Senior Tories fear Johnson and Truss will sabotage Sunak’s election campaign

Concerns that vicious circle of party ill-discipline is undermining the PM’s ability to restore order

Senior Tories fear Rishi Sunak is facing a vicious circle of party ill-discipline, amid concerns that attacks from Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Suella Braverman will signal his inability to restore authority in the months before the general election.

A rebellion this week over his plans to ban smoking is set to be the latest flashpoint, with libertarian MPs, including Truss, preparing to criticise the proposal as a nanny-state measure that is unconservative.