Cameron in Tory unity plea... as poll names Boris Britain's most popular politician
David Cameron has issued an appeal
for party unity – as a poll revealed his rival Boris Johnson would make a
far more popular leader.
The Prime Minister used a speech to a private Tory fundraising dinner to warn that voters always punished divided parties.
A source at the annual Carlton Club dinner on Thursday night said the Prime Minister told senior Tories that the party ‘must not go back to the bad old days’.
His decision to speak out on the
issue underlines growing concern within Tory high command about
discontent with both the Coalition and Mr Cameron.
But his discomfort increased last night with the release of a poll showing London Mayor Mr Johnson was now a far more popular choice to lead the country.
The YouGov survey for the Guardian said that Mr Johnson was the only serving politician in Britain to enjoy a positive approval rating with the public.
Mr Johnson’s net positive rating of 25 contrasted sharply with Mr Cameron’s rating of minus 18.
Ed Miliband fared even worse with a rating of minus 29, while Nick Clegg’s rating was minus 52, just ahead of the Chancellor George Osborne.
The highest rated Coalition minister was Foreign Secretary William Hague, with a rating of minus one.
Mr Johnson’s popularity has soared in the wake of the Olympic Games. Many Tories believe his optimism, Euroscepticism and belief in cutting taxes could prove a winning formula.
Some Conservative MPs now openly describe themselves as ‘outriders’ for Mr Johnson and are hatching a plot to help him return to the Commons to enable him to stand for the leadership.
Mr Cameron’s call for unity came just hours after reports that 14 Conservative MPs have written to Graham Brady, the chairman of the backbench 1922 Committee, demanding a leadership contest.
Under Tory rules a contest is
triggered if 15 per cent of the party’s MPs write letters to Mr Brady
calling for the leader to go.
The reported 14 letters remain well short of the 46 needed to trigger a leadership contest.
But thanks to a quirk of the rules, they remain on file indefinitely, meaning that Mr Cameron could face a ‘drip, drip’ build-up of discontent.
Tory sources say this month’s Cabinet reshuffle has ‘greatly increased’ unhappiness with Mr Cameron at Westminster.
A study yesterday revealed that there are now only 24 Tory MPs on the backbenches who have not rebelled against the Government.
The Prime Minister used a speech to a private Tory fundraising dinner to warn that voters always punished divided parties.
A source at the annual Carlton Club dinner on Thursday night said the Prime Minister told senior Tories that the party ‘must not go back to the bad old days’.
Rivals: David Cameron has issued an appeal for
party unity - as a poll revealed his rival Boris Johnson would make a
far more popular leader
But his discomfort increased last night with the release of a poll showing London Mayor Mr Johnson was now a far more popular choice to lead the country.
The YouGov survey for the Guardian said that Mr Johnson was the only serving politician in Britain to enjoy a positive approval rating with the public.
Mr Johnson’s net positive rating of 25 contrasted sharply with Mr Cameron’s rating of minus 18.
Ed Miliband fared even worse with a rating of minus 29, while Nick Clegg’s rating was minus 52, just ahead of the Chancellor George Osborne.
The highest rated Coalition minister was Foreign Secretary William Hague, with a rating of minus one.
Mr Johnson’s popularity has soared in the wake of the Olympic Games. Many Tories believe his optimism, Euroscepticism and belief in cutting taxes could prove a winning formula.
Some Conservative MPs now openly describe themselves as ‘outriders’ for Mr Johnson and are hatching a plot to help him return to the Commons to enable him to stand for the leadership.
Mr Cameron’s call for unity came just hours after reports that 14 Conservative MPs have written to Graham Brady, the chairman of the backbench 1922 Committee, demanding a leadership contest.
Popular: The highest rated Coalition minister in the poll was Foreign Secretary William Hague, with a rating of minus one
The reported 14 letters remain well short of the 46 needed to trigger a leadership contest.
But thanks to a quirk of the rules, they remain on file indefinitely, meaning that Mr Cameron could face a ‘drip, drip’ build-up of discontent.
Tory sources say this month’s Cabinet reshuffle has ‘greatly increased’ unhappiness with Mr Cameron at Westminster.
A study yesterday revealed that there are now only 24 Tory MPs on the backbenches who have not rebelled against the Government.
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