Today, the Conservatives were mired in a developing schism over Boris Johnson’s leadership, with a growing number of MPs publicly criticizing him.
Almost 50 Conservative backbenchers have questioned Prime Minister Theresa May’s public behavior in the aftermath of the ‘Partygate’ affair, and some have discussed a possible replacement.
Mr Johnson is thought to be personally ringing around shaky backbenchers to shore up his position.
To force a vote on his leadership, 54 members of the party must write letters of no confidence in him, however it is unclear whether all of his critics have done so.
Dame Andrea Leadsom, a former Cabinet minister and leadership challenger, joined the chorus of Conservatives who have come out of the woodwork to criticize Mr Johnson over the No10 parties.
As John Stevenson became the fourth Tory MP to submit a letter demanding that the Prime Minister face a confidence vote, she stabbed the knife into him.
After senior civil servant Sue Gray submitted a report on her findings, the PM’s ethics czar Lord Geidt stated there was a ‘legitimate question’ about whether his Partygate fine constituted a breach of the ministerial code.
However, the PM’s backers retaliated today, maintaining that his job was safe and questioned whether any of the potential replacements were adequate to the task.
Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, treasurer of the 1922 Committee of backbenchers, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that they might not be “a constructive asset to the country, compared to what you have now.”
‘During that time, there will be full stasis of leadership of this country at a time when we are in a really critical situation with the cost-of-living problem, with maybe rail strikes,’ he continued when asked about a leadership election.
‘And then there’s the question of who you’d have.’ There will be at least five or six people that apply for the position. Someone will emerge, but there will be a large number of colleagues who did not vote for that candidate.
‘That candidate will then be tasked with unifying the party and attempting to address all of the country’s challenges.’ And I believe that, for the time being, we should leave things alone.’
Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab has also stated that he does not expect Boris Johnson will face a vote of no confidence next week, as has been projected.
‘I just don’t see it,’ he told Sky News. This, I believe, is whipped up by the Westminster bubble and village. I’m not denying that it’s a serious and big matter. But we dealt with all of them, and the Prime Minister dealt with all of them.
Allies of Prime Minister David Cameron cautioned the plotters that they were jeopardizing the Conservative Party’s greatest chance of winning the next election.
Mr Johnson’s supporters retaliated against the “disgruntled ex-ministers” and frightened backbenchers lobbying against him as the mood at Westminster worsened.
Since the end of last week, a steady stream of MPs have come forward to call on Mr Johnson to go after having had the opportunity to examine Ms Gray’s report in depth and talk with their constituents.
According to The Times, 30 Conservative MPs have called for a confidence vote, while another 16 have publicly criticized their vulnerable leader.
If 54 Tory MPs – 15% of the parliamentary party – sign a letter calling for a vote of confidence in Mr Johnson’s leadership, the chairman of the backbench 1922 Committee is obligated by party rules to call one.
At Westminster, there is a growing assumption that the 54 letters from Conservative MPs required to trigger a confidence vote will be received soon.
Former Tory leader William Hague warned the Prime Minister was in “serious jeopardy,” while Sir Iain Duncan Smith urged colleagues to hold off on plotting until the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations were completed.
The events will begin on Thursday and continue through the weekend.
According to the Times, rebel MPs have considered trade minister Penny Mordaunt as a possible replacement. Others are alleged to support former health secretary Jeremy Hunt and Foreign Affairs Select Committee Chairman Tom Tugendhat.
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and Defence Secretary Ben Wallace, both members of the current cabinet, are thought to be in the running if Mr Johnson is removed.
Meanwhile, supporters of Mr Johnson charged the agitators with ‘doing Labour’s bidding.’
‘The rebels don’t have a plan other than leaking the names of those who don’t like the PM or who have a vendetta against him,’ a Cabinet insider said. It’s a group of angry ex-ministers and a couple of fried 2019ers [frightened 2019 MPs]. ‘None of it comes as a surprise.’
Mr Johnson, according to Downing Street, remains the Tories’ greatest chance of winning the next general election. ‘Who is the alternative?’ questioned one insider.
