The continued speculation about who in the Conservative party is putting the most effort into preparing their leadership hat to throw into the currently non-existent ring is quite amusing. But it also means that those involved will struggle to have such a moral high ground when they need to lecture backbench colleagues for getting overexcited about potty-sounding leadership challenges after the European elections.
Boris and George Osborne may be engaged in a strange fight about who is gaining the most currency with backbenchers so that they’re in the best possible position post-Cameron, while backbench unrest will be focused on Cameron’s own position. But the problem with this hysteria, where the Boris camp suspects Osborne is doing better and then ramps up its own efforts, which is then met with a redoubling of the rival camp’s efforts, is that it suggests that ministers are being similarly disloyal to their leader, regardless of whether they’re after his job once he’s departed on his own terms.
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