But Ms Mordaunt, the Commons Leader, notably softened her tone on the Speaker compared to her criticism the night before, calling him a “decent man” and instead turning her rhetorical fire on the Labour leader.
She called Sir Keir a “weak and fickle leader”, adding: “I would never have done to him what the Labour Party have done to him.”
Other Tory backbenchers, such as Ben Wallace, the former defence secretary, also went public calling for Sir Lindsay to keep his position.
Downing Street insiders on Thursday were indicating they would not grant government time for a no confidence motion about the Speaker to be voted upon.
One No 10 source said: “It is a House matter. MPs have the prerogative to give their view.” That effectively closed the quickest path for rebels to trigger a no confidence vote.
The SNP could attempt to force a vote via other routes, potentially as early as next week, but it remains unclear how many MPs would end up backing such a move.
Sir Keir, pressed on his meeting before the vote decision with Sir Lindsay, said: “I can categorically tell you that I did not threaten the Speaker in any way whatsoever. I simply urged to ensure that we have the broadest possible debate.
“So that actually the most important thing, which is what to do about the situation in Gaza, could be properly discussed by MPs with a number of options in front of them.”