Mr Johnson could call a vote of confidence himself to quell the rumours about his leadership, but No 10 rejected the idea yesterday night. ‘No,’ said a source. Rather than talking about ourselves, we need to focus on delivering for the public and getting on with things that truly make a difference in people’s lives.’
As he prepares to represent Britain at a series of international summits where leaders will consider the response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, No 10 also urged the rebels not to pull the rug out from under him.
Dame Andrea became the second senior individual to publicly criticize Mr Johnson as pressure mounted on him yesterday.
Sue Gray’s assessment into Partygate revealed “serious leadership flaws that cannot be permitted and are the Prime Minister’s responsibility,” according to the former Cabinet minister, who backed Mr Johnson for the leadership in 2019.
‘She got booted from Cabinet by Boris and wasn’t happy, so why is anyone shocked when she comes out [against him],’ a Cabinet insider dismissed her statements.
Lord Hague, on the other hand, said it was evident that Mr Johnson’s supporters who thought he had gotten away with it following the muted initial response to Miss Gray’s findings were mistaken. He said that the findings of the top civil servant had lighted a “slow fuse” that may lead to a leadership election as soon as next week.
Lord Geidt, the independent adviser on the Ministerial Code, questioned the Prime Minister’s willingness to ‘accept responsibility for his own conduct’ in connection to the ministerial guidelines and gave a scathing evaluation of the Prime Minister’s interactions with Downing Street personnel.
Lord Geidt advised them that Mr Johnson should be “ready to provide public comment” on his obligations under the code, but that this advice had gone unheeded.
Mr Johnson reacted by stating that the FPN ‘did not infringe’ the Ministerial Code since there was ‘no intent to break the law’ in a letter issued Tuesday evening.
In light of the lockdown-busting meetings in Downing Street, he also argued he had taken “all responsibility for everything that happened on my watch,” pointing to his House of Commons apology.
The Cabinet Office pushed back against rumors that Lord Geidt was considering resigning over the issue’s handling, insisting that he is not.
However, Lord Geidt appeared to hint at the possibility when he stated in his annual report that he had tried to avoid giving Mr Johnson guidance regarding his obligations under his own Ministerial Code.
‘If a Prime Minister believes there is nothing to probe or no case to answer, he is compelled to reject any such advice, requiring the independent adviser to leave,’ he added.
‘A circular approach like this could only end up making the Ministerial Code a laughingstock.’
The discussions were made public as several Conservative MPs publicly called for Mr Johnson to go in the aftermath of Sue Gray’s investigation on Downing Street lockdown parties.
According to reports last night, rebel Conservatives believe Mr Johnson might call a fast election if he faces a confidence vote and wins by a tiny margin. Backbenchers were considering the possibility of the PM seeking a new mandate from voters, according to two MPs.
Science minister George Freeman defended the PM on BBC Radio 4’s The World at One, saying: ‘He did not stand as the patron saint of morality.’ People were aware of who they were voting for.
‘He got a huge majority, got us out of the Brexit stalemate, and got the vaccination rollout done.’ We need to make sure we’re doing the day job before changing prime ministers. We must not be led by short-term speculative interests.’
‘I think everyone should get behind the Prime Minister,’ said Johnson supporter Nadine Dorries. People do not vote for parties that are split.’
Dame Andrea Leadsom, a former cabinet minister, was the latest senior official to publicly criticize Mr Johnson, saying Ms Gray’s assessment had highlighted “serious leadership shortcomings that must be permitted and are the Prime Minister’s responsibility.”
She did not call on him to resign in a letter to her constituents circulated on social media, but she did say that she and other Tory MPs “must now decide individually on what is the proper course of action that will restore trust in our Government.”
Meanwhile, Carlisle MP John Stevenson has become the third Tory backbencher to openly disclose that he has sent a letter to Sir Graham Brady, the chairman of the 1922 Committee, requesting a vote of no confidence.
Former Scottish Conservative leader Baroness Davidson of Lundin Links expected that more letters will be filed in the following days.
‘I think the trickle that you’ve seen in the last couple of days is part of that, and we may see a few more,’ she told Piers Morgan Uncensored on TalkTV. ‘I think the trickle that you’ve seen in the last couple of days is part of that, and we may see a few more,’ she continued.