Nadine Dorries has accused Rishi Sunak of washing Boris Johnson’s legacy “down the drain” following the decision to dump the privatisation of Channel 4.
In an extraordinary attack on the prime minister, the former culture secretary said it would be “impossible to face the electorate at a general election and expect voters to believe or trust our manifesto commitments”.
Dorries said hey Johnson policies like levelling up and social care reform had been “dumped” by Sunak, while the online safety bill she piloted has been “watered down”.
She also took aim at Sunak’s plan to make pupils learn maths until they are 18, insisting no one had voted for the policy and there weren’t enough teachers to deliver it.
Her comments on Twitter came as the PM prepares to set out his priorities for 2023 in a major speech this afternoon.
Dorries's tirade once again exposes the deep splits within the Tory Party, which is already lagging behind Labour in the polls.
Sunak has already been forced to U-turn on housebuilding targets and new onshore wind farm developments following Conservative backbench rebellions.
He is also under fire for reportedly planning to ditch Liz Truss's planned reforms aimed at making childcare cheaper.
In a letter setting out her decision not to proceed with the Channel 4 sell-off, culture secretary Michelle Donelan said she had “concluded that pursuing a sale at this point is not the right decision and there are better ways to secure C4C’s [Channel 4 Corporation] sustainability and that of the independent production sector”.
She added that its role in supporting the independent production sector “would be very disrupted by a sale at a time when growth and economic stability are our priorities”.