Boris Johnson has been warned by his inner circle to keep his lover out of 10 Downing Street if he wants to succeed as Prime Minister.
The Tory leadership favourite has been urged by allies to keep Carrie Symonds out of the public spotlight after their heated row about him spilling red wine on her sofa.
Insiders claim there is now a divide in BoJo’s camp, with many adamant he must make his victory march into Downing Street alone if he becomes Conservative leader as expected.
It would be the first time since Ted Heath’s election victory in 1970 that a Prime Minister has made the rite of passage alone.
His closest advisers insist the snub to his 31-year-old girlfriend is essential if he is to maintain the support of the party faithful.
Carrie and Mr Johnson have not been seen together in public since a midnight row which caused neighbours to call police to her flat in London.
Days later an old picture of the pair looking lovey-dovey was leaked to the press. But last week rumours surfaced about why Carrie left her £80,000-a-year job as communications boss at Tory HQ.
One Westminster source said: “The smart money would be on Carrie not making it to Downing Street one way or the other. After the leaks started coming out about Carrie and her job there’s no way that could happen.”
The source added: “Boris’s team don’t like her, they never have.
“It’s the usual ego stuff. And she personally doesn’t like them.
“They should be concentrating on just getting Boris over the line and preparing for the transition to No10. but there is a real war on now.”
Carrie joined Conservative HQ as a press officer in 2009 and first met Johnson three years later.
Last September Mr Johnson and his wife, barrister Marina Wheeler, announced that they were divorcing.
Shortly after that his relationship with Carrie came to light.
A spokesman for Mr Johnson declined to comment tonight. Carrie’s friends dismissed claims about why she quit her Tory job.
