Are Osborne's days numbered?

Up until recently the composition of a Conservative Cabinet seemed pretty certain;  Hague, Osborne, Gove, Fox, Villiers et al.  However, murmurs over the last couple of weeks suggest that one big change may be afoot.


It has always been obvious that in an election where so much will rest upon the shoulders of whoever is Chancellor come July, a lot of the media attention will be upon George Osborne, the Conservative Shadow Chancellor.  The public will, quite rightly, want to know if he is the man who can lead the country out of recession and back into economic prosperity.

As it stands, the public don't seem convinced.

Stories have come out of Fleet Street of late which suggest that The City would much rather have the tried and tested hands of Kenneth Clarke in Number 11 as opposed to new-boy Osborne.  As well as this, Labour have rounded upon Osborne launching attacks on him in the media; it is obvious that they perceive him as the weak link in the Tory team.

Recently, Cameron hasn't seemed too convinced himself.  In recent interviews he has repeatedly stated that no-one in his Shadow Cabinet is safe, and that his friendship with Osborne will not prevent him from firing him if need be.

This position was reinforced by Cameron yesterday during a question-and-answer session at a college in Lewisham, London.  In outlining his Shadow Cabinet, not once did Cameron mention Osborne.  In fact, he even went as far as to actively promote the economic skill of Kenneth Clarke, giving special emphasis to the fact that Clarke was the last Chancellor to lead the country out of recession.

Is Cameron setting the stage for a colossal about turn?

I highly doubt that Cameron would go as far as to make a change of such proportions in the run up to the elections; it would give Labour even more ammunition to feed to Mandelson.  However, Cameron may well see this as the "nuclear option" should things really go belly-up between now and the election.

Either way, the man who twelve months previously seemed guaranteed to be the next tenant of Number 11 must be starting to get slightly worried...