Rishi has silenced some critics by stamping authority in reshuffle
Ever since Rishi Sunak became prime minister, somewhat unexpectedly, one whisper has grown louder in Westminster: is he tough enough for the top job?
In his own way, he took an almighty step closer to silencing those doubters by stamping his authority on the party yesterday.
The return of the moderates has already angered the usual suspects on the right of the Conservative Party, many of whom have long since abandoned the party’s historic, liberal-with-a-small-l pragmatism. Culture wars are not election winners. Cameron’s long term economic plan, however, did exactly that.
The former prime minister understands that twitter is not the real world, a fact many of his more excitable and more junior colleagues in the party have failed to grasp.
This paper has long argued that Rishi Sunak has a way back in the polls; built on competence, a future-facing economic policy built for the world of tomorrow (AI and tech) not on yesterday’s (endless press releases about the future of the British steel making industry), and an embrace of modern Britain.
Keir Starmer is still yet to give anybody a reason to vote for him; his poll lead remains a protest vote against several years of Tory chaos.
Is this the start? Perhaps. It certainly demonstrates a willingness to stand on his own beliefs, rather than those inherited from the short-term, inherently weak populism of his predecessor but one Boris Johnson.
Will it be enough? Possibly not. But does the promotion of some rising stars such as Laura Trott and Vicky Atkins show a Tory party looking to the future rather than re-fighting Brexit battles? That, at least, it does.