Johnson ‘doesn’t see reality’ of No 10 exit, Rory Stewart says – live

Rory Stewart has just been on the radio talking about whether an attempted comeback is on the cards for Boris Johnson.

“I’m afraid he has an extraordinary ego and he believes he was badly treated,” the former minister told BBC’s Today programme on Radio 4.

“He doesn’t see the reality which is that he was a terrible prime minister and he lost his job because of deep flaws of character.”

He added: “I fear we are going to end up with a second Berlusconi or a second Trump trying to rock back in again.”

On the same note, another former government minister has said Boris Johnson was already plotting how he could return to power.

“There is a sense that his story is not yet done, that he is entitled to another go at the top job,” David Gauke wrote in the New Statesman.

Read Rob Merrick’s report on speculation here:

The government is working on plans to help people with energy bills this winter, a Tory minister has insisted.

Victoria Prentis, a minister at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, told Times Radio: “It’s right that people need help and I’m really here to try to reassure that the Government is making plans to help people as they will need it with energy bills this winter”.

She added: “I would like to reassure that there are many, many different plans being worked on by civil servants and ministers at the moment, and whoever comes in as the next Conservative leader and our next prime minister will have the background work ready and will be able to make those difficult choices very quickly and before it’s needed.”

Rory Stewart, an ex-government minister, has said he believes Boris Johnson is hoping for a “populist return” in a new interview.

“I think he is dangerous and there are people out there who want him to come back,” he told The Guardian.

“I think we need to remind people why he left. He should have gone much, much earlier. What he did was deeply, deeply shameful – and dangerous.”

He told the newspaper he thinks Mr Johnson will try to make a comeback to frontbench politics. “He’s trying to do an Imran Khan or a Berlusconi. He’s going to be hovering around, hoping for a populist return,” he said.

School and hospital administrations have warned of a possible cut in staff pay amid soaring energy bills in the UK.

The national health service (NHS) confederation has said the bills they are paying this year are much higher than what the hospitals paid last year.

“The gap in funding from rising inflation will either have to be made up by fewer staff being employed, longer waiting times for care or other areas of patient care being cut back,” Rory Deighton, of the NHS Confederation, told The Mirror.

He added: “The NHS needs at least £3.4bn to make up for inflation during this year alone. That’s before we face a winter of even higher wholesale energy prices.”S

Nearly one in four adults plan never to turn their heating on this winter, polling suggests, as average bills are set to rocket while the temperature drops.

This figure is even higher for parents with children under 18, according to a Savanta ComRes survey carried out before the new price cap was announced.

The pollsters asked more than 2,000 UK adults how they would respond to increasing energy prices over the winter – 23 per cent said they would not turn their heating on at all, rising to 27 per cent among parents with under-18s.

Pensioners in the UK relying on state payment may be left with a little over £10 to spend in a day on food, transport, medicines, and other living costs from next April in the wake of rising cost of energy, according to reports.

The full state pension is likely to spike to £10,600 from April 2023, provided inflation is fixed at 10.1 per cent next month when the pension rates are fixed for 2023-2, according to a Sky News analysis.

However, the usual costs of energy bills will touch £6,616 in April, according to a prediction by consultancy group Cornwall Insight.

Conservative voters reject both Liz Truss’s and Rishi Sunak’s plans to tackle the energy crisis ahead of massive autumn price hikes, an exclusive poll for The Independent reveals.

Fewer than half of Tory supporters believe the contenders have solutions for the turmoil that will result from the increase in the average yearly gas and electricity bill, which will soar to £3,549 in October and is predicted to top £5,300 in January.

Worryingly for Ms Truss – who is the overwhelming favourite to replace Boris Johnson – just 48 per cent of Tories back her as the candidate to ease the cost of living emergency. This figure puts her only slightly ahead of Mr Sunak, who is backed on this measure by 44 per cent.

Liz Truss, one of the final candidates in the race to succeed Boris Johnson, would prioritise tax cuts over providing direct payments to every household to tackle the rising energy bills.

Ms Truss is reportedly considering cutting VAT across the board by 5 per cent.

“Liz has been clear we need to lower the burden of taxation and focus on boosting energy supplies and this will be her priority as prime minister,” a member of her campaign team told BBC.

“She’s also been clear further support may be required to help. Her preference is to target this to those most in need, but isn’t ruling anything out.”

The UK’s energy regulator has set the new price cap at £3,549 from October 1, marking a sharp 80 per cent rise in the cost of energy.

Ofgem said it was not sharing projections for January when a new cap will take effect as the market continued to be too volatile.

However, there are fears the market for gas in winter will lead to “significantly worse” prices through next year.

Millions across Britain are facing the cost of soaring energy bills, compounded by Friday’s announcement, after wholesale gas prices have continued to rise after the pandemic.