The same renegade Conservative MPs that Prime Minister Theresa May was worried would “wreck” her plans for Brexit by sandbagging her tweet-sized bill in the Parliament debate are now trying to get Philip Hammond kicked out because they believe he will upset the Brexit process, according to an ex-Tory minister.
Hammond under pressure due to budget choices
Hammond, who is the Chancellor of the Exchequer, has found himself under pressure this week after releasing his controversial budget for Government spending. While there was a lot of good choices made with the spending, a lot of his decisions have been met with criticisms.
For example, his decision to raise the amount that self-employed workers are taxed on their income has been called out for going back on a Conservative Party election promise.
Now, an ex-Conservative minister, who was a supporter of the Remain campaign in the lead-up to the referendum before the nation was divided by Brexit, has opened up about the party’s plans to oust Hammond from the government. He says that “part of the strategy” to make Brexit happen the way “the hard Brexiteers” want it to is that people like Iain Duncan Smith will rally together to get what they want.
The minister says that the so-called “Brexiteers” believe that Hammond is “going to f*ck Brexit,” rather than being severely angered by him.
They want him out for Brexit’s sake more than a personal thing. The former Tory minister says that the Leave people are “hunting as a pack,” which sounds very scary, and says that they plan to use the controversy and debate over the budget “to weaken Philip or do him over.”
30 Tory MPs already against Hammond
Around 30 Conservative Party MPs have already been outed as having said behind closed doors that later this year, when Hammond’s budget is debated before going forward as a Government Bill, that they have already decided against it.
One of the rebel Tories is recorded as having said that “if it is not dead yet,” then “it is certainly on life support.”
This is perhaps part of the reason why Theresa May has freaked out and put a halt on any votes for or against Hammond’s budget. She most likely figures that given a few months to think about it, these Tories will come around and learn to love the budget, which seems unlikely, but at least she has hope.
IDS has been strongly opposed to Hammond for a while
Iain Duncan Smith, who used to be the former secretary of state for work and pensions, already has it out for Hammond, and has done for months. Apparently the Chancellor was trying to keep Britain within the customs union but had to back down because Downing Street was fighting him on it. Smith has called these claims “complete rubbish” and “total nonsense.”
Another renegade Remain-supporting MP says that these claims are “absolutely nothing to do with Brexit” and a “completely unrelated” matter. On the topic of “the deficit reduction target,” he said “I just don’t think (Hammond) is that good,” as well as doubts that he is even a subscriber to the Conservative Party: “I just don’t think he is a Tory.” He’s clearly very unpopular, and after this budget thing, he may be on his way out.
