The toxic atmosphere in Downing Street has cleared after spin doctor Dominic Cummings and ally Lee Cain quit, claims former Tory leader William Hague.

Lord Hague admits Number 10 had “brilliant people” – but “running Governments wasn’t their greatest skill”.

The departure of Cummings and Cain brought about the end of an internal power struggle.

The former Vote Leave campaigners were vying to strengthen their grip on the levers of power.

However, since leaving there has been a “big improvement” in the atmosphere, said Lord Hague.

He added:

“I don’t want to personally attack the people who left, they were brilliant people but maybe running governments wasn’t their greatest skill compared to running campaigns.

“Well, now some people have been brought in who are very good at running government.

“The Prime Minister has a new chief of staff; he’s made other recent appointments and you can tell over the last couple of months that government has worked better.

“There has been more under-promising and over-delivering rather than the other way round, there have been fewer rows, there have been fewer destructive leaks and side briefings to the press.

“You can just tell, you can smell it, that things have improved, and the way things work in government, the public can smell it as well.”