Major: Tory victory now possible

Michael Howard's 'experience is very worthwhile'

The Conservatives were right to ditch Iain Duncan Smith, according to ex-Tory prime minister John Major.

With Michael Howard at the helm, winning the next general election is "now a possibility", he said.

Mr Howard is "a match" for Tony Blair and is a "genuine alternative" prime minister, said Mr Major.

Mr Major, who was prime minister between 1990 and 1997, told BBC's Breakfast with Frost that Mr Howard was "a very high quality politician".

'Tough time'

But he said it would be "a cruel judgement" to say that the last six years under his successors, William Hague and Mr Duncan Smith had been wasted years.

He said he had known that his party had "stretched the democratic elastic too far" by winning the 1992 election and had viewed the 1997 election as "unwinnable".

I think we can win this election - nobody should write this election off John Major

The Labour government had won with "such a huge bounty of goodwill" because it had been in opposition for so long that there was "not very much that any leader of the Conservative party could have done in the short term", he said.

However, Mr Major told Frost that he did feel sorry for the way Mr Duncan Smith lost the party's confidence.

"He had a very tough time over the last few weeks. On a human level, it would be impossible not to feel sorry for the difficulties that he faced," he said.

"He faced them with some dignity."

Experience

But Mr Duncan Smith could be proud that he had left the beginnings of a "good policy portfolio", although there was a lot more to be done, he said.

Asked if the party had been right to ditch Mr Duncan Smith, Mr Major stressed: "The evidence of the last few days - it is painful to say that - suggests that it was.

Howard 'could win general election', Major says

"Michael Howard is a very experienced politician. He's been around a very long time.

"He's a leader of the Conservative Party who has seen the country and the party in the good times and bad, in boom and in bust and I think drawing on that experience is very worthwhile."

Mr Major, who has known Mr Howard for 25 years, said he was speaking with some "personal bias".

"He is a very high quality politician. He's a match for Tony Blair and I think the Conservative Party has now got a genuine alternative prime minister in place."

'Lost heart'

Mr Major argued that despite Labour inheriting a "good economy" from the Tories in 1997, plus a clear parliamentary majority, the health service, education and transport were no better.

He stressed that winning the next election was now possible.

"We can win this election - nobody should write this election off."

A return to high office possible if Howard wins election?

Mr Major defended ex-cabinet minister Michael Portillo's decision to leave politics at the next election, saying if a politician has lost the heart and instinct to continue, it was time to get out.

But he supported former chancellor Ken Clarke's decision not to serve in the shadow cabinet.

But Mr Major added that if Mr Howard wins the next election, it would be possible for Mr Clarke to return at "a high level".

On a separate note, the ex-prime minister said people must be concerned about recent allegations made by a former servant of an incident involving the Prince of Wales.

He said while there was no corroboration for the allegations, they had been widely aired around the world.

"It does damage to the institution of monarchy, which is very valuable for this country, and it actually does damage to this country as a whole, so it's important to knock these stories down," he said.