Will the Conservative Party be able to heal its wounds after a divisive leadership contest?

Many Conservatives worry privately about the damage of a heated contest – not least in the voters’ eyes – writes Andrew Grice

Rishi Sunak predicted the Tory party would ‘come together’ as he launched his leadership campaign (PA)

Launching his leadership campaign, Rishi Sunak predicted that the “Conservative family” would “come together” after what is proving a bruising contest.

However, some senior Tories are worried that the attacks on candidates from rival camps – with Sunak sporting the prime target on his back – will leave permanent scars. The toppling of Boris Johnson has revived memories of the ousting of Margaret Thatcher by her cabinet and backbenchers in 1990; some Tory MPs say those wounds have still not healed fully.

Johnson’s remaining allies are certainly gunning for Sunak, accusing him of disloyalty and planning to create the conditions for the prime minister’s fall. Sunak cuts a rather lonely figure as he refuses to join the stampede to offer the biggest and quickest tax cuts.

That has made it open season for his rivals to attack his record. A “dirty dossier” which went viral in Toryland’s WhatsApp groups said: “There is nothing Conservative about the ‘big tax and big spend’ agenda of Rishi Sunak.” The memo accused him of wasting money during the Covid-19 pandemic, breaking the 2019 Tory manifesto pledge not to raise taxes, notes the row around his wife’s tax status and recalls his Partygate fixed penalty notice.

Some Tory insiders put a brave face on the infighting, saying it is “par for the course” and that the divisive phase will be mercifully short because Tory MPs will choose a shortlist of two names for a ballot of party members by Thursday week. The optimists claim that Brexit has proved less of a dividing line than expected, with 2016 Leavers and Remainers lining up behind the same candidates.

Yet many Tories worry privately about the damage of a divisive contest – not least in the voters’ eyes. Whatever he does next, Johnson is not going to disappear and, if Sunak wins, he could make life difficult for his successor, as Edward Heath did for Lady Thatcher and she did for John Major.

However, Tories will hope the party’s greatest strength kicks in after the contest: the survival instinct that allows it to commit regicide (unlike Labour), unite behind a new leader and win the next general election.

The Tories’ mantra – “the king is dead, and we killed him, but long live the king” – helps to explain why the party has been in power for 32 of the past 50 years. Yet there is no guarantee the trick will work after 14 long years in office by 2024.

The bitter rivalries and “blue on blue” attacks within the leadership campaign will certainly be recalled by Labour when the general election comes; they might return to haunt the Tories and damage their prospects.