Is he any good? No idea, but I will give him the benefit of doubt, May apparently rates him highly as do others.
The Press narrative is that is May has no power and everything is manipulated by other actors, Williamson in this case. I think these narratives are bollocks, they just make political journalists’s jobs easy by simplifying reality. (Much the same happened under Brown.) That said he may have no chance of succeeding in the Press’s eyes simply because he has been promoted by the wrong PM.
That and it’s being reported that the Tories sat on the elphicke allegations for a year, as chief whip he’d surely have known of them
Promoting a him was poor judgement by May (but that’s what we’ve come to expect from her) especially chief whip who’s job it was to know who’s been up to dodgy stuff, just as a huge scandal about said dodgy stuff was breaking.
Maybe he’d be a great defence sec, but the apparent backlash from within her party (which the press are only reporting) and the timing of it all are against him.
and fwiw I don’t think that he promoted himself Frank Underwood style, I just think May doesn’t have a clue what to do right now so wanted an MP she trusted- can’t be many of those left!