Tories fear new campaign chief may quit

Michael Howard is being warned that his newlyappointed election supremo could resign after only two months in the job, it emerged today.

Speculation is growing at Conservative headquarters that either Lynton Crosby or the party's co-chairman, Lord Saatchi, will quit in the New Year after a vicious turf war.

Mr Crosby is currently in

Australia where he runs a political consultancy. Some insiders fear he may not return unless the Tory leader makes clear that he, rather than Lord Saatchi, is in charge.

The pair are said to have been at loggerheads since Mr Crosby - who masterminded four election triumphs for the Australian prime minister - was drafted in by Mr Howard to revamp his flagging election campaign.

It emerged yesterday that Lord Saatchi had fired Matt

Jones, a party official working directly for Mr Crosby, after the latter flew out of the country. Mr Jones is threatening to take the party to industrial tribunal claiming unfair dismissal, believing he was the victim of the pair's rivalry.

Lord Saatchi chose the moment when Mr Crosby was heading for the airport to fire off an email to staff and MPs that embarrassed his rival. The email, accusing Mr Crosby of "bad mouthing" Lord Saatchi and co-chairman Liam Fox, was quickly leaked.