Downing Street must give more popular colleagues the limelight instead of placating Rishi Sunak, a private memo by top minister Johnny Mercer has said.

       The Veterans Minister accused No 10 of acting as though Mr Sunak were still as popular as when he took office, despite a plummet in his ratings.

       The minister wrote the memo on his laptop during a train journey from Exeter St Davids to London Paddington on the afternoon of May 6, the Monday after the local elections.

       A passenger in his carriage took photos of the screen and gave them to a newspaper.

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       In the memo, Mercer accused the Downing Street operation of focusing on “placating him [Sunak]/ managing him/ promoting him on social media” while other more popular colleagues were given less prominence.

       He said that Ms Badenoch and Ms Mordaunt were routinely significantly more popular in polls of Conservative members.

       Both are seen as potential successors to Mr Sunak if he were to lose the general election.

       Mr Mercer described No 10’s political communication as “haphazard, un-themed and loose”.

       He also noted that “average performers” like Transport Secretary Mark Harper were being sent to represent the government in “important slots”.

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       The MP wrote that he had been trying to persuade No 10 to let veterans use their IDs at polling stations “for months without success”.

       He said he had found out the plans had been blocked by the Prime Minister’s special advisers because they could “open the floodgates” to allow students to use their cards too.

       The MP for Plymouth Moor View wrote: “Political communication seems haphazard, un-themed and loose. We have average performers during important slots. How many people did Harper win over for us this weekend?

       “Team in No 10 operating as though the PM is as popular in the polls as he was two years ago. It appears to be all about placating him/ managing him/ promoting him on social media. We are only going to get through this as a team. There are good, capable, senior colleagues around the cabinet table who people clearly like, who should see more airtime and be more prominent. The ConHome [ConservativeHome] cabinet polling should not be ignored (Mordaunt/Badenoch — irrespective of the personal views of No 10 staff).”

       Related articles Johnny Mercer rejects Fiona Bruce's BBCQT claim over key Rishi Sunak failure ‘Labour has no credible plan to help our veterans’ says Johnny Mercer Johnny Mercer refuses to give up names to Afghanistan murder inquiry Armed Forces veterans to use skills to help boost the economy Rishi on borrowed time as he hits lowest ever approval rating in key poll

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