A Tory Minister was confronted by an old tweet slamming Liz Truss's "fairytale" economic plans as he battled to defend the crisis-hit Government.
Trade Minister Greg Hands was sent out on the airwaves this morning as Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng jets back from Washington for crisis talks over the disastrous mini-Budget.
But in an excruciating moment, the former Rishi Sunak ally was confronted over his criticism of Ms Truss's economic ideas during the Tory leadership contest this summer.
Today programme presenter Nick Robinson brought up a tweet from a TV leadership debate on July 15, where Mr Hands said: "Rishi speaks out against more debt and “fairytale” economics."
Mr Hands replied: "Well, look, over the summer, Nick, there were a number of different proposals flying around by people frankly attached to both camps."
Mr Robinson retorted: "Will you forgive me for suggesting you are insulting people's intelligence? You're now defending a series of policies that you condemned as 'fairytales', as 'worse than Jeremy Corbyn's'.
"Why come here and defend something that you spent an enormous amount of time and energy telling everyone was very dangerous? And you've been proved right, haven't you?"
Mr Hands said: "I disagree with the premise of the question, Nick, because actually things have moved on a lot. The world has changed a lot from the summer."
It comes as senior Tories are said to be plotting to replace Ms Truss with a joint ticket of Rishi Sunak and Penny Mordaunt - only five weeks into her leadership.
Mr Hands said he didn't recognise the reports and urged MPs to rally round the embattled Prime Minister.
Asked if it would be better if Mr Sunak was now PM, he said: "No, because Liz Truss won the contest and ultimately its a Conservative party contest.
"It's now for the Conservative Party to united behind the leader who won, which is Liz Truss, and that's exactly what I'll be doing and I urge all my fellow MPs... to unite behind the PM and deliver on the programme she has laid out."
Former Cabinet Minister Nadine Dorries accused those exploring the possibility of replacing the PM of "overturn democracy".
The Boris Johnson loyalist tweeted: "Those absurdly called grandee MPs (men) agitating to remove Liz Truss are all Sunak supporters.
"They agitated to remove Boris Johnson and now they will continue plotting until they get their way.
"It's a plot not to remove a PM but to overturn democracy. #BackLiz"
