Jeremy Hunt is favourite to be next out of May’s Cabinet after breast cancer IT blunder
JEREMY Hunt has been tipped to become the next minister to leave the Cabinet as the pressure ratchets up on the Health Secretary after it was revealed a computer error led to 450,000 women in England not getting invitations to routine breast cancer screening.
Jeremy Hunt is 2-1 to be the next minister to leave Mrs May's cabinet
Speaking to the Commons, he admitted that up to 270 of them may have died as a result – and offered his apologies to all of those affected.
Mr Hunt is now just 2-1 with Betfair to be the next Cabinet minister out of the door, and even though Mr Hunt has also announced an independent review this has not been enough to head off fierce criticism.
If he is forced to reisgn over the IT blunder, Mr Hunt would become the fifth high-profile casualty of Mrs May's Cabinet after the departures of Amber Rudd, Priti Patel, Damian Green and Michael Fallon.
Think tank the Institute for Public Policy Research has questioned why problems were not spotted earlier.
Moreign Secretary Boris Johnson, who has frequently found himself at odds with the Prime Minister on a wide range of issues, is rated at 5-1.
Mr Johnson, who is widely rumoured to harbour ambitions to replace Mrs May as PM one day, is a prominent Brexiteer who could well decide to jump ship if he concludes that too many concessions are being made to EU negotiators.
On the topic of Brexit, DExEU Secretary David Davis is at 6-1 to be the next casualty of the Cabinet.
Mr Hunt is under pressure after a row over errors to do with breast screening procedures
Mr Davis has spent months locked in gruelling and protracted talks with EU opposite number Michel Barnier and his team over the UK’s decision to quit the bloc, and apparently threatened to resign if Minister for the Cabinet Office Damien Green was forced out over allegations that pornography had been found on his work computer.
Mr Green subsequently resigned and Mr Davis remains in his job – but Betfair seems to think it might not be for that much longer.
Meanwhile Chancellor Philip Hammond is 8-1 to be the next to go.
Mr Hammond, who campaigned to stay in the EU, is walking something of a tightrope, especially given that many of his friends and allies within the City of London and unenthusiastic at the prospect of leaving the EU.
Betfair are laying odds on which of Mrs May's ministers will be next out
Arch-europhile and Labour peer Lord Adonis was certainly not mincing his words when he said last month: “[Hammond] should resign and tell the country quite straightforwardly that Brexit is a big mistake,” says the 55-year-old.
“All his friends in the City should be telling him [to do that.”
Finally we have Mrs May herself, who is rated at 12-1.
Mrs May has clung tenaciously to her position ever since she was ushered into the job followed the 2016 referendum.
Jeremy Hunt addresses breast cancer screening failure
However, the recent Windrush scandal, which has its roots in a time when she was Home Secretary, has damaged her politically, while she is struggling to unite her cabinet on Brexit.
Any sense that she is giving too much away to Brussels could result in fellow ministers telling her she no longer has their support, making it difficult for her to soldier on.
Betfair spokesperson Katie Baylis said: “May has already had a week where she has had to replace Amber Rudd and now after the breast screening scandal she has another cabinet minister under pressure.