A SENIOR Tory MSP appears to think Boris Johnson won’t stick around as Tory leader for much longer – and is already promoting his possible successor.
Murdo Fraser, the party’s shadow finance minister, retweeted a post which praised Rishi Sunak but was critical of the Prime Minister.
The MSP shared the tweet from columnist Iain Macwhirter, which said: “[Rishi] Sunak reaches the parts Boris cannot.
“He’s as fluent and convincing as Tony Blair used to be. And he is BAME to boot.
“Tories have their next PM-in-waiting when Boris gives up the ghost. Labour could be out for a generation.”
Risi Sunak reaches the parts Boris cannot. He’s as fluent and convincing as Tony Blair used to be. And he is BAME to boot. Tories have their next PM-in-waiting when Boris gives up the ghost. Labour could be out for a generation. pic.twitter.com/2sQkUvaLsr
— Iain Macwhirter (@iainmacwhirter) October 6, 2020
The Scottish Conservatives have been asked for comment.
The post comes just days after Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross took aim at his Westminster colleagues for making the case for independence “more effectively in London than it ever could be in Edinburgh”.
Johnson has long been disliked in Scotland and support for independence has increased steadily since he was elected with a majority in December.
Meanwhile Sunak has enjoyed plenty positive media coverage since becoming Chancellor. His name is inextricably linked to both the furlough and Eat Out to Help Out schemes.
Recent polls show the Chancellor is more popular than Johnson, and a survey by Redford & Wilton Strategies found more people think Sunak should be PM than think Johnson should be.
READ MORE: Douglas Ross claims he won't back bill if it continues to break international law
Since being hospitalised with coronavirus Johnson has been plagued by rumours that he is not planning on sticking around as leader.
In August The Times diary column quoted Dominic Cummings’s father-in-law as telling a visitor to Chillingham Castle that Johnson will quit after Brexit.
Johnson has dismissed rumours that he has long-lasting Covid symptoms, insisting he is as “fit as a butcher’s dog”.
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