Grant Shapps has denied claims by some of Boris Johnson’s allies that Rishi Sunak intervened to alter his resignation honours list.
Mr Johnson, 58, gave honours to a string of close aides and allies before standing down as an MP with immediate effect on Friday night after receiving a report into whether he lied to MPs over Partygate.
Reports surfaced claiming his close allies such as Nadine Dorries were blocked from receiving a peerage in his resignation honours.
But Mr Shapps, the Energy Secretary, has played down the claims, saying the Prime Minister made no changes to the list “at all”.
Asked whether reports that Mr Sunak or his aides removed names was true, he told BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme: “No. The list that came to him was the list that that went to the House of Lords Appointments Committee that looks at these things.
“Just to be clear here, it went to that committee. The committee would have to say if the Prime Minister removed anyone.
“The Prime Minister has exactly followed the very long-standing conventions of prime ministers who simply take the list and pass it on and receive it back.”
Pressed on whether a member of the Prime Minister’s team removed names “months ago”, the Cabinet minister said: “My understanding is no. As far as I’m aware, that is not true.”
Mr Shapps also said he disagreed with Mr Johnson’s criticism of the Government.
He said: “I think we are doing proper Conservative things, actually, that the vast majority of the country wants to see us do.”
“I just think that Boris is referring to a particular set of circumstances in which he was involved as prime minister. It has now gone on for a very long time afterwards with the various different processes that we’ve all sort of lived through.
“I think the country really wants to move on and they’ve got that with the priorities of going for growth.”
Asked whether he thought Mr Johnson’s comments about the Government were not true, Mr Shapps said: “I just think that what Boris says is his perspective on things.
“You’re asking me, do I think that’s true? No, I don’t think that. I think we’re following a fundamentally Conservative approach to the world.”
