Tories slap down IDS aide over euro
The Tories were suddenly torn by a row over Europe today as one of Iain Duncan Smith's most senior aides called for the party to soft-pedal over the fate of the pound - and was promptly slapped down.
Mr Duncan Smith's director of strategy, Dominic Cummings, said the party and its leader should take a back seat in the widely-expected referendum on whether Britain should join the euro. He warned that the Conservatives were so unpopular that a high-profile offensive would do more harm than good.
His comments infuriated senior Tories, both for what they saw as defeatism and because it threatened a return to the bad old days under William Hague and John Major, when the issue dominated the party agenda to the annoyance of the voters.
Mr Cummings, in an interview with The Independent, had warned that "the biggest potential threat to the pound's survival is the Conservative party". He continued: "It is difficult to accept - but nevertheless true - that for many people just about the only thing less popular than the euro is the Tory party." Conservative high command moved swiftly to disown those words.
Party chairman David Davis said: "If the Government has the guts to call a referendum then the Conservative party will be at the forefront." He pointed out that an opinion poll yesterday had shown voters now trusted Labour even less than the Tories.
The put-down, confirmed in a statement from Central Office, put a heavy question-mark over Mr Cummings's future influence and possibly his survival in his job. For him to be publicly disciplined or sacked would dismay the liberal wing of the party.
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