Rishi Sunak was given the grave warning by Craig Oliver (Image: GETTY)

       Rishi Sunak was given a grave warning by David Cameron's former aide Craig Oliver that his time in office was "over" with the Prime Minister's "own MPs tramping the dirt down" on his "political coffin".

       In a sensational attack, Mr Oliver - former director of politics and communications at No 10 - laid bare the perceived failings of Mr Sunak, who has continued to fight fires since being chosen as Conservative Party leader last year.

       Other controversies in the past years since Boris Johnson led the Tories to a landslide General Election victory back in 2019 were also cited as reasons why the Conservative Party will likely struggle when the country next goes to the polls, Mr Oliver claimed.

       Writing in Politics Home, Mr Oliver - who left the Government in 2016 after the Brexit referendum - said "partygate and the disastrous handling of the economy by Liz Truss were noticed by the electorate" and that there is "no sign that they will shift back".

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       He wrote: "The received wisdom is that we are way past the point where the final nail has been hammered into Rishi Sunak’s political coffin, and it is now underground, with his own MPs tramping the dirt down."

       Mr Oliver continued: "It’s true that you can never say never in modern politics. Polls can and have been wrong in the past. But they have never been that wrong.

       "Sunak is reduced to hoping that something will turn up. That thing will have to be something so extraordinary it is almost impossible to imagine."

       The advisor noted the perilous divisions for Mr Sunak were no more apparent than around his party's attempts to deal with the small boats.

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       With opposition coming up against his proposals, and despite narrowly finding enough back for the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Bill earlier this month, Mr Sunak "made it the be all and the end all... turning it into a test of his Government’s virility".

       The plan was voted through by Parliament on December 12, with 313 MPs voting for the legislation with 269 in opposition.

       The victory for Mr Sunak meant the Rwanda proposal's journey continues, though the Prime Minister will no doubt face further backlash next month when the Commons hears the third reading of the bill.

       And while the chaos continues to swirl around Mr Sunak and his tenure, Mr Oliver believes Labour "look vaguely sensible" when the backdrop of the current Conservatives' plight is considered.

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       Mr Oliver said even "wisely inviting my old boss David Cameron to be Foreign Secretary" backfired as the former Prime Minister soon became embroiled in his own controversy, with him refusing to meet the Greek leader due to the Elgin Marbles debacle.

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       He concluded: "The other day Keir Starmer rightly said we need to end the constant drama, but strangely kept repeating that we need to replace it with the 'mundane' – hardly a way to motivate a jaded general public.

       "But none of that changes the fact that it is enough for Labour to look vaguely sensible for them to cruise to victory on anti-Tory sentiment.

       "I may end up with egg on my face, but I’m afraid I think it’s all over bar the shouting for Rishi Sunak."

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