Brexit Rips Conservative Party Apart as Johnson Expels 21 Rebels

Winston Churchill’s grandson among victims of Tory civil war
Conflict over Europe has dominated party debates for decades

Boris Johnson looks to his back bench, on Sept. 3.Source: U.K. Parliament

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By Kitty Donaldson

September 4, 2019 at 9:02 AM UTC

Updated on

September 4, 2019 at 11:49 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

Just two months ago Rory Stewart was a cabinet minister and a contender for leader of the Conservative Party.

On Tuesday night he was being presented with GQ magazine’s politician of the year award when he received a text message saying he’d been expelled from the party. His crime was to defy Prime Minister Boris Johnson and vote in the House of Commons to try to block a no-deal Brexit.