Theresa May clinging onto power as Tories liken party to Italian Job cliff edge scene
Tory MPs have likened the party to the infamous cliff-edge scene at the end of The Italian Job, warning that if a leadership challenge is mounted against Theresa May it could leave the Conservatives in free-fall.
Three former ministers spoken to by Morning Wire said the Prime Minister would be able to keep clinging onto power by virtue of the overall vulnerability – although many would willingly jettison their leader if they thought the party could survive.
One senior MP said: "We are that coach, teetering on the edge of the cliff right now, and no one knows whether to throw the cargo overboard or not. The local elections will absolutely be a flash point as to whether the whole Tory party falls off the cliff or whether it's just the 'cargo'."
He said there was widespread "misery" among colleagues who feared that a leadership contest would automatically prompt another election at a time when the Conservatives are at their weakest in years.
It is believed that while there is widespread grumbling, the number of letters being collected by 1922 committee chairman Graham Brady hasn't materially changed since last autumn.
But this is borne out of necessity to protect the party rather than any renewed faith in its leader.
Another ex-Cabinet minister said it was "all very shaky", while a third said the party was "just so precarious".
"We have weak leadership, a party that isn't going anywhere and stands for nothing, and all we are doing is attacking Corbyn," said the latter. "It's been exacerbated by Brexit because no one knows the direction of travel… but no one is going to press an exit button [because] no one wants that uncertainty."
MPs were bracing themselves for "gruesome" local elections in May, in part because the campaign has not started in time. She predicted a "protective ring of steel" will be built around the Prime Minister and expectations will be managed – but May could become vulnerable again after the spring vote.
"Most people now know she's not the right leader… but no one will thank us for creating more political uncertainty, and it's not fair on our local election candidates to get rid of her now," said another. "I suspect nothing will happen until much later in 2018."