The wife of a sacked Tory minister has called Liz Truss “an imbecile” in a fiery Twitter rant.
Felicity Cornelius-Mercer shared the supposed exchange the new PM had with ex-Veterans’ Affairs chief Johnny Mercer, then admitted in another post she was “feeling bitter”.
The MP for Plymouth, Moor View said he was “disappointed” to have lost his job, but added that Ms Truss was “entitled to reward her supporters” and that he accepted her decision.
However, his spouse implied the Tory leader - who quickly began to reshape the front bench after arriving at No 10 this afternoon - had gone back on her word.
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In her tweet, Ms Cornelius-Mercer said: “He asked her ‘why would you do this, who is going to be better at this role than me, which of your mates gets the job, you promised a meritocracy?’
“PM - I can’t answer that Johnny.”
She went on to say: “This system stinks & treats people appallingly.”
She then added: “Best person I know sacked by an imbecile.”
A photo showed Ms Truss’s face replaced by Muppet Show character Beaker.
Ms Truss has rewarded close allies Therese Coffey and Kwasi Kwarteng with top Cabinet jobs as she culled a number of prominent Rishi Sunak supporters during a major reshuffle of the Government.
She appointed Mr Kwarteng as Chancellor and Ms Coffey as Deputy Prime Minister and Health Secretary, as she made James Cleverly the Foreign Secretary.
Former attorney general Suella Braverman was appointed Home Secretary, replacing Priti Patel after she pre-emptively resigned.
The appointments mean that for the first time in history none of the great offices of state are held by white men.
First Ms Truss despatched former deputy PM Dominic Raab and cabinet colleagues Grant Shapps, George Eustice and Steve Barclay to the backbenches after they supported her rival in the Tory leadership contest.
Ms Coffey, the former work and pensions secretary who is regarded as the Prime Minister's closest friend in Westminster, replaced Mr Raab as the second in command, after he described Ms Truss's tax plans as an "electoral suicide note".
And she took on Mr Barclay's health brief after he too came out in support for Mr Sunak, the former chancellor who Ms Truss beat in a poll of Tory members.
Mr Kwarteng, a long-term ally of Ms Truss's - whose appointment to No 11 had been widely expected, replaces Nadhim Zahawi in the Treasury.
Brandon Lewis, whose resignation as Northern Ireland secretary piled pressure on Boris Johnson to resign from No 10, replaced Mr Raab as Justice Secretary. Mr Lewis ultimately backed Ms Truss in the leadership contest.
Ben Wallace will continue in the role of Defence Secretary, as he plays a vital role in supporting Volodymyr Zelensky in Ukraine's fight against Vladimir Putin's invasion.
Former transport minister Wendy Morton will attend Cabinet as chief whip, making her responsible for party discipline in the Commons.
Ms Truss began the sackings in her House of Commons office shortly after making her first speech outside Downing Street as she formally replaced Mr Johnson.
She then headed to No 10 to remake the top of the Government in her own image.
Mr Mercer did not make it clear during the leadership race who he was backing.
