The departures of her twin chiefs of staff will buy the Prime Minister breathing space in her fight for survival - but are also a huge personal blow
Theresa May’s key aides Nick Timothy and Fiona Hill have resigned, taking the blame for her disastrous election campaign.
Timothy said he was taking responsibility for the social care U-turn which torpedoed her manifesto, acknowledging he had “oversight of our policy programme”.
“In particular, I regret the
decision not to include in the manifesto a ceiling as well as
a floor in our proposal to help meet the increasing cost of social care,” he added.
A Conservative spokesman quickly announced that Fiona Hill, May’s other joint chief of staff, had also resigned.
The twin departures will ease the pressure on May herself, after a majority of Tory members called for her to fall on her sword in one survey.
Strikingly, Timothy urged Conservative MPs to “unite behind the Prime Minister, and focus on the need to heal the divisions in our country”
The appeal reflected the growing belief among Tory MPs that May should stay only in the short term, to provide stability and start the Brexit talks, before making way.
Since Friday’s results, some senior Tories are referring to May as an “interim leader” – and her Cabinet has failed to come out publicly to support her.
Hill released only a short statement saying it had been “a pleasure to work with such an excellent Prime Minister”.
- The Independent