Titans join battle to stop Starmer getting to No10
BRITAIN is heading for a “3-PM election” as former Conservative leaders Boris Johnson and David Cameron return to the scenes of their greatest triumphs.
While Mr Johnson is expected to unleash his campaigning talents in the North of England, his former rival Lord Cameron will battle to keep seats in the South West blue.
And with Rishi Sunak at the helm of the campaign for re-election, it means three of the Conservatives’ five Prime Ministers since 2010 will be taking to the streets in a bid to win five more years of power.
Tories believe Labour’s Sir Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner will struggle to match the combined charisma of Mr Sunak and his two most successful predecessors.
A senior Conservative source said: “Boris is our best campaigner and he will be deployed.”
Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron led the Tories to a major victory in the South West in 2015, when the party wiped out the Liberal Democrats, taking 15 seats.
He is expected to pound pavements in Cornwall as the Tories fight to hold the region.
Mr Sunak has been urged to reach out to former boss Mr Johnson to ensure that he will take part in the election.
A former senior minister, one of the most prominent MPS on the Right of the party, said: “Boris Johnson is a great asset electorally and I would be delighted if he would come and campaign in my constituency, and I’m sure many other Conservative MPS would say the same. Rishi should be on the phone to Boris, engaging him without delay.”
The PM’S team also hope that veteran left-winger George Galloway will damage Labour’s chances of winning. The new MP says his Workers Party of Britain could stand 50 candidates.
A top Tory said: “Galloway is going to cause havoc for Labour and that’s good for us.”
Conservative Marco Longhi welcomed the prospect of two former PMS joining Mr Sunak in the election battle.
The Dudley North MP said: “A 3-PM campaign to keep Starmer and Rayner out of power would send a powerful message that we are the only party that cares for every part of the country.”
The party remains far behind Labour in the opinion polls but there is optimism in Tory ranks that voters will soon feel better off as Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s
National Insurance cuts kick in. Laura Trott, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, told the Sunday Express that “2024 will be the year that Britain’s economy bounces back”, adding: “Wages are increasing faster than prices for the eighth month in a row and growth is returning.”
Tory MPS hope that when they return after the Easter recess they will pass legislation to ensure the first flights carrying migrants to Rwanda for processing are not grounded by legal challenges.
Mr Longhi said: “That will demonstrate that we take our national security seriously and are prepared to take action that Sir Keir is too timid to contemplate.”
The PM has steadied the ship after claims Right-wingers were plotting to replace him with Leader of the Commons Penny Mordaunt. There are strong suspicions that the rumours were spread as an attempt to weaken the PM and smear Ms Mordaunt as a plotter, to damage her chances in a post-election leadership contest.
A Tory source said: “It’s a double-whammy attempt to undermine both Rishi and Penny at the same time.”
A senior Conservative, who expects the party will be “annihilated” at the election, cast doubt on any coming challenge to Mr Sunak, saying they thought most of their colleagues “are in a foetal position”.
And a former Cabinet minister urged MPS to stop plotting and unite, saying: “My message to my colleagues is: stop it. It really, really, really, really doesn’t help.”
‘Boris is a great asset electorally’ ‘We are prepared to take action’