning it up on holiday instead of voting with his party (Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

What about Liz Truss herself?

There’s been a lot of chatter on Twitter about an early version of the list, which said 40 Tory MPs who did not vote.

But four of these - including Liz Truss and the Chief Whip Wendy Morton - were later updated to say they had voted against Labour’s motion, leaving 36.

An MP suggested to the Mirror that Ms Truss walked through the corridor to vote, but forgot or didn’t manage to swipe her electronic voting card.

Wendy Morton meanwhile is claimed to have stormed off from the voting lobbies, which might have confused things somewhat.