From home secretary’s departure to chief whip going nowhere, we recap another extraordinary day
- This piece is extracted from our First Edition newsletter. To sign up, click here
- UK politics live – latest news updates
A couple of weeks ago, to widespread condemnation, Suella Braverman accused backbench Tory MPs of staging a coup against the prime minister; if that was the case, she has become its latest victim.
But the truth is that the mind-bending events of Wednesday in Westminster can’t really be classified as a coup. They were abrupt, unsanctioned, and by evening allegedly featured the use of force, yes. But coups are organised. Coups involve government control of the media. And they have this to be said for them: when they end, somebody, however incompetent, is in charge. This wasn’t a coup: it was a disintegration.
