Boris Johnson defends actions as more Conservative allies resign
Johnson’s effort to quickly fill the top roles did not stem the tide of further — albeit more junior — resignations. Over a period of 24 hours, at least 26 Conservative politicians resigned from their posts in protest over Johnson’s leadership.
The resignations, which have followed a string of scandals, have prompted numerous questions: How long can Johnson survive? Is this the endgame for Johnson? Is there any way to oust him?
At a fiery session of the weekly Prime Minister’s Questions, Johnson dismissed those calling for his resignation.
Asked by a fellow Conservative if there were any circumstances under which he should step down, Johnson said he would quit if the government couldn’t go on. “Frankly, the job of a prime minister in difficult circumstances when you have been handed a colossal mandate is to keep going, and that’s what I’m going to do.”
In a sign of the mood of the session, at one point a group of opposition Labour Party lawmakers waved at Johnson, shouting, “Bye.”
Javid, the former health secretary whose resignation led the exodus, delivered a searing critique of the prime minister, telling Parliament that “treading the tight rope between loyalty and integrity has become impossible in recent months.” He said that late last year, he was told by senior figures that no parties had taken place at Downing Street during pandemic lockdowns. A police investigation into “Partygate” ended with 126 fines, including one for Johnson.
Javid added that “this week again, we have reason to question the truth and integrity of what we have all been told,” he said, referring to a separate scandal involving Chris Pincher, who had recently quit as deputy chief whip following accusations that he assaulted two men while drunk. Downing Street initially said Johnson was not aware of any previous allegations of misconduct when the prime minister gave Pincher a key government post, but then later backtracked to acknowledge that Johnson knew about an investigation that upheld similar complaints in 2019.
“The problem starts at the top,” Javid said.
As Javid was speaking, another minister quit.
The majority of the British public think Johnson should throw in the towel. A YouGov poll published on Tuesday…
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