A Cabinet minister has called for an investigation into the “manhandling” of Tory MPs to force them to back the government on fracking – saying she is “shocked” by what went on.
Anne-Marie Trevelyan said the UK parliament is “well respected across the world”, making the “intimidation and bullying” – as one Labour MP called it – even more worrying.
In unprecedented chaos, Conservative MPs squared up to their senior whips, who first quit over the mayhem of whether it was being treated as a confidence vote – then withdrew their resignations.