SCOTTISH Tory MP David Duguid has been sacked from the Scotland Office, the BBC is reporting, after backing Liz Truss to be the next PM during the summer’s Tory leadership contest.
After publicly backing Truss after the Perth leadership hustings, Duguid found his way back into a ministerial role having lost his position at the department the year prior.
But with Truss lasting just 44 days in office, and ultimately being replaced as PM by her former rival Rishi Sunak, Duguid’s time at the Scotland Office has reportedly also been cut short, having only been in the role for a few weeks.
The Scotland Office was contacted for comment.
Just days ago, Duguid called on fellow MPs to support Sunak, saying: “We all need to unite behind our new Prime Minister and get on with the critical job of helping families and businesses through the winter, addressing global cost of living issues and continuing our recovery from the pandemic."
John Lamont, who backed Penny Mordaunt to be the next Tory leader, has been appointed as Duguid's replacement.
It comes amid a lengthy ministerial reshuffle from Sunak, which has seen Truss allies demoted and his own loyalists rewarded.
Truss allies and former Cabinet attendees Anne-Marie Trevelyan and Chris Philp accepted new, less prominent Government roles on Thursday morning, before Sunak backers Alex Chalk, Lucy Frazer and Helen Whately won improved positions.
Meanwhile, Penny Mordaunt insisted it was “not a disappointment” to remain as Commons Leader following Sunak’s decision not to promote her.
The Portsmouth North MP put herself forward as a candidate in the Conservative Party leadership contest to replace Truss after previously finishing third in the race to succeed Boris Johnson.
But Mordaunt withdrew from this month’s contest as she failed to get the 100 nominations from Tory MPs required by the deadline, paving the way for Sunak to become Prime Minister.
Labour shadow Commons leader Thangam Debbonaire congratulated her on remaining in her job, saying: “There were suggestions it might not have been the job she was hoping for.
“But as Parliament’s representative in Government, and Government’s representative in Parliament, we both know that she has an incredibly important role.”
Mordaunt said: “It is not a disappointment to find myself here, in part because I very much enjoy the exchanges I have across the despatch box with the honourable lady.
“It was important we tested the proposition of a contest, and we did, to destruction. And I think that is a … has been a good outcome.”
