London -
British Prime Minister David Cameron has been warned that a secret love affair involving high-profile figures has potentially serious political implications for him and his government.
Cameron held discussions with his senior aides after being informed two weeks ago about the affair, which is now over.
The Mail knows the identities of the lovers, but cannot reveal them for legal reasons.
They are both middle-aged figures and neither of them is a member of the Cabinet.
Insiders said Cameron was “stunned” when told the names of the pair and “immediately realised the importance of the story”.
“None of us could believe it when we first heard it,” said a senior source, adding that the revelation had caused “great personal distress to innocent parties”. Aides denied that the prime minister has held “crisis talks”.
But they made it clear that Cameron was aware the love affair would lead to negative perceptions of his party if the details are ever made public.
Together they discussed the potential consequences of the situation with the prime minister amid fears that publication of the details would cause his leadership further troubles.
Insiders say revelations could cause sufficient publicity that it would disrupt the government’s news agenda and “blow out of the water” any political initiatives they were planning. One senior source told the Mail on Sunday: “This revelation is dynamite. None of us could believe it when we first heard it. Then we just thought, ‘What a complete mess’.”
Those who know the identities of the former lovers dismissed the suggestion that the affair would shock voters in the same way as Sir John Major’s relationship with Edwina Currie, which was revealed when she published her diaries in 2002.
“When the news first broke people were calling and texting one another guessing who it would be,” said one MP. “There will be a few people who will be mightily relieved today that it isn’t them risking exposure.”
Cameron’s leadership is already under strain following backbench revolts over Europe and gay marriage and rumours of plots being hatched to overthrow him.
News of the secret affair comes hot on the heels of the revelation that Tory MP Patrick Mercer accepted £4 000 to put down parliamentary questions by a fake lobbying company set up as part of a newspaper sting.
Twitter was full of speculation on Sunday night regarding the identities of those involved in the secret relationship, but many social media posts on the topic simply joked about the Coalition “love affair” between Cameron and Nick Clegg.
Daily Mail