Although Tory conference has so far been a rather dull affair with senior politicians sticking to the party line at all times, one of the new intake of Tory MPs did manage to spice things up last night. In an interview with Iain Dale on LBC, Heidi Allen gave surprisingly honest answers when asked who she would like to be the next Tory leader.
Although George Osborne is the favourite to succeed David Cameron, Allen has concerns that he is ‘too smooth’ for the job:
HA: I have to be honest I couldn’t really picture him as a future leader but I thought he did a really good job today actually. ID: Why not? HA: Umm, am I allowed to say it? How many people are listening, is it just between us? ID: Just between us Heidi HA: Too smooth
As for Osborne’s likely contenders? Well Allen isn’t too impressed by any of them. The MP for South Cambridgeshire says that Theresa May reminds her too much of The Incredibles‘ character Edna Mills — a half-Japanese, half-German fashion designer, while she can’t help but picture Boris Johnson half-naked:
‘I just see him in a room with Putin, naked from the waist upwards and together wrestling fish, and it’s just not a good image for me I have to tell you.’
Instead Allen is after a new candidate who offers a ‘different kind of politics’:
‘I want to see somebody completely new, I mean I’m a new MP so I’m still learning. I think people like Ruth Davison for example are amazing, I want to see somebody with a bit of fire in their belly because I think whether you are a fan of Jeremy Corbyn or Nigel Farage or those sorts of characters, people are looking for somebody with a bit of oomph and a bit of character and an honest way of talking.’
After this interview, Mr S can’t foresee Cameron or Osborne promoting her to the frontbench anytime soon.
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