The Tories must be madder than March hares! What idiocy to think they could have a fourth PM in two years

THE Tories have only themselves to blame. That is my firm feeling as, to widespread disbelief and derision, an unknown number of Conservative MPs are plotting to get rid of Rishi Sunak.

The Tories’ big mistake was to remove Boris Johnson, who had led them to their largest election victory for 32 years. Admittedly Boris was a flawed prime minister, but he had earned that great position. Strike him down, and hark what discord follows.

The crown briefly rested on Liz Truss’s unsteady head until, after plunging the economy into freefall, she was forcibly removed. In a few weeks she succeeded in making the Tories more unpopular than they had been for two decades. They haven’t recovered.

Rishi Sunak is nice, clever, capable and decent, but, let’s face it, he’s not obviously prime ministerial material, though the same point could fairly be made of his opponent, Sir Keir Starmer.

Deluded

Like other callow British politicians who have risen to the top of their parties in recent years, Rishi was promoted too quickly. He saw only Boris’s failings, rather than his own shortcomings. He was too young and inexperienced for the highest office of a great country.

And now they are coming for him, as the Tories plumb new depths in the polls and look forward to electoral Armageddon.

Penny Mordaunt is reportedly being fitted up by some Right-wing Tory MPs as a leader who might be acceptable to their more centrist colleagues. The poor deluded souls evidently believe that, on the basis of a poll or two and an infinite amount of hope, the British electorate will warm to her.

Or might Kemi Badenoch take over? She is playing a clever game, yesterday downplaying the seriousness of the rebellion, and calling for loyalty to Rishi. She knows enough history to realise that the first person to wield the dagger seldom wears the crown. But that she craves it for herself there can be little doubt.

What idiocy this is! Despite being the most successful political party that has ever existed, the Tories can sometimes be madder than March hares. For them to choose a fourth prime minister in this Parliament would invite public contempt.

Doubtless the rebels say to themselves, as they study polls predicting the largest Tory wipeout since 1906, that it can’t get worse than this. But it can. It could. In fact, it would if Penny Mordaunt or Kemi Badenoch or any of the other touted candidates were to replace Rishi.

Let’s consider Penny in the most detail since she is supposedly the front runner. She won a certain amount of fame, and superficial popular acclaim, by carrying the heavy Sword of State with admirable aplomb at King Charles’s coronation last May.

Of her views on the economy — if she has any — we know little or nothing. In truth, she is politically a blank canvas, though recently she let it be known that she wants defence expenditure to be increased, which is certainly a point in her favour (and, since he refuses to do it, one against Mr Sunak).

On gender issues she has baldly declared that ‘trans men are men, trans women are women’ before backtracking in July 2022 when standing for the Tory leadership against Ms Truss and Mr Sunak. Absurdly, unidentified Right- wing plotters reportedly suggest that Penny might be prepared to let them deal with this contentious issue if she became PM.

It’s true that Ms Mordaunt has demonstrated acerbity and imperiousness in her role as Leader of the Commons. But I suspect that as Prime Minister her weakness on many political issues would be easily exposed by a forensic interviewer, and even by the somewhat leaden-footed Sir Keir Starmer.

As for Kemi Badenoch, she’s probably an intellectual notch up from Penny, having conducted herself ably, if not yet triumphantly, during various trade negotiations as Business Secretary.

Yet, like so many would-be leaders in modern politics, she lacks political experience, having become an MP only in 2017. As recently as 2016, she was digital director of the Spectator magazine, a job not normally seen as one of the great offices of State.

We shouldn’t forget Grant Shapps. He has been an MP since 2005, and filled many ministerial positions inside and outside the Cabinet, so he can hardly be accused of inexperience. But his political beliefs are not always clear to those who have followed his career, and he hasn’t made much of an impression on the general public.

Stories of his exploits have recently filled the papers. He had to abandon a trip to Odesa in Ukraine because the Russians had learnt of it, and then they jammed the satellite signal on his RAF aircraft. We’ve been invited to believe that, since the Russians are taking such an interest in Mr Shapps, he must be an important man.

Abrasive

Also stirring in the undergrowth, we may be certain, is the abrasive and outspoken Suella Braverman, as well as the more temperate and cerebral Robert Jenrick. They hold the view, not yet mainstream, that they are perfectly qualified to occupy No 10.

Can it be seriously maintained that any of the people I have mentioned would be more likely to win the election than Mr Sunak, or even simply to do less badly? I don’t believe so.

This is not mere intuition.

Research published in the most recent issue of the Mail on Sunday suggests that no potential leader in current Tory ranks would produce a greater electoral bounce than Rishi Sunak.

Note that this poll didn’t consider Boris Johnson, holed up in his Oxfordshire retreat. I wouldn’t exclude the possibility of his coming back if a seat were found for him, but doubt that he would wish to lead the Tories to probable defeat at this election. More likely he’ll wait until they beg for his return.

No, the best bet now is Rishi. It is childish to suppose that any of the alternatives would do better than him. In all probability they would do even worse. The country has had enough of this Tory in-fighting and internecine warfare.

Squabbling

Mr Sunak is right to want to hold out until the autumn, right to believe (as he said yesterday) that the economy will improve, and right to hope that at least a few illegal immigrants will be bundled off to Rwanda once the legislation is finally passed, as it soon will be.

It’s very unlikely to be enough, of course. I’ve no doubt the Conservative Party will lose hundreds of seats in May’s local elections, whereupon its MPs will again turn on Mr Sunak, if he lasts that long. The inevitable outcome of each further bout of squabbling is the haemorrhaging of more support.

Sticking with Rishi is the only way. There’s always the remote possibility of a Labour scandal that may dent the party’s fortunes. It’s also quite likely that, as the pressure grows on Sir Keir Starmer, his political and moral deficiencies will become more obvious.

There’s still some hope — as long as Mr Sunak isn’t dumped a few months before the election. I fear, though, that the Tory Party sealed its fate — and Rishi wrote his own political obituary — when Boris Johnson was jettisoned. Now they will have to live with the consequences of what they did.