Cameron: Seen better days

Hints of Tory disarray as Labour bounce

Hints of Tory disarray as Labour bounce

By politics.co.uk staff

The Tories are showing signs of internal disarray today, as opinion polls show a mild bounce for Labour following the G20 summit.

Efforts by shadow justice minister Edward Garnier to push for a repeal of the hunting ban seem to have provoked disquiet within Tory ranks.

To read an interview with Edward Garnier click here.

One source told the Evening Standard: “David’s position is quite clear. Hunting will not be in the manifesto.”

The party has made a commitment to a free vote on the issue if it achieves power, but internally different messages have been sounded about whether a debate would be allowed on the issue.

Mr Garnier said: “I think the mood in the country has changed and is now ready to repeal it.”

Click here to read anti-hunting comment.

Click here to read pro-hunting comment.

Click here for more comment on fox hunting.

Meanwhile, shadow chancellor George Osborne sparked a union backlash after suggesting three-year pay deals for the public sector could be renegotiated if the Tories win the next election.

The party beat a hasty retreat from that statement later, stressing that he was referring to future agreements.

To top off a poor day for David Cameron, he then had to deal with a distinctly off-message MEP, Daniel Hanna, who described the NHS as a “mistake for 60 years”.

The disquiet comes as a YouGov/Sunday Times poll put Labour at 34 per cent, three points up from last month, compared to 41 percent for the Conservatives.

It is a mild bounce, but a reassuring one for Labour officials who had worried Gordon Brown had over-hyped the G20 summit.

Meanwhile, a Sunday Mirror/ICM poll showed 70 per cent of people thought the prime minister had handled the summit well.

The post-G20 polls are not uniform, however. A Times/Populus poll today showed no change in Labour’s position, but a one point increase for the Tories.