Theresa May to Tory MPs: ‘I got us into this mess’

After Theresa May’s week got off to a shaky start with the news that the Queen’s Speech may be delayed while the Conservatives attempt to come to a ‘confidence and supply’ agreement with the DUP, she will be hoping that her appearance at tonight’s meeting of the backbench 1922 committee is enough to regain her party’s confidence.

Speaking to MPs for the first time since the result, the Prime Minister finally showed real remorse. A contrite May took responsibility for losing her party’s majority; ‘I’ve got us into the mess and I will get us out of it.’ She also promised to help those who had lost their seats and said sorry more than once.

While some MPs would have liked to hear these sentiments sooner, her words appear to have been quite effective. As one MP remarks: ‘It went as well as it could, she showed some humility and admitted things had gone wrong.’ There was a consensus that the last thing the party needs is another election and May in turn promised to serve as long as her party needed her.

However, there was also the sign of battle lines being drawn. Brexiteer MPs used the meeting to suggest that the bad result was not about the EU, blaming public spending and school cuts. With Ruth Davidson, the leader of the Scottish Conservatives, today saying she’s convinced the Prime Minister will now put the ‘country’s economic future first’ in Brexit negotiations, it’s clear that a row over the nature of Brexit is on the cards.