Rishi Sunak will lead Tories into election, Mark Harper says

Cabinet minister urges backbenchers to have confidence in party leadership amid reports of plot to remove PM

Rishi Sunak will lead the Conservative party into an election at the end of the year despite reports of rebellious MPs plotting to oust him to avoid wipeout at the polls, a senior cabinet minister has said.

Mark Harper, the transport secretary, told his fellow MPs to have some confidence" in the party leadership, insisting Sunak was focused on making the right decisions" for the country.