Could Liz Truss run again for the Tory leadership?

Infighting is not unusual at the Conservative conference. The Tories enjoy a bit of argy-bargy and backbiting at the best of times, never mind the worst of moments, with current polling putting the party on course for electoral wipeout.

So Rishi Sunak will have to contend with attacks from Liz Truss and Jacob Rees-Mogg and cope with rows over the future of HS2, his commitment to net zero, and the wisdom of flirting with withdrawal from the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).

The prime minister will also have to accept that many senior Tories – including cabinet members – will spend their time in Manchester jostling for prime position in a leadership contest in the likely event Labour wins the 2024 general election.

Many Tory MPs have already written off their chances, and are busy gossiping about who might replace Mr Sunak as opposition leader should Sir Keir Starmer enter No 10.

Could Ms Truss make an audacious bid to return as Tory leader? A report in Bloomberg claiming that the much-mocked former PM – who spent just six weeks in Downing Street – could eye a comeback has raised eyebrows in Manchester.

Bloomberg claimed she may consider running again in opposition – citing three people close to her. But a Truss spokesperson strongly denied the claim – pointing to her own recent comments saying she was “certainly not” considering another run for the top job.

It may seem an absurd idea, but she has retained support among some right-wingers obsessed with the idea that tax cuts can grow the economy. Mr Rees-Mogg, Priti Patel and Ranil Jayawardena MP, another Truss loyalist, will join her at a “Great British growth rally”.

There is, however, much wider support for reducing the tax burden as soon as possible, and anemic GDP growth over the past 12 months has some Tories grumbling that she had a point after all. It is also worth noting Ms Truss has held networking drinks with junior members of the party in the hope of winning over the next generation to her cause.

But it is almost impossible to imagine many of the surviving Tory MPs – still traumatised by the chaos of last October – giving her any kind of serious hearing in the immediate years ahead. There are many others ahead of Ms Truss in the pecking order to succeed Mr Sunak.

Business secretary Kemi Badenoch will be under close scrutiny in Manchester. The ardent cultural warrior – a favourite of the right on issues like female-only toilets and “cancel culture” at universities – has been quietly widening the base of her support by appealing to moderates.

But Ms Badenoch has also offered something likely to play well with the right – she backed remarks made by Suella Braverman on the ECHR. In comments to The Sunday Times, she said quitting the convention is “definitely something that needs to be on the table”.

And then there is Ms Braverman, who is definitely not winning over any moderates. The home secretary was accused of “dog whistle” politics over a speech on immigration in the US aimed at burnishing her credentials as the flagbearer of the right.

Penny Mordaunt will be a formidable opponent for anyone who hopes they can become the next Tory leader. The Commons leader’s painkiller-assisted sword-wielding role at King Charles’s coronation gained her plaudits and raised her public profile.

Foreign secretary James Cleverly is thought to harbour leadership ambitions, if he stays in politics. Grant Shapps and Michael Gove have also been mentioned as a safe pairs of hands in the event the party needs a unity candidate in the aftermath of the next election.

Party chiefs and No 10 appear a little paranoid. The Tories will reportedly be sending “spies” to cabinet ministers’ speaking events to monitor any hint of leadership ambitions – including Ms Badenoch and Ms Braverman. Codenamed “Operation Swooping Eagle”, a party insider said it was to stop the leadership being “blindsided” by those on manoeuvres.

But Mr Sunak does not appear to be too worried about Ms Truss. He used an annual dinner speech with political correspondents last week to mock her lack of remorse. The PM joked she would probably be “covering Shaggy’s ‘It Wasn’t Me’” at the conference karaoke.

He added: “I’m glad to see actually that Liz Truss has been quietly reflecting, not least on who’s to blame. HMT of course. ONR, BoE, IMF, HMV, DFS, AC/DC. In fact, I can’t think of an acronym in British public life that hasn’t yet been blamed – except perhaps the IEA [the right-wing think tank the Institute for Economic Affairs].”

Ms Truss wishes to get her own back on Mr Sunak, as she prepares to gather her allies and make a big pro-growth speech in Manchester on Monday. But a bid to take his place is surely unthinkable.