Rishi Sunak has been accused of “playing chicken” with Tory rebels as the threat of his Rwanda Bill being voted down increases.
Members of the so-called “five families” of diffierent groups of Conservative MPs on the right of the party are set to meet this evening to discuss how far to push the government.
It is understood that by Tuesday morning, more than 60 will have backed amendments by former Home Office minister Robert Jenrick, who dramatically resigned from the government last month. He did so in protest over the weakness of the Bill meant to allow deportations of illegal immigrants to East Africa.
But as of now, ministers “have not given rebel groups any hint of a compromise”, one senior MP said. Home Secretary James Cleverly today made a defiant video from Southend in Essex, claiming the Rwanda deportations were “an important part” of ending the small boats crisis and accused Labour of trying to wreck the plans.
He said: “If you look on social media you see some people saying we should not do the Rwanda scheme and just throw open our borders. That is not going to work.
“The people who are trying to stop us. The Labour Party, the people who are abusing our legal system to prevent us from securing the borders, we will not let them succeed. We will do what the British people want.”
It comes as Lee Anderson and fellow Conservative deputy chairman Brendan Clarke-Smith are both expected to back the rebel amendments and vote for them tomorrow.
Neither Anderson or Clarke-Smith are commenting but one senior rebel told Express.co.uk: “Lee has told me he will vote for the amendments when they are pushed. The question is whether that means he will have to resign as deputy chairman but it will put pressure on others to follow suit.”
There was a suggestion that Mr Anderson and Mr Clarke-Smith may be allowed to stay on in their roles, but one MP warned: “If they try that it will mean a complete breakdown in discipline in the paty.
“The whips will completely lose control and the rebellion could be much bigger.” More concerning for Mr Sunak is that the number of Tory MPs willing to vote down the Bill if it is unamended is also growing.
Only 29 Conservative MPs would be needed to vote against it at third reading for the Bill to collapse.
Already former Home Secretary Suella Braverman has declared she will vote against in what some believe is a bid to force a leadership contest.
Mr Jenrick has indicated to friends that he too is “likely” to vote against as has former cabinet minister Simon Clarke. One Conservative MP said that tomorrow’s cabinet meeting “will be the crucial moment for the government.”
The MP claimed: “I think number 10 and the whips office believed their own press that the rebellion on the second reading before Christmas was a damp squib and the threat of defeat was over.
“They have been very complacent and, if anything, the mood is more intense now than it was at the earlier stage.”
Another MP said: “The government is just playing chicken and hoping colleagues lose their nerve when it comes to the final vote.”
