Liz Truss

But Tory MPs were not happy. The former cabinet minister Andrew Mitchell told Times Radio that if it became apparent to Tory MPs that Truss was not up the job, ...

But if one of the aims for the massive volte-face was to save her premiership, it was far from clear it had been successful. Later, she was due to round off a gruelling day at an informal reception with “drinks and nibbles” with her cabinet, before starting the whole engagement process again on Tuesday. “The mood is one of powerlessness,” one insider said. Despite everything, Truss is continuing her “outreach” with Tory MPs, determined to save her premiership, even though that looks virtually impossible. When Truss finally did emerge after her meeting with Brady, it was to sit alongside the chancellor in the Commons as he confirmed the biggest climbdown in modern political history. Hunt held a hastily organised private briefing for Tory MPs in a bid to “calm the horses”. “It means that if she cannot do the job, then she will be replaced.” After they were joined in No 10 by Hunt, the trio led a virtual meeting of the cabinet at 10am to share the U-turn plans. Just a few hours later, in the early hours of Monday morning, the Treasury confirmed that Hunt would make a statement. By the time Downing Street staff arrived at work, Operation “Save Liz” was already in full force. In one particularly bizarre exchange, she insisted: “The prime minister is not under a desk.” In the privacy of her grace-and-favour country mansion, with just their closest aides around them, Hunt went through line by line what was left of the mini-budget.