Michael Gove says he will not stand down amid rumours he would quit next general election

Tory MP says he is ‘addicted to public service’ and will not follow in footsteps of Sajid Javid and Dehenna Davison

Levelling up secretary Michael Gove has insisted that he will stand again at the next general election, as a number of his colleagues announce they will resign amid fears of electoral wipeout at the ballot box.

Former chancellor Sajid Javid and rising star Dehenna Davison have both announced in the past week that they will not contest the next election, as some Conservative MPs publicly admit to bracing for a return to opposition once the public has their say.

With Rishi Sunak’s party still languishing close to 20 points behind Labour in the polls, these fears were compounded on Friday in his first by-election test, which saw the Conservatives suffer their worst result in Chester since 1832.