FLASH
Shkruar nga Katy Balls
Britain's Conservative Alliance - a group of anonymous donors - has already spent tens of thousands of pounds carrying out polls aimed at portraying Sunak as the party's political undertaker at the next election.
Westminster and its surrounding areas have always been fertile ground for conspirators. There they hatched plots to overthrow Margaret Thatcher, Tony Blair, Gordon Brown or recently Boris Johnson. Now that the current Prime Minister of Great Britain, Rishi Sunak, is ranked more poorly in the polls than any Prime Minister in an election year, it is inevitable that he will not be the target of a new conspiracy.
The Conservatives have become the party of king-killers. The replacement of Liz Truss was carried out in record speed. When things go wrong, conservatives change their leader. This is a natural reflex of this party. For many, the idea of removing Sunak from office is madness.
A new general election is just months away, Labor is 20 per cent ahead in the polls, and the latter's main line of attack is that the Tories are a bunch of bickerers who insult and smear each other.
The only MP who earlier this year called for Sunak's removal - Ms Truss' faction loyalist Simon Clarke - was roundly attacked by his colleagues. "He has united the party by inciting opposition to him" - says a former cabinet minister.
But Clarke's logic - that a party in crisis must change course - has struck a chord with some members, former government aides and disillusioned Tory donors. Current polls, we're talking about a drastic drop for the Conservatives and a 250 seat majority for Labour.
In these conditions they ask: What do we have to lose? For this reason, a group of conspirators has now formed that aims to replace Sunak with leaders who can lead the party to a more secure footing regarding the problem of illegal migration. "We are not a homogeneous group. Different people think that Rishi is not working properly. And inevitably there are discussions about his replacement" - one of the conservative political figures who is in favor of this change tells me.
Rather than meeting in a bar or restaurant, as is common for Westminster conspiracies, the plotters worked from an office in the West End. "The movement is collecting a lot of funds, even if many people close to us think it's a crazy movement," says a figure within the conservatives.
Britain's Conservative Alliance - a group of anonymous donors - has already spent tens of thousands of pounds carrying out polls aimed at portraying Sunak as the party's political undertaker at the next election. A prominent conservative figure, Robert Hayward, denounced a recent YouGov poll that was paid for by an unnamed sponsor known for similar machinations in Zimbabwe.
He accused the conspirators of having "full wallets", but not being "democrats". "The government says it is not worried about us. But only 4 weeks have passed and one of them is comparing us to Zimbabwe" - says a figure involved with the rebel alliance.
At 10 Downing Street these developments are seen with great concern. One theory claims that there is a union of Brexit donors who never approached Sunak. Government loyalists are trying to find out if the move has anything to do with Nigel Farage. They have launched a frantic hunt for "useful idiots" in the ranks of the Conservatives.
Some figures close to Sunak, believe that all roads should lead again to a middle road of compromise, because even the most disloyal conservatives should understand that it is crazy to "rock" the boat during such a storm. Several former government aides (some even highly paid) are working on a disinformation campaign to damage Sunak.
The conspirators have been joined by Will Dry, the prime minister's former pollster who resigned in November last year, and who recently warned that the party is "heading for its worst defeat in history". Then in this group is Dougie Smith, an old mediator between different currents in this party, who called Johnson to say: "I'm going to take you down!".
The plotters see the next 100 days, between now and local elections in May, as the period when they must convince members that it is time for a strong shake-up. "This should be done within two weeks after the local elections. The leader cannot be changed later than May" - says one of the conspirators.
Some of those who are trying to remove Sunak from office say privately that if there is no movement by May, they will quit to avoid causing problems near the parliamentary elections. But for many analysts, this scheme seems too amateurish. "If you are involved in a conspiracy, then you don't tell everyone" - says a source within the conservatives.
Some former party strategists have been enticed to join but have refused. The movement began as a debate over current policies, as the rebels gathered to discuss how to force the government to take a tougher stance on the law on sending asylum seekers to Rwanda.
