Mr Michael Portillo's faltering campaign for the Tory leadership was dealt a serious blow last night when Baroness Margaret Thatcher turned against her former acolyte. She told friends that she personally blamed him for falsely claiming her support.
As Mr Portillo's supporters attempted to shore up his campaign with a frantic round of telephone calls in the run-up to tomorrow's final parliamentary ballot, Lady Thatcher issued a terse statement saying she would keep her counsel during the contest.
An "incandescent" Lady Thatcher told friends privately that a report in yesterday's Sunday Telegraph, which claimed she supported Mr Portillo for the leadership over Mr Iain Duncan Smith, highlighted the untrustworthiness of the shadow chancellor. "A spin too far by the Portillo camp," one angry Thatcherite said.
The outburst from the former prime minister created an impression of civil war in the party after Ms Amanda Platell, Mr William Hague's former chief press adviser, accused Mr Portillo's allies of plotting against the former Tory leader during the election campaign.
Mr Francis Maude, Mr Portillo's campaign manager, described the claims in Ms Platell's election diary which was screened last night on Channel 4 television, as "complete, unadulterated rubbish".
But the greatest damage to the Portillo camp was inflicted by Lady Thatcher, who went on the warpath against her one-time favourite after the Sunday Telegraph reported that she was privately supporting him. The newspaper, which is sympathetic to the shadow chancellor, said Lady Thatcher believed Mr Portillo was a stronger candidate than Mr Duncan Smith because of his ministerial experience.
The report caused surprise, because Mr Portillo fell foul of Lady Thatcher - who admires Mr Duncan Smith - after his move to the centre ground. Lady Thatcher wasted no time in distancing herself from the report yesterday. "This story is plain wrong," she said. "I do not hold the views which it attributes to me and I am not backing Michael Portillo against Iain Duncan Smith."
Behind the terse statement, Lady Thatcher's supporters said she blamed Mr Portillo's camp for giving the newspaper a false impression of her views. Portillo supporters insisted they had not briefed the newspaper.
The row over Lady Thatcher's position did little to help Mr Portillo as his camp embarked on a charm offensive to shore up his own supporters and to win over Tory MPs who voted for the two defeated candidates.
Mr Portillo admitted over the weekend that he is no longer the front-runner, because supporters of Mr Davis and Mr Ancram are expected to move over to Mr Duncan Smith and the former chancellor, Mr Kenneth Clarke.
In tomorrow's final parliamentary ballot, Mr Duncan Smith, who has secured 42 votes, is expected to secure just over half of Mr Davis's 18 votes, with the rest going to Mr Clarke. This would place Mr Duncan Smith comfortably past the 56 mark, which would give him a place in the final round.
All campaigning ceased, however, for 45 minutes last night as Tory MPs tuned into Channel 4 for Ms Platell's explosive diary. The former tabloid editor spoke of her surprise when members of the Portillo camp gave journalists their mobile numbers on election night in preparation for a leadership bid.
Her remarks were met with a furious response by the Portillo camp. "If Amanda Platell had spent half as much time attacking the Labour Party as she has done for the last two years trashing William's senior colleagues, we would have had a rather better result," Mr Maude said.