Tory peer told ‘clock is ticking’ over demand he reveals donor behind plot to oust PM

A senior Conservative believed to be behind the plot to bring down Rishi Sunak has been warned the “clock is ticking” to reveal who funded a damaging poll – or risk losing the party whip.

Lord Frost has been told to “put up or shut up” after he fronted an explosive YouGov survey which has been used by right-wing Tory rebels to claim the party is doomed under Mr Sunak.

A defiant Lord Frost’s refusal to name names has increased fears in No 10 that the megapoll is linked to donors who have also given money to Nigel Farage’s Reform Party.

As pressure mounts on the rebel Tory peer, Conservative grandees David Davis and Sir Charles Walker openly called for him to come clean about the money men behind the polling.

Mr Davis said the “honourable thing to do to reveal the source of these polls, because they do read as though they have been deliberately designed to create difficulties for the Conservative Party.”

A government source also warned: “The clock is ticking on it now. If he does not come clean that suggests there is something dodgy here and I think it is unlikely this will stay hidden. If he is working with people that fund other political parties the removal of the whip is entirely possible.”

But Lord Heseltine, the former deputy PM, said Lord Frost should be “kicked out of the Tory party” entirely over his betrayal. “Someone’s got to confront that.”

The Tory grandee told Times Radio that right-wing Brexiteers like Lord Frost were “getting evermore desperate to try and pretend that there are alternatives” to Britain’s current malaise.

The party is understood be confident the plot is not being funded by any current Conservative donors.

Insiders also concede the whip cannot be removed from a politician simply because they do not back their leader. However, there is an established precedent to strip someone of the whip for working with another party.

The group behind the poll calls themselves the Conservative Britain Alliance (CBA), though there is no official record of their existence or membership.

The survey predicted a 27-point lead for Labour and the Tories to retain as few as 169 seats at the next election.

Although the interpretation of its results has been challenged by experts, it has since been linked to an orchestrated right-wing revolt to oust the PM.

Days after it was published, former cabinet minister Sir Simon Clarke called for Mr Sunak’s resignation, also in the pages of the Daily Telegraph.

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Mr Davis called on Lord Frost to “do the honourable thing” and name the donors himself.

The former Brexit minister told the Independent: “If you are in receipt of the Conservative whip you owe a loyalty to your party. He did a very good job, one has to say, as a minister in a Conservative government but he does also owe them a certain loyalty, particularly in the election year.”

Mr Davis added: “That is why it is the honourable thing to do to reveal the source of these polls, because they do read as though they have been deliberately designed to create difficulties for the Conservative Party.”

Sir Charles said: “Many of us have had enough of Lord Frost and his noises off. He’s never stood for public office, he’s never had his own constituents. He suffers in the eyes of many from a shortage of credibility.”

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On Downing Street’s efforts to flush out the plotters, Sir Charles added: “No 10 should press home its advantage. It is coming from a position of strength, and the rebels from a position of weakness. Lord Frost and the rebels haven’t put up – so now it’s time for them to shut up.”

Senior Sunak allies say Lord Frost should leave the Tory party if he is being funded by anyone working with Reform UK. One leading Tory moderate said: “Lord Frost should certainly reveal the information [about funding]. We need complete transparency.”

Another senior Sunak ally said Lord Frost should “put up or shut up”, saying it was time to reveal the group’s funders and come clean about his “real intentions” to replace the prime minister.