These are likely people who got where they are today, not through skill or competence, but ruthless ambition and they have no loyalty to anyone but themselves (although they’ll tug the forelock to whoever could give them more power). A lot of them are going to be losing their seats in the next election so probably feel that rolling the dice on a new leader can’t hurt them at this point.

There was a good FT opinion piece by Janan Ganesh last year that argued that Sunak has a liberal ‘vibe’, and that’s what they hate him for. In other words, it doesn’t matter to the Tories that he’s one of the most right-wing prime ministers we’ve had, he was an OG Brexiter long before the referendum or before Johnson or Truss was, very socially conservative, he’s presided over a sharply illiberal shift in the immigration system, etc - because he dresses smart, sounds educated, studied abroad, worked in finance, etc, and that all gives him the ‘vibe’ of a much more liberal politician.

Whereas Truss voted Remain, used to be a Lib Dem and served in the Coalition cabinet, yet they saw her as having a conservative ‘vibe’ because she grew up in the North and came across as proudly unintellectual. And that’s why she beat him in the Tory leadership election.

For these Tories now, it’s not about what Sunak has done in government, much of which is actually profoundly conservative; it’s about who he is, since so much of his identity marks him out as someone who does not come across as tribally ‘one of them’.

I don’t know.

There are definitely some right wing elements in the Conservative Party who think he hasn’t gone far (been radically right wing) enough in dealing with small boat immigration, inflation, economic growth, NHS waiting lists and the national debt; whether they think there is someone else waiting in the wings who can be more effective in the regard is unknown to me.

Over the summer the impression I have got from coverage of him and his team is desperation; they seem to be flailing around looking for wedge issues (currently the “war on the motorist” nonsense seems to be in vogue, but they rotate between “small boats”, “net zero” and the like) while trying to distract from the failure to attain the five pledges and all the other things that are going wrong for everyday normal people - the “cost of living crisis”.

@Oneeightnine The only horrific thing he has to do is look like he’ll lose the election.

For what it’s worth, I too have no confidence that Sunak will win the election, thank goodness.

Those submitting letters to the committee now probably never liked Sunak in the first place, some may have even submitted them on day one when they were just angry at him ousting BoJo.

This rings of conspiracy. But ah well.

Lets remember even a failed PM who got kicked out on their first election. Tends to gain power among the big corperations.

People in the party may literally just be trying to push him out because this will be their last chance to try and win leadership. With out needing to win an election.