A Boris Johnson comeback would doom the Conservatives to defeat at the next general election, former cabinet minister David Davis has said.
The senior party figure warned fellow Tories not to be tempted by the former prime minister’s “obsessed” backers into inviting a return.
“There are in Tory party about 20 per cent [of MPs] who are obsessed by the fact they voted for him and therefore he should be [in power] irrespective of what sin he committed,” Mr Davis told The Independent.
He added: “That really is not the view of the public – it would cost us a lot of seats if Boris was back in charge. It’s not the primary reason I don’t want him back – I don’t want him back because he was not a good prime minister.”
Mr Davis pointed to the fact that Mr Johnson had the worst public approval before Liz Truss’s disastrous six weeks at No 10. “That worst public rating means something.”
The former Brexit secretary also defended Rishi Sunak, and said the Tories still had a chance of winning the general election expected in 2024 under the current PM.
“Apart from some sort of non-stop journalistic rumbling about the return of Boris – God help us, frankly – I don’t think there is a big appetite to turn on Rishi,” Mr Davis told Times Radio earlier on Tuesday.
“If we decide we’re going to change again, the public will lose faith with us,” he added. “We could elect the Archangel Gabriel, it wouldn’t matter. We would not be returning to government next time we did that.”
Mr Davis said Mr Sunak had been “too kindly” to some rebel MPs – pointing to the “unnecessary” U-turn to allow on onshore wind. “He’s got scope to make lots of decisions and carry the party with him.”
He added: “I think we’ve got a good – good’s too strong – we’ve got a chance of winning, and I think it needs somebody to put our shoulder to the wheel to make it happen.”
It comes as a grassroots group full of Mr Johnson supporters called for a rule change so that any Tory MP who gains the backing of 15 per cent of their colleagues should be able to run for the leadership.
The Conservative Democratic Organisation, backed by Johnson donor Peter Cruddas, has called for an overhaul the workings of the party.
Meanwhile, Paul Goodman, editor of ConservativeHome website raised eyebrows by suggesting a Johnson comeback was a possibility in 2023.
The influential figure wrote that it was “possible that a reinstalled Johnson could confound his critics, as he has done so many times before, and win the Conservatives a fifth term”.
However, Mr Goodman also said it was unlikely that Mr Johnson’s would revive his fortunes among backbenchers who have accepted for the time being that life has to be “dull” under Mr Sunak.
On Tuesday, No 10 defended the fact that Mr Johnson will continue to get legal support from government during parliament’s investigation over whether he misled parliament over Partygate – insisting there was precedent.
Legal opinion by Lord Pannick – commissioned by the government at the reported costs of £130,000 – claimed the privileges committee was adopting “fundamentally flawed” approach to the investigation.
But Mr Sunak’s spokesperson sidestepped questions about whether No 10 agreed with Lord Pannick’s opinion.
