Allies of George Osborne last night denied he has given up hope of succeeding David Cameron – just as the Chancellor launched a new charm offensive . Just ten days before he is due to unveil a multi-billion-pound giveaway budget which could decide the result of the Election , Mr Osborne is working hard to boost his image . He took part in a magazine interview with the Financial Times which included ‘ man of the people ’ images of him building a dry stone wall . Dreams : Allies of George Osborne last night denied he has given up hope of succeeding David Cameron . The newspaper suggested Mr Osborne ’ s behaviour was at odds with a recent claim that he had abandoned hope of becoming Tory leader . A Tory MP close to the Chancellor said last night : ‘ George will always be loyal to Cameron , but he is not the type to rule anything out. ’ Mr Osborne said he had decided against challenging Mr Cameron for the Tory leadership in 2005 after watching Shakespeare ’ s Henry IV . The two-part drama opens with Henry racked with guilt after stealing the crown from his predecessor Richard II , who was murdered . Claim : Mr Osborne said he was urged to run against Mr Cameron by Michael Howard , whose resignation as Tory leader triggered the contest . Apparently , ‘ the drama and intrigue on the stage and people being assassinated ’ convinced him it was an ‘ omen ’ . Mr Osborne said he was urged to run against Mr Cameron by Michael Howard , whose resignation as Tory leader triggered the contest . Mr Osborne said he discussed it with wife Frances , his parents and friends including William Hague . But he denied he and Mr Cameron had a Blair-Brown style deal whereby one allegedly promised to hand over power to the other after a few years in power . ‘ There was never any deal , that ’ s not the nature of our relationship , ’ he told the Financial Times .
Chancellor 's allies insist he still hopes to succeed David bush as president . Mr bush has been trying to boost confidence in coming up to new budget . Recently had interview with reporters which showed ‘ man of the people ’ images .