Liz Truss’s supporters had hoped this year’s Conservative party conference would mark a moment of triumph for the new leader. Instead it opened with her arch-nemesis lobbing a hand grenade in her direction. Step forward, Michael Gove.
Appearing on a panel on Laura Kuenssberg’s show this morning, Gove voiced his concerns with Truss’s economic plan which has spooked the markets. He criticised ‘the sheer risk of using borrowed money to fund tax cuts’ as well as the the decision to cut the 45p rate for top earners as ‘a display of the wrong values’.
When pressed on whether that meant he would not vote for the measures, Gove replied:
So, what is Gove up to?
‘I don’t believe it’s right’
It comes as party chairman Jake Berry said votes for the measures announced in the fiscal event would be treated as a confidence vote. That would mean that any Tory MP who opposed them would lose the whip:
‘That is a decision for the chief whip but as far as I’m concerned, yes’
Battle lines are being drawn. Gove has put his head above the parapet to oppose the 45p tax cut at a time when there is mounting concern in the party. A handful of other MPs, such as former chief whip Julian Smith, have also raised concerns publicly. Gove has made this the story of the conference on its first day – and more MPs could now follow.
To make matters worse for Truss, we can expect to hear a lot more from Gove in Birmingham – he is down to speak on a total of nine panels. At a live Telegraph podcast recording this afternoon, he went further – arguing Truss does not have a mandate for parts of her Budget as ‘what was not discussed during the leadership election was the prospect of income tax cuts and in particular income tax cuts for the very wealthiest’.
Little wonder then that Gove is already the talk of conference. The argument from his supporters is that he was already down to take part in the party conference and therefore thought it was right to stand by his commitments. Just because he is on the backbenches doesn’t mean he shouldn’t have a say on the direction of the party. This contrasts with the approach taken by both Rishi Sunak and Boris Johnson who have chosen to stay away to give Truss the space to set out her stall.
So, what is Gove up to? It’s no secret that there is little love lost between the former cabinet minister and Truss. During the leadership contest, her allies were quick to brief out that Gove would be handed a one-way ticket to political Siberia.
‘Gove is done,’ a supporter of Truss told me over the summer. During their time together in cabinet, the pair clashed over various policy issues including on free trade, where he was one member of a protectionist racket Team Truss dubbed the ‘axis of evil’.
After Truss’s not-so-mini Budget backfired, there are MPs who scent blood. Once again there is talk in the party about how long their leader will last. Were the party to oust another leader before the next election, several MPs believe the next leader would be decided quickly by the parliamentary party – rather than going to the membership again. Truss’s decision to go further on tax cuts – and potentially spending cuts – than she indicated during the leadership contest means that MPs are questioning the new direction and her mandate. Gove plans to be a part of that debate – and if it all goes wrong for Truss, part of the rebuilding too.
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