Top Tory Penny Mordaunt last night joked “our comms is s***” - as she dodged giving a 10-out-of-10 guarantee Liz Truss will last two years.
The former leadership contender, who narrowly missed out on the final two to now-PM Ms Truss, gave a speech to a raucous reception just before midnight on the Tory conference circuit.
She earned the dubious honour of being the last minister in Cabinet to publicly defend Ms Truss’s tax cuts for the rich - before a 7am U-turn the next day.
She joked to the room full of communications experts: “What have we learned so far in conference? We’ve learned that our policies are great, but our comms is s***!
“Does anyone know anyone that can help us? Anyone know anyone who works in comms?”
Ms Mordaunt was asked, on a scale of one to 10, how confident she was Liz Truss would lead the Tories into the next general election.
But she didn’t give a number - replying: “After I was eliminated I could have sat on the sidelines and hedged my bets but actually I chose to back someone who I thought was our best chance…
“We are going to win or lose the next election by what we do to boost growth and to deliver for the general public.
“I wouldn’t have backed her if I wasn’t confident she could do it.
“We have to have the kahunas to stay the course and we have to get our communications right.”
The Leader of the Commons raised eyebrows by saying the Tories had to “modernise the mandate” - despite a general election only being in 2024.
“We are people that create, promote and amplify hope. That is why we can win the next general election. That is why we need your help on comms. That is why we should be cheerful this week,” she said.
Asked if she would run again for leader, Ms Mordaunt said: “Folks, we’ve had enough of gymnastics… drama… leadership contests to last us a very long time.
“We need a period of stability when we can really get down to the detail of delivering for the people of this country.
“So no - calmness please, keep calm, carry on, let’s get focused on the job.”
