One man’s loss is another man’s gain and few know that maxim better than Conservative MPs. Members of the parliamentary party have already quietly begun discussing who will replace Nadhim Zahawi as their Tory chairman. And while no appointment is expected today, some names are already doing the rounds as to which MP is likely to get an overdue promotion or a recall from the wilderness. Below is a list of Steerpike’s runners and riders, from old warriors and young pretenders to the dispossessed and the never-possessed…

Greg Hands – A Sunak ally well-liked among London Tories. Has served four of the last five Prime Ministers and is never afraid to take the fight to Sadiq Khan’s Labour. If he can be persuaded to part his familiar berth at Trade, where he has served on and off for six years.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan – Served in cabinet for Trade and Transport under Johnson and Truss before being demoted to Minister of State at the Foreign Office under Sunak. Has kept her head down for the past three months and would signal Sunak’s determination to put old loyalties aside.

Andrew Bowie – A junior Trade minister and Sunak ally who backed him in both leadership campaigns last year. The West Aberdeenshire MP would be the first Scottish Tory to serve as party chair since 2005. But with a majority of just 843, could he really focus on campaigns elsewhere?

Matt Vickers – He served as Rishi Sunak’s election agent for the 2015 and 2017 campaigns and has sat for the decidedly Red Wall seat of Stockton South since 2019. Vickers was named Deputy Chairman of the party in July and would offer some much-need continuity for the CCHQ machine.

Stuart Andrew – A Welshman who sits for a West Yorkshire seat. Backed Sunak both times last year and spent two-and-a-half years in the Whips’ Office under Johnson. Thought to have a good knowledge of the parliamentary party and has a respectable ministerial record too.

Brandon Lewis – The archetypal ‘safe pair of hands.’ Lewis has held nine posts over the past eleven years, including the party chairmanship from January 2018 until July 2019. He was axed by Sunak last October though and may have been too disparaging about the current PM in last summer’s leadership race…

Damian Hinds – A former Cabinet minister now serving as Minister of State at the Ministry of Justice. Would be the kind of quiet, uncontroversial appointment that No. 10 might feel it needs after weeks of damaging headlines.

Paul Scully – Tory vice chairman under Theresa May, he was promoted to deputy chairman under Boris Johnson and has been mentioned as a possible candidate for London Mayor in 2024.

Craig Williams – Sunak’s eyes and ears as his long-serving Parliamentary Private Secretary. Respected as a good campaigner and savvy operator. Sits for Montgomeryshire, where the main threat is from the Lib Dems.

Lucy Frazer – The kind of ‘Blue Wall’ Tory who form the bedrock of Sunak’s support in the party. Has sat for South East Cambridgeshire since 2015 and is one of several ministers of state with a decent claim for promotion to the top table. A former President of the Cambridge Union, she was a QC at 40.

Priti Patel – One of the more unlikely but high-profile names doing the rounds. A former Home Secretary, she would certainly be more of a ‘big hitter’ than some recent appointments to the job. Has backed the Conservative Democratic Organisation, which has been campaigning for party members to get more of a say in future leadership contests. The CDO in turn is expected to shortly put out a petition calling for party members to have the right to choose the next party chairman. Which is somewhat awkward given the likely winner would probably be…

Boris Johnson – Jacob Rees-Mogg has backed him for the post already. What about it, eh Rishi?