James Cleverly denies ‘nonsense’ claims he might stand down at next election

James Cleverly has denied reports that he was considering standing down from Parliament at the next general election.

The Foreign Secretary declared “I’m standing at the next election” as he described as “nonsense” claims he might quit.

It came after the Telegraph cited “sources close to him” as saying Mr Cleverly had expressed doubts about running again in his Essex constituency.

He was understood to be frustrated by the “complete mess” of internal rows in his party and wanted to spend more time with his wife, who is recovering from cancer, and his children, the newspaper reported.

But the Braintree MP tweeted: “If the ⁦@Telegraph⁩ had spoken to me directly I would have told them that this is nonsense.

“I’ve been reselected, I’m standing at the next election.”

A spokesperson for Mr Cleverly also denied the claims he would stand down.

Mr Cleverly, 53, was first elected as the MP for Braintree in 2015.

He held on to the seat with a majority of almost 25,000 in 2019.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is facing a mass exodus of MPs ahead of the next national vote, expected next year, amid a polling slump for the Tories.

Steve Brine on Friday became the latest Tory MP to detail his exit plans, joining the ranks of former justice secretary Dominic Raab and former health secretary Sajid Javid.

The senior MP, who has represented Winchester since 2010 and is the chairman of the Commons health and social care committee, confirmed his departure in a letter to his local Conservative association.