Due to a lack of “any credible challengers” among Tory MPs, Boris Johnson’s allies say that there is “no alternative” Prime Minister in the wings.
Following the PM’s survival of a no-confidence vote in his leadership last night, Mr Johnson’s supporters have rallied to back him in Number 10.
Along with highlighting his achievements in power, such as on Brexit, Covid, and Ukraine, the PM’s supporters have been spreading the message that any competing candidate would face much more resistance from fellow Conservative MPs than Mr Johnson.
Liz Truss, Rishi Sunak, and Ben Wallace, all cabinet ministers, have been mentioned as possible PM successors.
Outside of Cabinet, Jeremy Hunt, the former health minister, and Tom Tugendhat, the chair of the House of Commons’ foreign affairs committee, have made little secret of their desire to lead the party.
Those who voted for Mr Johnson in last night’s election questioned whether any of the candidates considered to be the next Tory leader would be as electorally successful as Mr Johnson.
‘Who would replace Boris?’ Lichfield MP Michael Fabricant told MailOnline. There may be challengers, but who has such a track record of success?’
There were no “genuine prospects” to replace Mr Johnson, according to a loyalist Cabinet minister.
The PM saw 148 Tory MPs vote against him last night.
But the minister told MailOnline: ‘The reality is that there are more than 148 against any other candidate, especially those who seem to be touting themselves around.’
Another senior supporter of the PM said: ‘There’s no alternative to Boris.
‘He’s got an election winning agenda to level up and boost Brexit Britain. Labour are completely beatable. It’s time to come together for the country and get cracking.’
Possible successors to the PM were today taking stock after Mr Johnson survived the Conservative rebels’ attempt to topple him.
Ms Truss, Mr Sunak and Mr Wallace put on a show of unity with the PM this morning as they gathered in Downing Street for a Cabinet meeting.
The Foreign Secretary, who critics have previously disparagingly referred to as a ‘pound shop Margaret Thatcher’, sat next to the Defence Secretary in Number 10.
Ms Truss later met the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, as she continued UK efforts to resist Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Mr Wallace has seen his popularity among Tory members soar during the Ukraine war.
But the Defence Secretary suffered a blow in the early weeks of the conflict when he was tricked into holding a video call with an imposter posing as Ukraine’s PM Volodymyr Zelensky.
Some noted today how the Chancellor – who has seen his leadership fortunes diminish following a fierce row over his family’s tax affairs – looked subdued as he sat next to Mr Johnson at this morning’s Cabinet meeting.
It followed what was viewed as a low-key performance by Mr Sunak in front of the Commons’ Treasury Committee yesterday, as he defended his recent £21billion package of support for households in the face of the cost-of-living crisis.
The Chancellor also faced a grilling by MPs over the timing of the package, which was announced the day after Sue Gray’s damning report on the Partygate scandal was published.
Mr Sunk denied he had been dragged into ‘Operation Save Big Dog’ efforts to keep Mr Johnson in No10 by rushing through the energy bills support.
When the controversy over Mr Sunak’s family finances first broke, the Chancellor was claimed to have considered quitting the Government front bench.
Meanwhile, Mr Hunt – who publicly declared his opposition to Mr Johnson ahead of last night’s vote – has been stung by a backlash from PM loyalists.
The attacks have led to renewed scrutiny of Mr Hunt’s time as Health Secretary, and whether his five-and-a-half year spell in charge of the Department of Health left Britain unprepared for the Covid pandemic.
Mr Hunt will have hoped yesterday would end with Mr Johnson toppled from power, leaving open the opportunity for him to launch a second Tory leadership bid.
But, after the PM survived the rebel efforts to remove him from No10, most headlines about Mr Hunt focussed on how a Sky News presenter stumbled over the ex-Cabinet minister’s surname and offered a rude alternative.
Trade minister Penny Mordaunt, the former defence secretary, is another rumoured to be harbouring leadership ambitions and was said to have been put on ‘resignation watch’ by Downing Street ahead of last night’s vote.
Although fears that she could quit Government in order to publicly oppose Mr Johnson proved unfounded, Ms Mordaunt prompted further questions about her political ambitions through the course of yesterday.
Firstly, she told a local newspaper in her Portsmouth constituency that she ‘didn’t choose this Prime Minister, I didn’t support him in the leadership contest’.
But Ms Mordaunt added that Mr Johnson ‘has always had my loyalty because I think that’s what you do when you have a democratic process – you select a leader and then you owe that person your loyalty’.
Ms Mordaunt then penned a Daily Express newspaper article to mark the 78th anniversary of D-Day, which many took to include veiled references to Mr Johnson’s position.
Referring to Allied Commander General Dwight Eisenhower, she wrote that ‘confidence and competence are easily confused, but they are not the same’, adding: ‘Confidence without competence is a dangerous combination, but Eisenhower also knew how to build a team.’
She continued: ‘Today is the day when we remember such leadership. It focused less on the leader and more on the ship.’