Luckless May quickens her ‘limp to oblivion’
BRITAIN: Prime Minister Theresa May’s political future was last night hanging in the balance after her disastrous conference speech left her feeling ‘‘extremely distraught’’.
She had hoped the speech would effectively relaunch her premiership and kickstart a Conservative revival, with policies to cap energy prices and spend billions on new council houses.
However, the policies were largely overshadowed after a professional prankster walked on stage unchallenged to hand her a fake P45 (a tax form for when you stop working for an employer), and a heavy cold left May almost unable to finish the speech following a series of coughing fits.
The speech ended with letters falling from the slogan behind the stage and May being comforted by her husband.
The Cabinet rushed to defend her, speaking of her bravery and resilience in finishing the speech.
However, it capped a disastrous conference week for the Conservatives with the annual gathering in Manchester dominated by a simmering Cabinet row over Foreign Minister Boris Johnson’s determination not to allow Brexit to be derailed.
In a newspaper article yesterday, Nick Timothy, May’s former chief of staff, says the blame for this week’s events must lie with the entire Government.
‘‘This week was the opportunity for the Tories to reset and show the country not only that they understand the need for change, but that they have the policies to change people’s lives for the better. Unfortunately, they failed to take their opportunity,’’ he wrote.
‘‘This is partly down to bad luck, because the prime minister’s speech – if anybody hears it – contained a consistent argument. But where was the policy earlier in the week? Where was the plan to make our economy truly dynamic? The Tories need to get their act together, and fast.’’
Lord Tebbitt, the former Conservative cabinet minister, said the speech ‘‘began to look like a tragedy’’ and said that while she had shown the courage that leadership demands, luck – another essential – had deserted her.
He said she must now trust her own instincts, rather than those of advisers ‘‘lacking in experience and ability’’, to get her through the months ahead.
One of the recurring themes of May’s speech was the ‘‘British dream’’ of a great meritocracy where anyone can achieve their full potential and every generation is better off than the last. It was designed to appeal to young voters who sided with Labour at the last election.
In the wake of June’s election result, many senior Conservatives have been keen to avoid a leadership challenge for fear it would lead to a bitter row over Brexit policy and undermine talks with the EU.
There is also growing concern a leadership contest could lead to a general election in which the Conservatives would be ill-prepared to tackle a surge for Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party.
May said before the conference that she was determined to fight the 2022 general election. However, while she was supported publicly by her Cabinet, privately Tory MPS said she was ‘‘limping like a broken horse into oblivion’’ and suggested that talks about her departure will have to be ‘‘accelerated’’.
A Cabinet minister said she was ‘‘extremely distraught’’ last night and allies were hoping she will bounce back to lead talks with the EU next year.
– Telegraph Group