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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Politics
Jess Staufenberg

David Cameron faces backlash over leaving Larry the cat in Downing Street

David Cameron is facing one final challenge to his decisions while Prime Minister in the form of Larry the cat.

British voters have voiced their disappointment after it was reported the outgoing premier would not be taking Number 10's resident feline to his new family home.

Larry, who has been the official mouser at with the Cameron family for six years, is understood to be staying behind to welcome new occupant, Theresa May.

The news prompted anger among some social media users.

Larry was brought to Downing Street one year after the Camerons moved in in 2010.

Matthew d'Ancona once asserted in his biography of Mr Cameron, In It Together, that the Camerons found Larry annoying owing to his lazy attitude towards rodents - and that he was little more than a public relations ploy.

Having charitably been given a second chance when he was taken from Battersea Dogs And Cats Home in 2011, the cat only recorded one kill in his first year in residence..

His normally nonchalant approach to the mouse problem in Downing Street had led to speculation that his days there might be numbered.

Other reports have suggested Mr Cameron privately admits he is a "dog man".

Yet claims were quickly quashed, with claims from a spokesperson that everyone in the house got on "purrrfectly well". 

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