Today, Labour will stab the Tory wound produced by Boris Johnson’s leadership by accusing Tory supporters of acting selfishly to prop him up.
Sir Keir Starmer’s party will use an opposition day debate in the Commons to focus on ‘standards in public life,’ a day after Mr Johnson faced a significant backlash from his own MPs.
148 MPs, or more than two-fifths of the parliamentary party, called on him to resign last night, with 211 politicians supporting him.
However, on one of the formal days when it is transferred by the Government to one of the opposition parties, Labour has control of the parliamentary order paper.
It comes after Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner accused MPs who backed Mr Johnson last night of trying to preserve a’mortally wounded’ leader in power in order to protect their own seats.
‘At the end of the day, the British public can see that some of those Conservative MPs voted against not lying to the British public, against their own interests, and to save Boris Johnson’s face, to save their own skin because they know they’re currently sinking in the polls,’ she said.
MPs who backed Mr Johnson last night were accused by Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner of maintaining a’mortally wounded’ leader in power to protect their own seats.
MPs who backed Mr Johnson last night were accused by Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner of maintaining a’mortally wounded’ leader in power to protect their own seats.
Mr. Johnson is attempting to divert attention away from his party’s internal strife by focusing on his economic proposals today.
‘Boris Johnson can be removed from office by the people.’ People never forget that they didn’t get to say goodbye to their loved ones, even if he thinks he’s bought himself some time. Liars, cheats, and those who disobey the law are despised by the British populace.
‘And I believe he will be thoroughly thrashed if he tries to call another general election on that basis.’
After the Prime Minister was accused of seeking to change the Ministerial Code to avoid having to resign, Labour will hold a vote on a motion asking MPs to “recognize the importance of the Ministerial Code for sustaining high standards in public life.”
The vote isn’t legally binding on the government, and even Tory dissidents are unlikely to turn up in large numbers. However, it is merely a symbolic gesture as opposition groups attempt to maintain pressure on the government.
Following the harsh confidence vote in which more than 40% of his MPs attempted to unseat him, the PM convened his senior ministers and urged them to promote the’massive agenda’ of Levelling Up investment.
He congratulated them for their ‘hard effort’ in trying to preserve him from complete loss yesterday around the famed Downing Street table. He did, however, insist that they come up with a strategy to ‘reduce expenses’ in government and improve the value of services.
Mr Johnson said, “We are now able to draw a line under the concerns that our opponents want to talk about.”
As Mr Johnson seeks to get back on track, an extension of the Thatcherite right-to-buy, a joint cost-of-living speech with Rishi Sunak, the first migrant Rwanda flights, a series of high-profile foreign jaunts, and a reshuffle of his team are all on the cards in the coming weeks.
Despite the fact that Mr Johnson is now technically immune to challenge for a year, mutinous Conservatives have warned him that he is not yet out of the woods. According to polls, Labour might win the Red Wall seat of Wakefield by a 20-point majority in two by-elections on June 23, while the Liberal Dems are optimistic about their prospects in the blue heartlands of Tiverton.
The insurgency is ‘not over,’ according to a key associate of Jeremy Hunt, who broke cover yesterday to demand for Mr Johnson’s resignation.
Meanwhile, even staunch supporters of the prime minister have recognized that key ministers will have quietly voted against him. ConservativeHome, a grassroots website, has recommended that the Cabinet should intervene to persuade him to resign.