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Hague, William

Tory Leader William Hague Faces Leadership Crisis After Sacking Top Peer

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

Tory leader William Hague faced a major leadership crisis last night after sacking his most senior peer, Viscount Cranborne, for stabbing him in the back over reform of the House of Lords. The sacking was sparked after Viscount Cranborne secretly did a deal with Prime Minister Tony Blair to keep some hereditary peers, despite Mr Hague's strict orders to have no truck with the Labour government's plans.

Key Takeaways:

  • Viscount Cranborne was sacked by Mr Hague for backing a secret deal with Tony Blair to save 91 hereditary peers from the axe.
  • The deal was a compromise to ease the progress of Government Bills through the Tory-dominated Upper House without crushing opposition.
  • The Conservative front bench in the Lords offered to resign to support Mr Hague, but he told them to stay.
  • Viscount Cranborne claimed he had entered into talks about reforming the Lords with Mr Hague's permission, but was sacked for trying to "bounce" the party into a deal.
  • The Shadow Cabinet gave its full backing to Mr Hague, but senior Tory sources said the crisis was a major blow to the party's leadership.
  • The crisis has sparked a fight to the death between Mr Hague and some of the Tories' most influential figures, including Viscount Cranborne.

Statistics:

  • 91 hereditary peers were saved from the axe in the secret deal between Viscount Cranborne and Tony Blair.
  • The deal was a compromise to ease the progress of Government Bills through the Tory-dominated Upper House without crushing opposition.
  • 750 hereditary peers were originally scheduled to be abolished under the Labour government's plans for House of Lords reform.
  • The Conservative front bench in the Lords offered to resign to support Mr Hague, but he told them to stay.
  • 2 hours: the length of time Mr Hague tried to fend off the peers' mutiny from the time he burst in to a meeting of Tory peers in the Lords.
  • 6.35pm: the time at which a Conservative Central Office spokesman announced Viscount Cranborne's sacking.

Sources:

  • The Sun, "Dead Parrot Party Leader Faces Fight to the Death", October 6
  • The Sun, "Parrot...Sun on October 6"

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