'We get on purr-fectly': Cameron insists he is feline fine about Larry the Cat amid rumours he is not welcome in Number 10
- David Cameron said to be fed up with cat hair on his suit
- Matthew d'Ancona book says Camerons do not like claims cat is a PR prop
- Larry arrived at Downing Street in February 2011 to deal with rat problem
- Bookies say odds of cat lasting at Number 10 are higher than Cameron's
PR puss: The Camerons are said to be annoyed that people see the cat as something of a gimmick
David Cameron tonight addressed the nation on the big political issue of the day: does he hate Larry the Cat.
According to a new book, the claws are out for the pet hired to catch mice in the corridors of power.
But in the midst of a growing political storm and a Twitter campaign to ’Save Larry’, even the Prime Minister had to resort to a pun, insisting they all get on ’purr-fectly well’.
Mr Cameron initially ruled out getting a cat to deal with the rat problem in Downing Street.
But under pressure from those around him, including his children, he relented in February 2011 and Larry was found at Battersea Dogs and Cats Home.
A new book lifting the lid on the tensions which dominate the coalition claim it is not just pesky Lib Dems which Mr Cameron is fed up with.
Matthew d’Ancona suggests in the book, In It Together, that the Camerons ’do not like the Downing Street cat, Larry, amid suggestions that the pet is a PR prop’.
As fur flew, the revelation sparked a Twitter storm using the hashtag #savelarry.
In an attempt to quell the row, Mr Cameron took to Twitter tonight to insist: ’I can set everyone's mind at rest in the #SaveLarry campaign.
’He and I get on purr-fectly well. The kids love him too.’
David Cameron took to Twitter in a bid to quell the row over Larry the Cat
Staying power: The Camerons came to office in 2005 (left) and Larry arrived in 2011, but the bookies' odds are on the cat outlasting the Tory leader
Mr Cameron may have been spooked by comparisons with the Blairs, who famously ousted Downing Street cat Humphrey within weeks of New Labour coming to office, with speculation rife about a rift with Cherie.
However concerns about Larry first emerged two years ago.
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Mr Cameron in particular grew fed up with his suit getting covered in hair, while visitors to the Prime Minister’s official residence were met with the smell of cat food badly disguised by cheap air freshener.
However, Larry’s preference for catnapping over rat catching has long been a cause for concern.
It took more than a year before he secured his first kill, drawing comparisons with Mr Cameron’s love of ’chillaxing’.
Mousy: The Camerons were said to be disappointed with Larry's performance as a rat-catcher - the job for which he was intended
David Cameron, pictured arriving at the Conservative Party annual conference in Manchester, has sought to dispel rumours over Larry's future
He was appointed Chief Mouser to the Cabinet soon after arriving in Downing Street but failed to deal with the rodent problem.
He was then the victim of a reshuffle, after Mr Cameron admitted Larry was a ‘terrible mouser’.
Freya, a cat belonging to George Osborne who lives next door at Number 11 was given the title.
Relations have been fraught since, including the two being pictured fighting on the steps of Number 10 in October last year.
Freya arrived in Downing Street after going missing from Mr Osborne’s previous home for three years.
Cat fight: George Osborne's cat Freya, pictured left fighting the Prime Minister's cat Larry, is said to be the bruiser of Downing Street
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