Remainer Phil ... and a pricey lunchtime plot at Le Caprice
IT HAS been a discreet haunt of Royals and rock stars for more than 35 years, serving a ‘confident and urbane clientele’.
But last week, Le Caprice restaurant in London’s Mayfair was at the centre of political intrigue when Philip Hammond chose to lunch there with powerful Tory donor Stuart Marks.
It came as the former Chancellor prepares to mount a last-ditch bid to derail Boris Johnson’s Brexit.
Le Caprice offers dishes such as tuna ceviche, chargrilled octopus, Dorset crab and – on the day Mr Hammond was dining – a special of roast grouse.
Diners at lunchtime would struggle to pay less than £80 a head for a meal with wine.
Famous for its corner table – in the 1980s the Princess of Wales had first call on it, with Jeffrey Archer second (he ate his first meal there after he left prison in 2003) – Le Caprice has a long list of celebrity regulars who have included Princess Margaret and Mick Jagger.
Mr Hammond did not dine in the corner table with entrepreneur Mr Marks, who has given more than £160,000 to the Conservatives since 2013.
However, the pair were given a discreet alcove away from prying eyes.
The meeting came as allies of Mr Johnson accused the former Chancellor of touring the City to raise money for his campaign against No Deal. One ally of the PM has described it as ‘passing round a begging bowl to fund Brexit sabotage’.
They claim that Mr Hammond, who has vowed to fight Mr Johnson’s move to suspend Parliament and leave the EU without a deal if Brussels refuses to compromise, has been building up a ‘war chest’ for an autumn offensive against the Government – to pay the wages of staff.
After quitting the Cabinet in July shortly before Mr Johnson entered No10, he told friends that he intended to join forces with more than two dozen pro-Remain Tory MPs, including fellow Ministers, to mount a ‘guerrilla war’ from the backbenches against any attempt by Mr Johnson to leave the EU without a
‘A discreet alcove away from prying eyes’
deal on October 31. Mr Marks, whose last donation to the party was in October 2018, met Mr Hammond in Le Caprice on Tuesday – just hours before the Prime Minister made his bombshell announcement that he was proroguing Parliament.
Mr Marks started donating to the party after selling his Altrincham based traffic information business ITIS Holdings to an American firm in a £37million deal in 2011.
He said of the lunch: ‘I was meeting Philip 100 per cent because he is a friend and for no other reason.’
Asked if he supported No Deal, he declined to comment, other than to say: ‘I am a party treasurer.’