Fall Out: A Year of Political Mayhem

by Tim Shipman

When Hammond was not in the room, political aides and civil servants both say Hill and Timothy were vituperative about him in front of officials, knowing their views would be reported back. ‘They called him “The Cunt”,’ one said. ‘That was around the office in front of people like Will Macfarlane, our point man with the Treasury, who used to work in the Treasury,’ another said. ‘He knew it would get back to Hammond.’ Hill denies using that term of abuse. When she had first joined the Conservative Party, she had worked for Hammond but became disappointed the chancellor was ‘not a team player’. The stories spread, in part, because the chiefs seemed keen for others to know about their treatment of the chancellor. ‘Nick used to relate them with delight,’ said a Downing Street official. ‘Nick would say, “We’ve told you what the policy is, fuck off and follow it.”’ Those were not the words Timothy used to Hammond’s face but a version of events he apparently wanted circulated. A source said, ‘Nick would quite like the idea that he was abusing the chancellor. He relished those fights.’ After one bruising episode Hammond quizzed one of May’s aides about the intelligence which had filtered back to Number 11.