Back to the future: Sunak’s big gamble

On Remembrance Sunday, former prime ministers are given ceremonial roles. When everyone assembled last weekend, it was a reminder of the recent mayhem within the Tory party. Labour’s 13-year era seemed neat by comparison: Tony Blair, then Gordon Brown. The Tories’ 13 years in power were represented by a more chaotic line-up: David Cameron, Theresa May, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss, Rishi Sunak. If Tory rebels have their way, they might even try to squeeze someone else in before time runs out.

‘I was the future, once,’ the now Lord Cameron said on his last day in office in July 2016. He did himself a disservice: he is the future once more, after being recalled to serve in Sunak’s government in a plot twist that no one saw coming. Labour MPs are delighted (as are a few Tories), and have started mocking his return for feeling like a tactic deployed by exhausted TV shows. ‘It’s series eight of Love Island and they need to boost the ratings,’ joked one Red Waller. Others welcomed the move. ‘I’m in shock. There’s finally a grown-up in the building,’ said one of his former ministers.

The Cameron comeback succeeded in its initial aim: it grabbed the spotlight from Suella Braverman, sacked as home secretary that same morning, following a rogue op-ed in the Times. ‘They pulled their rabbit out of the hat,’ notes a supporter of Braverman. ‘They wanted to win the day and they won.’ But politics is a long game. In No. 10, the reshuffle is seen as the beginning of a fightback that will stamp Sunak’s authority on his party as he leads a new united team focused on stopping the boats and improving the economy. Others feel it is a step back in time that risks a battle with a section of his party.

Despite their differing positions on Brexit, Sunak has found himself seeking Cameron’s counsel more than any of his other predecessors.