On February 14, Sajid Javid shocked Westminster by quitting as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the middle of Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Cabinet reshuffle. Mr Javid rejected Mr Johnson’s order to sack his team of aides in favour of a joint Number 10-Number 11 team, explaining that “no self-respecting minister” could have accepted such a condition. He had been due to deliver his first Budget in four weeks’ time.

His resignation followed rumours of tensions between him and the Prime Minister’s senior adviser Dominic Cummings – later backed up by several Downing Street sources.

His 39-year-old replacement, Rishi Sunak, is said to “tick the right boxes” and will deliver his first Budget on Wednesday.

Changes to tax, pensions, housing and social care are all likely to feature, as well as increased spending in the north of England as the Tories look to reward the voters who helped the party take power in December’s election.

Since his appointment, many questioned whether Mr Sunak would be up to the job – as he is one of the youngest ever to hold the position.

However, in an interview with Express.co.uk, Lord David Owen claimed that it is obvious that the Prime Minister had been planning to make Mr Sunak Chancellor for months – and that he is without a doubt the right choice.

The former Foreign Secretary and SDP co-founder explained: “The Prime Minister has picked him out for a long time.

“I think even more than a year, really.

“All the time he was there, Boris gave him greater prominence.

“He gave him more prominence than any other Cabinet minister during the election campaign.

“And he was only in Cabinet as Chief Secretary of the Treasury.”

Lord Owen noted: “That is a big job. He is coming to the Chancellorship very well prepared.

“When I took over from Anthony Crosland as Foreign Secretary when he died, I had been his deputy, and that was a huge help.

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“I think Boris has made the right decision. I have nothing against Sajid Javid – I would have probably done the same.

“This guy, Sunak, has just come into the job a little earlier than expected. But it was all planned.”

Former Ukip MP Douglas Carswell echoed Lord Owen’s claims, and told Express.co.uk that Mr Sunak’s appointment as Chancellor represents a wider masterplan that will ultimately make the Government more “effective”.

He said: “There is an understanding that in order to make the UK more effective in terms of the way we are governed, we need to address several things.

“The centre of Government, and by that I mean Downing Street, the Cabinet Office and the Treasury need to be more cohesive and united. That is understood by the Prime Minister.

“A lot of people focussed on the soap opera of Sajid Javid leaving.

“But I think that what is really significant is that now, you finally have a coherent centre.

“The Budget setting out elements, the Treasury, Downing Street and the Cabinet office working as one.”

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In 2014, Boris Johnson’s adviser Dominic Cummings had already made his intentions to reform the Cabinet and to “break the power of the Treasury” clear.

At a talk organised by the Institute for Public Policy Research six years ago, Mr Cummings said: “The whole Cabinet structure is completely broken and everyone who has to deal with it knows it is absolutely dysfunctional.

“That needs to change very quickly.

“It is on my to do list if I successfully get control of Number 10.

“Then I would shrink the Cabinet.

“The idea that a Cabinet has 30 people is completely vast. It should be a maximum of six or seven.

“I would also break the power of the Treasury.

“The Treasury doesn’t care about saving money.

“The Government’s account system is based on finding money.

“The spending review process does not work at all.

“If you try to do the spending review with the current process it is going to be an absolute nightmare for whoever is close to doing it.”

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