Crossword Genius

Mean Conservative, shabby, premier to go? (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

catty

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'mean' is the definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)

'conservative shabby premier to go?' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'conservative' could be 'c' (UK political abbreviation) and 'c' is present in the answer.
The remaining letters 'atty' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't see.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for catty that I've seen before include "Malicious" , "Spiteful in feline way" , "Bitchy as a feline" , "It's like a queen" , "Backbiting" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.
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