Sir Iain Duncan Smith has revealed he addressed the shadow cabinet when it met for the first time on Tuesday.
The former leader of the Conservative Party addressed Kemi Badenoch’s top team to explain what life in opposition “is like” at its inaugural meeting.
Sir Iain was leader of the opposition from 2001 to 2003 before he was ousted by Conservative MPs, who replaced him with Michael Howard.
The Tory MP for Chingford and Woodford Green told GB News that he addressed shadow ministers because they “have never experienced opposition”.
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Duncan Smith said: “I went there to address [the shadow cabinet], so there’s a start. I just said what opposition is like. You’ve got to remember, we’re a whole generation away from opposition now, and so most of the MPs that are in the cabinet have never, in fact all of them, have never experienced opposition.
“I went through 13 years of Labour government under Tony Blair, so I do know what being an opposition is like. And it’s a very hard, difficult task because you’ve got none of the resources government has, but at the same time, you’ve got to hold them to account.
“And I was just really chatting about that to them, to say there are plenty of devices you can use. And also, essentially, although we are in opposition, this is not the Blair government that I was opposed to. They started on 44 per cent and went upwards afterwards. And they were running along at some 50 per cent plus for some years after they got elected.
“This government only started at 33 per cent in the poll, which is pretty low. In fact, I think it’s the lowest ever, and got this enormous result because of the way that ex-Tory voters deserted us. And down they’ve gone to what is now level with us at 27 per cent. So I have to say it’s a slightly different target now.”
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The shadow cabinet was appointed on Tuesday morning, after Kemi Badenoch was declared the new Tory chief over the weekend following the party’s closest leadership contest in history. Badenoch won 53,806 votes (56.6 per cent) to rival Robert Jenrick’s 41,318 (43.5 per cent).
The former business secretary appointed three of her leadership rivals to senior shadow cabinet posts, including Mel Stride as shadow chancellor.
Priti Patel was appointed shadow foreign secretary, while Jenrick became shadow justice secretary.
Tom Tugendhat and James Cleverly, who also stood in the leadership contest, opted to return to the backbenches.
Speaking to GB News on Wednesday morning Duncan Smith said he urged Badenoch’s shadow cabinet to adopt the tactics of guerrilla warfare.
The Conservative former leader said he told shadow ministers that life in opposition is like trying to take on a “Leviathan” and the best way to make progress is to “strike when you’re least expected to”.
Asked what he had told Badenoch’s top team, Sir Iain said: “That opposition is tough, and it’s what you make of it. I called it The War of the Flea, which is you’re dealing with this Leviathan on the other side which has all the resources, all the money, all the civil service.
“You have very little, but what you do have is knowing to strike when you’re least expected to, and to get them into difficulty, to split the Labour Party at some point.”
Told that this strategy sounded like “guerrilla warfare”, he added: “Well, for the opposition it is. It is essentially a form of [guerrilla warfare] because that’s what you want. That’s what the public want.
“They want to know that you’re on the front foot and holding them to account no matter what, so they don’t get away with some of these flip decisions like banning this and banning that, or raising taxes. You’re going to be on the side of those who have to pick up the bill.”
Josh Self is Editor of Politics.co.uk, follow him on X/Twitter here.
Politics.co.uk is the UK’s leading digital-only political website. Subscribe to our daily newsletter for all the latest news and analysis.
