WATCH: Nicky Morgan suggests Amber Rudd is 'appalled' by attacks on Philip Hammond
2 min read
Home Secretary Amber Rudd is "appalled" by Conservative attacks on Philip Hammond, Nicky Morgan has suggested.
The former Education Secretary said she had been contacted by a “very senior Cabinet minister” who was alarmed by what she had read in the Sunday papers.
But it was her suggestion that the frontbencher in question was a woman which led to speculation that it was her close friend and fellow Remain supporter Amber Rudd.
The Chancellor was the subject of several attacks by Tory sources in this morning's newspapers, with one minister describing him as an “inept political operator in quite a crowded field” and a Tory grandee saying he was a“s***” who deserves to be “kicked down Whitehall”.
Ms Morgan told Peston on Sunday: “I think those who are calling for him to be sacked are incredibly self-indulgent.
“I have been contacted by a very senior Cabinet minister who is appalled at what she is reading in the newspapers this morning. It’s not on to have all of this, it’s not helpful for anybody to have ministers being attacked, whether it’s the Chancellor or the Foreign Secretary when something as critical as Brexit negotiations are going on.”
Ms Rudd is the only “very senior” female Cabinet minister apart from the Prime Minister.
When pressed on whether which female she had been speaking to, she said: “I’m not going to tell you who has been contacting me but I think they are talking for others in the Cabinet and the parliamentary party.
“The majority of MPs in the parliamentary party do not want Philip Hammond to be sacked.”
Watch her full comments here:
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