Buyer's Remorse: Most Tories Want Truss Out and Boris Back
© AP Photo / Jeff J Mitchell
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Liz Truss was appointed PM just six weeks ago, after defeating Rishi Sunak in the Conservative Party leadership election triggered by Boris Johnson's resignation — ostensibly over the 'Pinchergate' and 'Partygate' scandals.
Most Tories already want new Prime Minister Liz Truss to go — with Boris Johnson the most popular option to replace her.
Just six weeks after Truss replaced BoJo as PM, a YouGov poll published on Tuesday found that 55 per cent of Conservative party members thought it was time for her to vacate 10 Downing Street, as opposed to 38 per cent who thought she should stay.
Truss is already facing calls from the Tory backbenchers to quit after series of U-turns that have all but reversed short-lived chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng's budget — which prompted a market run on the pound sterling and government bonds.
A snap YouGov poll of Conservative Party members finds that 55 per cent think Liz Truss should resign as prime minister
When asked how they would vote if August's ballot between Truss and former chancellor of the exchequer Rishi Sunak was held again, 55 per cent said they would now back Sunak compared to 25 per cent for Truss — a reversal of the result announced on September 5.
A snap YouGov poll of Conservative Party members finds that 55 would vote for former chancellor of the exchequer Rishi Sunak rather than Liz Truss if the August 2022 ballot was repeated
But given the option of a raft of previous and potential candidates — including Johnson — a third of Tories said they wanted the man who led them to a landslide victory in the 2019 general election back in the driving seat.
A snap YouGov poll finds that a third of Conservative Party members want former prime minister Boris John back just six weeks after Liz Truss replaced him
Sunak, who led the mass resignation from Johnson's cabinet that forced his resignation in July, polled a distant second on 23 per cent, with Defence Secretary Ben Wallace on 10 per cent and Penny Mordaunt, who came third in the summer leadership race, on nine points.
Newly-appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt, now seen as the real power in Downing Street, could only garner the support of seven per cent of party members — perhaps thanks to his tax-but-don't-spend revision of his predecessor Kwarteng's Thatcherite minibudget.
18 October 2022, 05:55 GMT
Earlier on Tuesday, former Tory MEP David Campbell-Bannerman told ITV's Good Morning Britain that Johnson was "the only alternative" if Truss was forced out.
David Campbell-Bannerman(former Tory MEP) - "Boris Johnson is the only alternative" if the party get rid of Liz Truss. 🤦#GMB pic.twitter.com/ZKxHA510p8
— Haggis_UK 🇬🇧 🇪🇺 (@Haggis_UK) October 18, 2022
