Rishi Sunak should sack Michael Gove if he hopes to lead the Tories to victory at the next general election, senior figures on the right of the Conservative Party have warned.
Pressure is mounting on the Prime Minister to rejig his Cabinet after the Tories lost to Labour in Selby & Ainsty and were routed by the Liberal Democrats in Somerton & Frome.
Sunak looks poised to reshuffle his top team in September, with Ben Wallace confirming he will quit as Defence Secretary.
The Levelling Up Secretary and Chancellor Jeremy Hunt have been earmarked by leading figures on the Conservative right as senior Cabinet Ministers who should face the chop.
Rishi SunakPAGove, who also undertook Cabinet posts under David Cameron, Theresa May and Boris Johnson, is known as an astute reformer in Whitehall but is receiving criticism for not pursuing true blue Conservative policies.
A veteran Tory MP told GB News: “It would be highly beneficial for Michael to move on because quite honestly he’s had his day now.
“He was unhelpful to Boris and now he’s coming up with policies which are unhelpful to the Conservative Party.
“Net zero, which he’s now rowing back from, is essentially his baby and you can see what’s happening in places like Uxbridge where Ulez cost Labour.”
The MP added: “Rishi has the opportunity now to ring the changes with colleagues who will promote policies which are far more likely to win the next election. We should be focusing on what people actually want and not adhering to dogma.
“I think Gove is more likely to go than Hunt because Hunt is a bit of a lightning rod for the Prime Minister and his policies are an extension of Sunak’s policies when he was Chancellor.
“Michael Gove certainly could go but it’s just a question of if the Prime Minister can come to terms with the fact that public sentiment and public prioritises have changed.”
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Housing Secretary Michael GovePAHowever, other leading figures on the Tory right do not believe Sunak is likely to bring in major changes in six weeks time.
A second right-wing Conservative MP said: “I think there is very little chance of Hunt or Gove being fired but what I’d like to see is people brought in on the right so the Cabinet and Government have people from all parts of the Tory Party.
“We’ve lost Dominic Raab, we’ve lost Ben Wallace, and it does seem that the left of the party have taken over the Government.
“If all that happens in September is people are brought in from Rishi’s point of view then he’s not going to hear anything in Cabinet. We need to get people back in who are on the right, Leavers and with a priority to cut tax and state intervention.”
Despite calls for Sunak to sack Gove, a minister also warned the Surrey Heath MP could create even more problems if the Prime Minister opted to banish him to the backbenches.
They told GB News: “It would be good if Michael could learn to stick to what the Prime Minister asks and not freelance behind the scenes, causing endless mischief. But letting him loose would only make that much worse.”
Jeremy Hunt succeeded Kwasi Kwarteng as Chancellor after last autumn’s mini-budgetPASupporters of the Levelling Up Secretary challenged increased speculation about the 55-year-old’s future in Sunak’s Cabinet.
A Gove ally said: “Announcing a major housing policy today, effectively with the Prime Minister, doesn’t strike me as somebody that is going to be moved at all.”
Critical Conservative figures have also briefed GB News that Gove’s association with ex-Number 10 adviser Dominic Cummings and his Machiavellian efforts to torpedo the right in last summer’s leadership election by backing Kemi Badenoch have been received poorly on the backbenches.
“Nobody is debating his ability but there’s a lot of manoeuvers,” a Tory source said.
“He has a lot to answer for in letting Rishi Sunak in and his link with Dominic Cummings.
“His liberal agenda is p*****g the right off and upsetting our voter base.
“I think he’s taking on a lot of fights and crusades against our own base, including with Section 21 and landlords.”
Michael Gove leaves the Cabinet Office in Westminster, London.
PA
A former senior Government adviser added: “With the Government in such a dire position, it needs to shed its skin before the election.
“Hunt and Gove leaving Cabinet would go a long way to providing that fresh start.”
The ex-aide added: “Rishi needs a fresh-faced, election-ready Cabinet.
“Gove taking over at Health would be hugely unpopular with the public and from that perspective is not a risk worth taking.”
The Levelling Up Secretary yesterday announced England will relax its planning laws in an attempt to create more homes in the “heart of our cities”.
He added: “Through backing British first-time buyers across the country through the tax and planning system, we’re also planning to extend the lever of opportunity to many more by prioritising first-time buyers from home over those with multiple properties, over those seeking to convert family homes into holiday lets, and over speculative buyers who have been seeking to invest only to inflate property prices.”
Rishi Sunak suffered two by-election defeats last week but clung on to Uxbridge & South Ruislip
PAThe announcement comes after the Government missed its commitment to build 300,000 homes per year and Tory MPs rebelled over imposing mandatory targets.
However, speculation about Gove’s future was ramped up over the weekend after ex-Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries accused her former Cabinet colleague of positioning himself to succeed Sunak.
Responding to Gove’s about-turn on climate change targets, Dorries said: “Michael Gove is positioning himself to be the next leader of the Conservative Party to replace Sunak.
“If there's a populist wave riding through Westminster with nervous MPs, he’s the first to ride it.”
A Tory MP also told GB News: “I think Michael rather fancies a run for leader but he’s had his day.”
“He needs to come to terms with the fact that the Prime Minister needs new people around the Cabinet table.”
Nadine Dorries is a fervent supporter of ex-Prime Minister Boris JohnsonPAAnother right-wing figure added: “It’s no secret Michael Gove wants to be Prime Minister but he should focus on keeping his seat.”
Gove derailed Johnson’s bid for leader in 2016 and later challenged his Vote Leave ally again for the top job in 2019.
However, a source close to Gove rejected the suggestion that the Surrey Heath MP is looking to succeed Sunak.
“I don’t think there is anything in a leadership run," they said.
"Michael has had a couple of goes. He didn’t stand last time around because he recognised, perhaps like Nadine, when to step back.”