Much has and will be written about what Sajid Javid’s resignation as chancellor tells us about the Conservative Party, its constituent parts, and its future. A good deal of it has been encouraged by Javid himself, whose resignation statement to a packed Commons chamber on Wednesday gave voice to Tory concerns that have hitherto only really been discussed sotto voce: just what is Boris Johnson’s policy on tax? And how does the government intend to fund its raft of new spending commitments?
There has been altogether less discussion about another departure from government: that of Esther McVey, who lost her job as housing minister and, with it, a seat at the cabinet table. Few tears were shed among her colleagues in the older intsake of Tory MPs, many of whom think she is too strident and insufficiently competent as a minister to warrant a big job. Yet some in the 2017 and 2019 intakes sense a greater significance.
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