Penny Mordaunt

Tribe: Leadership pretenders

A former Cabinet minister who now holds a junior job at the Department for International Trade, Mordaunt may well think she is destined for bigger things. There are whispers she has begun putting together a team of MPs to run her leadership bid should a vacancy arise. Her combination of Brexiteer credentials and socially liberal views is seen by allies as an election-winning formula and has led to comparisons with the London mayor-era Boris Johnson. Mordaunt polls remarkably well with grassroots party members given her relatively low profile during the past few years, but she will have to compete with big hitters like Tom Tugendhat and Jeremy Hunt for the left-wing Tory vote.

Job: International trade minister

Year elected: 2010

https://www.politico.eu/list/40-tory-troublemakers-the-ranking/penny-mordaunt/

Victoria Atkins

Tribe: Neglected moderates

The well-regarded justice minister and former barrister was put in charge of running the U.K.’s Afghan refugee resettlement scheme in the fall. Although she has frequently been tipped for a Cabinet job and even referred to as a potential future Tory prime minister, Atkins has kept a relatively low profile over the past couple of years. Her decision to back Jeremy Hunt against Johnson for the Tory leadership in 2019 won’t have helped her chances of climbing the ranks in this government — but Atkins may find herself back in vogue if there is a change of leadership in No. 10.

Job: Prisons minister

Year elected: 2015

https://www.politico.eu/list/40-tory-troublemakers-the-ranking/victoria-atkins/

Return to the full list of 40 Tory troublemakers to find out who to watch as Boris Johnson tries to save his premiership — and his party considers its future. For an explanation of how this list was compiled, see here.

Saturday, July 9, 2022

https://www.politico.eu/list/40-tory-troublemakers-the-ranking/