Boris Johnson strips Tobias Ellwood of Tory whip after he failed to back him in no-confidence vote

BORIS Johnson stripped a serial rebel of the Tory whip yesterday after he failed to back him in a crunch no-confidence vote.

As a result Tobias Ellwood — a Penny Mordaunt backer — will no longer be able to vote in the party’s leadership race as the remaining contenders scramble to make it through to the final showdown.

Mr Ellwood abstained from Monday’s Commons vote, claiming that he was unable to jet back from a foreign trip to Moldova in time.

And he tweeted a grovelling apology — saying he was “saddened” but had been trying to help lift the grain blockade in Ukraine.

Gleeful critics pointed out that he lost the Conservative whip quicker than Chris Pincher, who was accused of drunkenly groping two men in a posh club.

The slapdown came after Trending In The News revealed last week how Mr Ellwood had caused uproar in his local village when he ran over and killed his neighbours’ cat.

Last night Bournemouth East MP Mr Ellwood said: “I am very sorry to lose the whip.

“But I will now continue my meetings in Ukraine, promoting the Prime Minister’s efforts here and specifically seeking to secure the reopening of Odesa port.”