The new Cabinet rankings by Tory party members are out, bringing little good news for the prime minister. While business secretary Kemi Badenoch has topped the poll again, though with a slightly reduced popularity score, Rishi Sunak is once again placed second from last.
Only immigration minister Michael Tomlinson, who combines a low public profile with one of the most difficult briefs in government, scored worse.
Penny Mordaunt, the Lord President of the Council, makes second place behind Badenoch. Northern Ireland secretary Chris Heaton-Harris has made an impressive leap, rising from eleventh from bottom to fourth from top. This is, perhaps, a recognition of his work bringing the Democratic Unionist Party back to Stormont and ending the deadlock in the government of Northern Ireland.
The monthly survey, conduced by Tory blog Conservative Home, serves as a regular gauge of opinion among party members who have never given their approval to the Sunak premiership. He was hastily installed by MPs after the fall of Liz Truss without members having their say.
In the new rankings foreign secretary Lord Cameron has managed to climb out of the red, just: he is not even a full popularity point over the line with 0.9. He scores higher than chancellor Jeremy Hunt, Michael Gove and the PM.
With the PM in political difficulty lately, Badenoch's name has been circulated by rebels and malcontents as a potential replacement leader of the Conservative party. She has publicly urged MPs to get behind the PM, but was revealed last week to be a member of a WhatsApp group titled "Evil Plotters".
A career pivot for Braverman?
Could Suella Braverman become a GB News presenter? The channel is no stranger to a political pundit. Nigel Farage hosts his own prime-time show and Boris Johnson is soon to join the roster. GB News boss Angelos Frangopoulos said "our audience loves Suella Braverman. She really resonates with them. I have actually told her that." Perhaps it's not a bad idea for the former home secretary to consider a career change. She may be floundering at the moment without a role in government or any deals to work on. "We haven’t had any discussions with her on that front but who knows down the track," Frangopoulos told Politico's Westminster Insider podcast. Never say never, Suella.
