In the wake of the recent sex scandals, resignation of two key cabinet ministers and growing uncertainty over the Brexit negotiations, the UK premier would be committing electoral suicide if she got rid of the chancellor, according to Adam Garrie, managing editor at TheDuran news portal.
He told Sputnik that despite the growing unrest among Conservative backbench MPs, who have called for Mr. Hammond to be replaced by someone more upbeat about Brexit, Mrs. May is unlikely to resist any further high-profile changes to her cabinet.
The Tory government is already on its "last legs" without causing any further upheaval in the running of the country at such a critical time with further Brexit talks scheduled for December, he believes.
"In my view, the current May government is very weak, so much so that the sacking of anyone will leave her open to even more pressure than she's already under, both from her own party and the opposition. While Hammond is widely viewed as a total failure, in many ways, she would be exposing herself to more danger by making him an enemy than keeping him in his job," Mr. Garrie told Sputnik.
"One way or another, the May government is on its last legs," Mr. Garrie told Sputnik.
According to a cabinet source, who told the Daily Telegraph, Mr. Hammond's latest budget needed to be "spectacular" in order for him to hold onto the keys for No.11 Downing Street.
Many viewed it as "make or break" amid calls from Tory backbenchers for him to be sacked.
READ MORE: UK Budget 2017: More Brexit Money, Oil & Gas Deal, e-Car Revolution, Smokers Hit
Earlier the prime minister moved to downplay rumors of tensions between the pair after Downing Street was forced to rush out an announcement on school funding to off-set concerns about the way the budget was being presented.
She posted a picture of the Chancellor briefing colleagues on the contents of his latest budget saying he would set out the government's blueprint for the economy after Brexit.
The Cabinet met this morning to discuss #Budget2017 which @PhilipHammondUK will deliver later today — setting out how my Government is building a Britain fit for the future: pic.twitter.com/7HOrgziVpW
— Theresa May (@theresa_may) November 22, 2017
In advance of his speech to the House of Commons, the British treasury insisted there would be no policy announcements, only to be forced into an embarrassing U-turn hours later.
It revealed details of a £177 million (US$235 million) plan in which schools and six forms in England would be given £600 (US$797) for every additional student taking A-level mathematics or core maths qualifications. Additional funding has also been found for the training of teachers in selected schools in areas that have fallen behind.
