Duncan Smith warns Tory malcontents

The Conservative Party conference in Blackpool was a success, insists a defiant Iain Duncan Smith.

Mr Duncan Smith rebuffed suggestions that he might resign the party leadership with a "categoric no".

He warned malcontents within the parliamentary party that they faced being hauled in front of Chief Whip David Maclean when they returned to Westminster next week.

Mr Duncan Smith also stood by his highly personalised attack on Tony Blair over his role in the outing of Dr David Kelly.

The Tory leader insisted the conference was successful, but conceded: "I am not going to run away from the idea that there were some malcontents, I think a very small number, who set out to say something different.

"But my Chief Whip, my wonderful Chief Whip, will be speaking to a few people about that," he told told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

Asked if he had rescued his leadership, Mr Duncan Smith replied: "My leadership, as far as I am concerned, is absolutely fine.

"I offered the party when I stood as leader a very clear agenda. I said in two years' time we would have, for the first time for a very long time, an absolute alternative to the Labour Government, an alternative that we can and must sell to the British people."

He continued: "One of the problems we have had is that the public quite rightly have said they were not particularly interested in what the Tories had to offer because they had given the Government a second chance. We had, I believed, a limited period in which to work very fast to try and come up with an alternative when they were ready. I believe they are ready now."

Tories were now setting out a logical, clear and fair alternative to Labour, he told the programme.

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