PM told to swell the ranks with Eurosceptics
Party members speak out after IDS resignation and sidelining of Priti Patel leaves only four Out MPs in Cabinet
DAVID CAMERON has been warned that he will have to “swell the ranks” of his Cabinet with Eurosceptics after the EU referendum if he is to bring the Conservative Party back together again, following the resignation of Iain Duncan Smith
Mr Duncan Smith’s stepping down as Work and Pensions Secretary means that there are now only four full-time Cabinet members who are campaigning for Britain to leave the EU.
He has been replaced by Stephen Crabb, the former Welsh Secretary who backs Mr Cameron’s campaign for Britain to stay in the European Union.
Priti Patel, the employment minister and a leading Eurosceptic, was not offered the role despite being seen by many in the party as a rising star. One minister told The Sunday Tele
graph that Mr Cameron’s top team is now “unbalanced” and that “he will have to make changes” if he is to bring the party back together again.
The minister said: “The PM will need to swell the ranks of people on the Right of the party who hold top jobs. Now that IDS has gone, there are only four full Cabinet ministers who are campaigning to leave the EU.
“In the interests of party management and reuniting everyone after the referendum, he will have to make changes. He has got a very unbalanced team now and that is something he will have to address.”
A senior Conservative MP warned that the row between George Osborne and Mr Duncan Smith had the potential to “poison” the EU referendum debate.
Sources close to Mr Duncan Smith said that he intends to devote himself almost entirely to the EU referendum debate after resigning in protest at welfare cuts.
He is today expected to use an appearance on the BBC’s Andrew Marr
Show to criticise Mr Osborne and the Government for trying to suggest he was responsible for implementing the cuts to disability benefits, despite the fact he strongly opposed them.
Steve Baker, a Eurosceptic Tory MP
‘He will have to make changes. He has got a very unbalanced team now and that is something he will have to address’
and member of Conservatives for Britain, which is campaigning to leave the EU, said: “I’m sure the overwhelming majority of Conservative MPs are committed to a civilised EU campaign carried through with restraint and caution but I am now gravely concerned that the atmosphere around the entirely separate circumstances of Iain’s resignation could poison the EU campaign.
“This cannot be allowed to happen. The stakes for our party are now far too high. I am absolutely clear that Iain is a deeply honourable man full of integrity. He should be treated as the man of integrity that he is.”
Despite the pleas for party unity, there are concerns that Mr Cameron could use a reshuffle after the referendum to sack his friend and long-term ally Michael Gove as Justice Secretary. Mr Gove today writes in The Sunday
Telegraph in praise of Mr Cameron’s decision to allow ministers to campaign against him.
The Prime Minister has been urged by ministerial allies to remove Mr Gove from his post in the weeks following the in-out referendum on June 23 after he questioned the legal basis of Britain’s deal with Brussels.
According to well-placed sources, Mr Cameron has been angered by Mr Gove because the Justice Secretary assured him he would keep a “low profile” after declaring that he would campaign to leave the EU.
The Prime Minister is also expected to offer a job to Boris Johnson, despite the Mayor of London also choosing to join the campaign to take Britain out of the EU, and despite his previously assuring the Prime Minister that he was ready to join the In campaign.
Mrs Patel last night said that she would stay on in government despite suggestions that she was prepared to quit over welfare cuts.
She said: “It has been a real privilege to work alongside the great social reformer Iain Duncan Smith during my time as minister for employment. Since coming to office in 2010, he has made a real difference to the life chances of people throughout the country by reforming the welfare system to ensure that work always pays. I look forward to continuing to play my part as minister for employment in transforming people’s life chances by working closely with the incoming Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
“The Conservative Government will continue to deliver welfare reform that builds on our excellent record of supporting people into work, whilst protecting the most vulnerable in society.”
Ispent my Friday night last week as I’ve spent many Friday nights for years, campaigning for Conservative Party candidates. I was in Ilkley, and all the people I was with – candidates, councillors, MPs and supporters – had given up their evening because they believe in helping others. Instead of a cosy night in front of Gogglebox, they were working because they want the best for their community and their country.
But the way in which some of us try to make a difference – party politics – is often viewed by many others as a selfish exercise in pushiness, positioning and posturing.
I can understand the cynicism. There have been broken promises and dodgy dealing from some politicians in my lifetime which would make the Borgias blush. Indeed, one of the reasons why I’m campaigning for Britain to leave the EU is to strengthen confidence in our democracy by making those in power more accountable. But meaningful change of any kind in a democracy depends on political parties – it’s only by people joining them and standing for office on a shared platform that we can make a difference for the better.
I’m convinced that this country has been changed – significantly – for the better in the last six years because the Conservative Party has been in office. Two of the people who have made the biggest difference for good are two friends of mine who are both great Conservatives.
Iain Duncan Smith has been an inspirational social reformer. He’s been guided throughout by a clear moral purpose – he wants to liberate people from poverty by giving them the chance to work and contribute. In opposition, he ensured social justice became a guiding mission for our party. In government, he has pioneered complex and sometimes controversial reforms with skill and grace. He has won respect across the political spectrum – few politicians are admired enthusiastically by both Nick Clegg and Norman Tebbit. He has earned the right to make his own decisions on matters of high principle.
George Osborne is also a man I hugely admire. He is a brilliant chancellor who has not just fought to repair the nation’s finances after years of mismanagement; he’s also a thoughtful social reformer. George has worked to get working people out of poverty by cutting taxes and introducing a national living wage.
He’s passionate about extending opportunity and has, for example, introduced a massive extension of preschool education for the most disadvantaged children. He cares about making our society fairer in a genuinely radical way.
So I can’t – and won’t – take issue with either of them in the areas they’ve championed.
Of course, I do differ from George – and agree with Iain – on the question of Europe. I think our country would be stronger, freer and fairer outside the EU. I believe the £350 million we send every week to the EU would be better spent here. I think we should be free to kick out politicians who have failed, and our membership of the EU means laws and policies are forced on us by people we can’t get rid of.
But none of us would have the chance to vote in this referendum if George and David Cameron hadn’t won the election for the Conservatives. And David has shown extraordinary generosity of spirit in allowing ministers to campaign against him – for Brexit – while still remaining at their posts.
The country therefore has the chance to make this momentous decision – after a fair and open debate – because we have a majority Conservative government. And after this country has made its decision, we’ll need a strong, united and resolute government not just to steer Britain through new times internationally, but also to continue with vital reforms to our economy, welfare and education.
Last week’s Budget showed that we have the ideas, determination and ambition to build a better country. I praised it enthusiastically when the Cabinet met last Wednesday and I will vote for it enthusiastically next week.
It’s progressive – it will see the typical worker paying over £1,000 less in tax – and it is radical. The Budget signalled even greater ambition on education reform, with all schools being liberated from local bureaucracy. A new levy on the producers of sugary soft drinks will pay for a doubling of the money for sport in primary schools. And with Help to Save and the new Lifetime ISA, it will reward those on lower incomes who choose to save, and help the next generation prepare for the future.
It also supports small business: the Budget cut taxes on business and enterprise – vital to creating jobs, livelihoods and wellbeing.
In the weeks ahead I’ll be arguing for a vision of Britain as a model, progressive nation, a beacon to others, capable of achieving even more in years to come. The achievements of this Budget – like the welfare reforms of the past six years – are all part of that. And I won’t be shy about making the case for a country that benefits from confident and courageous Conservatism.