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Former minister hammers Tories’ re-election chances

A SENIOR Tory predicted that Labour will win the general election, hours after David Cameron “arrogantly” announced that he plans to be Prime Minister until 2020.

Mr Cameron faced accusations yesterday that he was taking the country for granted by declaring that he would “not go for a third term” — just 45 days before the general election.

But his presumptuous plan to leave Downing Street in five years’ time was dealt a blow by Tory former minister Steve Norris.

Mr Norris believes the Prime Minister will be voted out on May 7 because he’s failed to change the Tories’ nasty party image.

“I suspect that on balance it is more likely to be a minority Labour administration,” he was reported as saying by Politics.co.uk.

“Over the past five years one of the images David Cameron has never quite been able to shake off is the image of being the party of the 1 per cent.”

Mr Norris was speaking at a meeting on Monday night, shortly after Mr Cameron’s exit strategy was revealed in a BBC interview.

Labour shadow Cabinet Office minister Jon Ashworth said the criticism from the senior Conservative was “damaging and embarrassing” for Mr Cameron.

“Even his own party thinks the Prime Minister stands only for a privileged few,” said Mr Ashworth.

“With David Cameron sparking a leadership contest, candidates resigning and the chairman embroiled in scandal, it is clear the Tory campaign is in chaos and turning in on itself.”

Former Tory Cabinet member Michael Portillo also labelled Mr Cameron’s shock statement as “bizarre.”

“With only about 44 days to go until the election, if any other member of the government had taken up the news with an irrelevance like this, I think the Prime Minister would have been very cross,” he told Radio 5 Live.

Mr Cameron insisted it was “a very reasonable, sensible thing to say” when quizzed by the press yesterday.

He added: “What I did in my kitchen is I gave a very straight answer to a very straight question and I think that people will understand that.”

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