Conservatives should cease civil war, Andrew RT Davies says

Liz Truss arriving back in Downing Street on Monday

The Conservative party should cease its "internal civil war" over its leadership, the leader of the Welsh Conservatives has said.

Andrew RT Davies said he backed Liz Truss and called on her to "map out the vision that she has... to secure her tenure".

Meanwhile, Tory MP Jamie Wallis renewed his call for the prime minister to go.

He said it would be the best way for the public to be served, and said he knew it could lead to an election.

Ahead of expected boundary changes - the Bridgend MP said if there was an election today he would not be putting his name forward.

Pressure is mounting on the prime minister after her chancellor scrapped most of her mini-budget.

New Chancellor Jeremy Hunt gave an emergency statement reversing Kwasi Kwarteng's tax cutting package after insisting Ms Truss was still in charge of the government.

Welsh Labour ministers accused the UK government of being in "chaos".

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Mr Davies said it was "vitally important that the government get a grip of the situation".

"The Conservative party now needs to come to its senses, cease this internal civil war that's going on, and rise to the challenge and the privilege that this country has given it of being in government in Westminster and delivering for people across this country."

Andrew RT Davies refused to be drawn on comments by Jamie Wallis that Liz Truss should resign

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He told BBC Radio Wales Breakfast that, after six weeks in office, it was time for the prime minister to "step forward and define herself because many of the early decisions that have been taken by the current government have obviously proved problematic, especially with keeping confidence in the markets".

"And, obviously, colleagues in Westminster need to stop trying to rerun the leadership election that the Conservative party held over the summer months."

Mr Davies, Member of the Senedd for South Wales Central, added: "I very much hope that the prime minister, working with the new chancellor, is able to grasp this nettle of economic despair that people are feeling at the moment and, ultimately, deliver that security."

He refused to be drawn on comments made by Mr Wallis, who is the third Tory MP to publicly call on Ms Truss to resign.

His letter accused the prime minister of undermining the Welsh Conservatives by appointing an MP from an English constituency - Welsh-born Sir Robert Buckland - to be Welsh secretary.

The Bridgend MP said the appointment was made "despite having the most ever Welsh Conservative MPs".

'Paradox'

Speaking to BBC Wales, Mr Wallis said it was a "paradox" that the Welsh Tories had the largest number of MPs ever but that the current Welsh Secretary represented an English constituency.

He said it opens the Tories to accusations that the Conservatives are an "English party and that it doesn't care about Wales being bolstered by this appointment".

"I think there is an urgent need for lasting stability," he said of Liz Truss. "The situation is not one that we can continue with."

He added: "It was my belief yesterday that the best way to serve the public would be to have a new leader and have a new prime minister."

Mr Wallis said he was "acutely aware when I wrote the letter yesterday that what I was asking for could potentially bring about a series of events that might very well lead to me losing my job".

On Wednesday the Boundary Commission for Wales will announce revised boundaries. Initial proposals, Mr Wallis said, affect the constituency of Bridgend and Porthcawl "in a significant way".

"I have given a huge amount of thought of late as to what might be in my own future. And if there were an election call today, I would not be putting my name forward."

Mr Wallis, who is the UK's only trans MP - said the leadership campaign was "extremely unpleasant" for him - saying it was difficult to watch a leadership contender accused of being left wing and woke "simply because of her previous reputational support for transgender people".