If you want to know what’s worrying the Tory party, look at who’s leaving

Rising stars rarely quit the race of their own accord if everything is going well, writes Marie Le Conte

This vicious circle will be a tough one to break (UK Parliament)

At first glance, Chloe Smith, William Wragg and Dehenna Davison have little in common, aside from the fact that they are all standing down at the next election.

Smith was elected in 2009 and campaigned for Remain. Wragg won in 2015, was a hard Brexiteer and made his name calling for Boris Johnson and Liz Truss’ resignation. Davison is the figurehead of the Red Wall, a 2019er through and through who backed Boris then Liz.

They represent different wings of the Conservative Party and have different ideologies and leadership preferences. Still, all of them will be leaving parliament in 2024, or 2025 at the latest. This should, in itself, be worrying for the party. Rising stars rarely quit the race of their own accord if everything is going well.