Will Boris hog Cameron’s conference limelight?
Boris Johnson pledges his allegiance to David Cameron in a speech at the Tory Party conference – but his reception last night shows the London mayor is set to hog the limelight.
Mr Johnson received a hero’s welcome when he arrived at the conference in Birmingham yesterday, prompting chants of “Boris, Boris” from passers-by as he got off his train and a standing ovation from a packed-out crowd at a fringe event last night.
However, the mayor praised the prime minister today for making difficult decisions in difficult times.
Speaking yesterday, Mr Johnson denied that difference of opinion over issues relating to London caused tensions between the Eton and Oxford-educated pair.
Admiration
He said: “It is sometimes inevitable that the mayor of a great city will find himself saying things that do seem at variance with national policies.
There is no prime ministerial contest going on. It is pure conference nonsense. Ken Clarke
“Of course I am going to continue to lobby for a long-term solution to our aviation capacity problem. No one as a result should have any cause to doubt my admiration for David Cameron.”
He stressed he was one of the first “Cameroons” in the 2005 Tory leadership contest.
“I believe that in tough circumstances he, George Osborne and the rest of the government are doing exactly what is needed for this country and to clear up the mess that Labour left.”
However, the admiration for the extrovert mayor is in evidence in Birmingham. One Conservative group has produced a special newspaper devoted to Mr Johnson, including listing his dream cabinet if he was prime minister.
A poll of 1,872 Conservative members showed that two-thirds believed Labour would win the next election and that only a third thought the Conservatives would win. It showed 37 per cent would like Mr Johnson to succeed Mr Cameron if he lost the next election.
Conference nonsense
However, Ken Clarke, minister without portfolio, denied there were leadership tensions between Mr Cameron and Mr Johnson.
“God knows who would be contenders for prime minister when the post eventually becomes vacant,” he said.
“It is all complete nonsense – there is no prime ministerial contest going on. It is pure conference nonsense.”
Watch Gary Gibbon in coversation with Ken Clarke at the Conservative Party conference on Monday.