David Cameron privately urged Rishi Sunak to abandon his plan to call a snap general election in May 2024, warning it was the wrong decision, only to publicly back Sunak's choice the very next day without disclosing his earlier objections. According to a new book by Sir Anthony Seldon, serialised in The Independent, Cameron argued that Sunak's economic and security policies were finally bearing fruit and deserved more time before facing voters. Sunak overruled him and pressed ahead, a gamble that backfired spectacularly and culminated in the Conservatives' worst-ever election defeat.

Seldon's account describes Sunak summoning Cameron, then foreign secretary, to Downing Street late one evening to inform him the election was going ahead, rather than to seek his opinion. Cameron pushed back but ultimately deferred, saying he would support Sunak "whatever your decision is as prime minister," before cutting short a trip to Albania to back the move at a crucial cabinet meeting. The subsequent campaign was beset by mishaps, including Sunak being drenched announcing the election in the rain, his early departure from a D-Day commemoration, a betting scandal involving an aide, and shelved anti-smoking legislation, culminating in the Tories losing 251 seats on 4 July 2024.