Megjithatë, kur Sunak refuzoi të ndryshonte qasje dhe zgjodhi të përballej me rebelët, biseda kaloi me shpejtësi në ndryshimin e udhëheqësit. Ky grupim ka arritur në përfundimin se kryeministri ka braktisur idetë kryesore mbi frenimin e emigrantëve ilegalë dhe Brexit (të cilët do të nevojiteshin për të fituar sërish zgjedhjet), dhe po tërhiqet në një zonë rehatie të epokës së Cameron.
Çështja që ka më shumë rëndësi për votuesit pro Brexit është emigrimi i paligjshëm, dhe më pak se një e katërta i besojnë Sunak-ut. “Votuesit nuk janë idiotë. Rishi na ka drejtuar drejt një forme konservatorizmi të zbutur”- ankohet një ish-ministër. “Askush nuk mendon se ne mund të fitojmë. Por të paktën të mos humbasim shumë thellë”- thotë ai.
Shpresa e konservatorëve është për një rikuperim të shpejtë, pra vetëm një mandat në opozitë. Por siç thotë Dry, ekziston frika se “Partia Konservatore do të jetë shpërbërë deri në Krishtlindje”. Komplotuesit kanë disa ide për atë që duhet të bëjë në javën e tij të parë një udhëheqës tjetër i ri: të forcojë ligjin kundër zbarkimeve të paligjshme me varka; të lehtësoje rekrutimin e mjekëve të rinj për t’i dhënë fund grevave; dhe të ashpërsojë Kodin Penal.
Zgjedhjet lokale në maj do të jenë të dhimbshme për konservatorët. Disa rebelë mendojnë se Sunak mund të bindet të tërhiqet vërtetë nëse rezultati do të jetë shumë i dobët. Mund të pasojnë zgjedhje të shpejta për lidershipin e tij, të cilat nuk zgjasin më shumë se një javë.
Por kush do të pasojë?
“Çdokush do të ishte më i mirë se Sunak. Ai është kryeministri më i keq që ka pasur ndonjëherë vendi”- thotë një nga rebelët. Robert Jenrick, dikur miku më i mirë i Sunak në politikë, dha dorëheqjen si Ministër i Emigracionit në shenjë proteste ndaj atij që ai e konsideron si një projektligj të dobët mbi dërgimin e azilkërkuesve në Ruandë. Tani ai po synon që ta risjellë në skenë të njëjtin debat për të ardhmen e partisë.
Ai do të shkojë këtë javë SHBA për të vizituar kufirin jugor me Meksikën si i ftuar i guvernatorit të Teksasit, për të parë se çfarë mësimesh mund të mësohen në lidhje me trajtimin e migracionit të paligjshëm. Po ashtu ekziston një plan që Jenrick dhe Neil O’Brien (një aleat i Badenoch) të bëhen bashkë për të publikuar manifestin e tyre mbi atë që konservatorët duhet të bëjnë mbi çështjen e emigrimit të ligjshëm.
Procedura standarde për t’u përballur me rebelimet politike, është të përjashtohen të gjithë ata që janë përfshirë në të, duke shpresuar se do të jetë më e vështirë që ata ta të shkaktojnë telashe kur janë të demaskuar.
Por fakti që deri tani komplotistët nuk kanë numra, plane apo një kandidat zëvendësues është vetëm një ngushëllim i lehtë, duke qenë se synimi i tyre i qartë është t’i shkaktojnë sa më shumë probleme kryeministrit aktual. “Është një dhunë e pakuptimtë, megjithatë mbetet ende e tillë”- ankohet në kushte anonimiteti një aleat i Sunak.
The message the government wants to send to members is not that the prime minister is an asset to be protected, but that infighting is fatal to the Conservative Party. "This would not pass without noise" - warns a senior figure of the British government.
This was the motto that dominated last week's dinner with Tory MPs held at a popular London hotel. All 349 current MPs were invited, and just over half attended. Pollster Isaac Levido repeated his warning that divided parties fail.
"It was a good atmosphere, but the prime minister should be worried that almost half of the deputies did not participate in the dinner," says a conservative representative. LBC debate host Nick Ferrari, who was a special guest at the dinner, delivered the message he said he had received from the thousands of listeners he had spoken to: voters are fed up with infighting the majority. However, with 100 days left until the local elections, there are sure to be many more. / Adapted "Pamphlet" from "The Spectator"
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