Conservative infighting before next month’s budget has intensified as allies of Liz Truss repeated their calls for sweeping tax cuts but other MPs accused the former prime minister of damaging the party with her comeback.
With just weeks until Jeremy Hunt announces his first budget, Tory MPs argued in public about how to rescue the party’s reputation with voters, as an MRP (multilevel regression and post-stratification) poll showed the Conservatives could be heading for near-wipeout at the next election.
Those around Truss are seeking to capitalise on her return to the spotlight to reinvigorate her agenda of radical cuts to taxes and red tape. They are meeting weekly as part of the Conservative Growth Group, which is designed to galvanise the economic right wing of the party before the election.
David Jones, one of the members of that group, told the Guardian: “A lot of people, myself included, were concerned that [chancellor] Jeremy Hunt’s autumn statement was not sufficiently encouraging of growth. We want the tax burden to come down, and especially the corporation tax burden.”
His comments come 10 days after a group of Tory backbenchers warned Hunt during a private meeting that the party faced “the end of an era” in government if he did not cut taxes.
However, others have been incensed by Truss’s high-profile return three months after leaving office, which came via a 4,000-word article in the Telegraph and an interview with the Spectator. She argued in the publications that her policies were not to blame for Britain’s economic problems, and that they remained the best way to stimulate growth.
The Conservative backbencher Simon Hoare said: “Truss’s intervention has achieved absolutely nothing. This is somebody trying to be remembered whom the country is trying to forget.”
His colleague Robin Walker told GB News: “I’m not sure it’s a helpful intervention ... We’ve had 4,000 words over the weekend [in the Telegraph article] – I think it’s about 4,000 too many in the current situation.”
One former minister added: “Truss is trying to rewrite history. Her article and her interview show a complete lack of self-awareness.”
On Thursday night, others in the party criticised the former prime minister on Twitter.
Conor Burns, a former minister, said: “She is a drag anchor to any cause she champions. The only thing most want to hear from her is a sustained period of silence.”
Paul Holmes, another Tory MP, retweeted with the comment: “Conor is right. A period of silence and personal reflection might be best.”
A spokesperson for Truss would not comment on the criticisms.
The row came as an MRP poll for the Telegraph showed that if the election were held now, the Tories would come third behind the Scottish National party with just 45 seats.
The Conservatives have regularly trailed Labour in the polls by more than 20 points since Truss’s chancellor, Kwasi Kwarteng, announced his tax-cutting mini-budget last September. That announcement, which promised to cut the top rate of income tax and roll back planned rises to corporation tax, caused the pound to plummet in value and UK borrowing rates to skyrocket.
Despite this, many of Truss’s allies believe it was her implementation that was at fault rather than her ideas. Several are now members of the Conservative Growth Group, which is led by Simon Clarke and Ranil Jayawardena, two of Truss’s closest supporters in parliament.
The group first met three weeks ago and last week was given a talk by John Redwood, the veteran Tory MP and longtime champion of the economic right within the party. Members say the group is considering calling for changing the doctors’ pension tax allowance while extending it to other professions.
Jones said: “The idea is that we act almost like a thinktank, putting the case for tax cuts and deregulation from within the party.”
However, many feel Truss’s involvement may not help the group achieve its goals. One MP said: “I can’t figure out why the Conservative Growth Group exists. Everyone in parliament wants growth – what is this except a vehicle for Truss’s return?”
But those involved say it is not merely a personal platform for the former prime minister. “This is not a Liz Truss fanclub,” said Jones. “A lot of people are genuinely concerned to encourage growth, and they come from all parts of the party.”
Another ally of Truss said her role with the group was “very peripheral” and it was wrong to see it as a vehicle for her political rehabilitation. “She attended the launch drinks and has popped into one meeting, and obviously she supports efforts to boost growth,” they said. “But this is led by Simon and Ranil. It’s very much not her group.”
