Liz Truss has as little as 10 days to save her premiership, former cabinet minister Grant Shapps has suggested.
Following the prime minister’s humiliating U-turn on the 45p tax rate, Shapps said she has “a limited period of time to turn things round”, starting with her crucial speech to the Conservative conference on Wednesday and the return of mutinous MPs to parliament next week.
Despite the Tories having replaced their leader less than a month ago, Mr Shapps said that MPs fearing the loss of their seats in the general election may think they “might as well roll the dice” in the hope of a better outcome.
Mr Shapps had been hoping for a role in Ms Truss’s government, but was told by the new PM that, while she recognised him as an effective minister, there was no place for him because he was a prominent supporter of her rival Rishi Sunak.
He joined Michael Gove on Sunday to blow a hole in Ms Truss’s plan to cut tax for the richest in society, blasting the policy as “politically tin-eared”.
Speaking to the News Agents podcast at the Birmingham conference, he said it would be “ludicrous” to suggest that Ms Truss was not facing a “critical period” in her premiership, but said it was not impossible she would survive.
“I think it is obvious to say that there is a limited period of time to turn things around from what’s been a choppy, difficult start,” he told interviewer Jon Sopel.
“I think these next few days, by definition, is obviously the key moment. The next 10 days, of course, is a critical period, that goes without saying.
“It doesn’t mean it’s the end moment, one way or the other, it doesn’t mean that time will stop after 10 days.
“But I think it’s really important, if she’s going to turn it around, this is the time to do it.”
He did not dispute Sopel’s suggestion that he was effectively giving Ms Truss 10 days to save her premiership.
“I think if you’re honest, the next 10 days is a critical period of time,” he replied. “She’s got a conference speech to make after a very difficult few days, she’s got the MPs coming back together again for the first time since things became choppy.
“I mean, it’d be ludicrous to say anything else.
“But is it possible? Yes, it is possible, and I’m cheering her on to do it.”
Mr Shapps said that the issue of Ms Truss’s survival would be determined by whether Tory MPs felt she will cost them their seats at the election expected in 2024.
“The question is for Conservative MPs, if they are in any case thinking ‘Well, I’m going to be out at the next election’, then they might as well roll the dice as it were, and elect a new leader,” he said.
– The full interview with Mr Shapps is available on The News Agents podcast on Global Player from 5pm on Tuesday.
