Live: Boris Johnson under pressure as Government resignations continue
All the latest updates as the Prime Minister fights for his position amid criticism of the Chris Pincher affair.
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Your support makes all the difference.Prime Minister Boris Johnson is under increasing pressure as ministers and aides continue to quit his Government in protest at his leadership.
The crisis at the heart of Mr Johnson’s administration started to unfold on Tuesday evening when chancellor Rishi Sunak and health secretary Sajid Javid quit their posts, to be replaced by Nadhim Zahawi and Steve Barclay.
Robin Walker, Will Quince, John Glen and Victoria Atkins all resigned as ministers on Wednesday morning as the crisis escalated for the Prime Minister.
Here are the latest updates:
11.51am
11.50am
Robin Walker said he fears Mr Johnson has become a “distraction” from the Government delivering on its priorities.
He told Times Radio: “I want, absolutely, (the) Conservative government to be able to deliver on the priorities for which we were elected, but I fear that, sadly, Boris Johnson has now become a distraction from that.
“I do think we now need to move forward and find a new leader who can bring the party together and deliver on those key priorities that I think the public really want to see us focusing on.”
11.49am
In her letter of resignation, MP for Louth and Horncastle Victoria Atkins said: “It is with sadness and regret that I resign as Minister of State at the Ministry of Justice.
“Values such as integrity, decency, respect and professionalism should matter to us all. I have watched with growing concern as those values have fractured under your leadership, through Paterson, partygate and Pincher. I have given you the benefit of the doubt at each turn, out of loyalty to you as Prime Minister and to our great party.
“The events of this week, however, have made these contortions impossible. The casual mistreatment of Minister Will Quince and the revelations contained in Lord McDonald’s letter highlight just how far your government has fallen from these ideals. I can no longer pirouette around our fractured values. We can and must be better than this.
“This is at a time when our constituents face grave cost-of-living pressures not experienced for decades. These challenges demand resolute focus and we must take the country with us. We cannot provide that focus at present.”
11.46am
11.44am
Robin Walker said it would be “sensible” for Mr Johnson to quit today after his own resignation as schools minister.
Asked what prompted him to step down, he said the departures of Mr Sunak and Mr Javid were “the straw that broke the camel’s back”.
He told Times Radio: “I think there’s been a hope for a long time that when the Prime Minister has said repeatedly that he was making changes at No 10, he was seeking to change the culture and move forward and focus on the people’s priorities, I like many others wanted to give him the opportunity to do that.
“But I think what we’ve seen is week after week, month after month, the revelations and the approach of decisions that have been made at the centre, and the way in which they’ve been made, have been undermining good colleagues who wants to deliver on those priorities.
“I think, for me, the resignations of Sajid and Rishi this week really were the straw that broke the camel’s back.”
Asked if the Prime Minister should quit today, he said: “I think that would be the sensible thing to do.”
11.42am
11.37am
Victoria Atkins has resigned as a justice minister, telling Boris Johnson “I can no longer pirouette around our fractured values” and “we can and must be better than this”.
11.30am
Ipswich Conservative MP Tom Hunt has submitted a letter of no confidence in the Prime Minister and called for him to resign, saying “events of the past week have been the straw that has broken the camel’s back”.
“I have come to the conclusion, like a large number of my colleagues, that it’s in the best interests of my constituents, the country and the Conservative Party for the Prime Minister to step down,” he said in a statement posted to Facebook.
“A continuation of the status quo cannot continue and, regretfully, I believe that the Prime Minister’s tenure in office has run its course. Up until now I’ve continued to support the Prime Minister… however, events of the past week have been the straw that has broken the camel’s back.
“In a sense, one of the worst things about the revelations at the Carlton Club last week was how unsurprising they were to many colleagues. I personally find it hard to believe that the Prime Minister wasn’t aware of the extent of concerns about the former deputy chief whip.
“I strongly believe that the situation which occurred last week could have been avoided and I also think that the handling of it subsequently was deeply disappointing.
“I foresee things descending to new depths and I do not think that under the Prime Minister’s leadership it will be possible to unite the Conservative Parliamentary Party and give us the best chance possible of winning the next general election.
“There is no good in blaming sections of the media for the situation we find ourselves in. They’ve been giving the ammunition time and time again.”
11.25am
Lord Gavin Barwell said the departure of Mr Javid and Mr Sunak from the Cabinet will lead to more Conservatives losing faith in the Prime Minister.
The former chief of staff to Theresa May said he believed Mr Johnson could be gone by the summer, adding that the upcoming elections to the 1922 Committee may lead to a second vote of confidence before recess.
He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “We’ve seen some further junior resignations this morning, we may soon be getting to a point where the Prime Minister is not going to be able to fill all the spots within the Government.
“I suspect what we will see is that the elections for the executive, the 1922 Committee, will give a majority to his opponents, they will change the rules and we may well have a ballot shortly before the summer recess.
“I find it very hard to believe that the resignation of two such senior ministers, who’ve clearly changed their minds since the confidence vote, isn’t going to lead to a significant number of MPs having changed their mind.”
11.23am
In her letter of resignation, Kensington MP Felicity Buchan said: “It is with great sadness that I tender my resignation as Parliamentary Private Secretary in the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.
“It has been a huge honour to have served in this department at a time when energy security and the transition to net zero are so critical.
“However, I am afraid that you have lost the confidence of my constituents and me. The current situation is untenable.
“I believe passionately in Conservative values and want to ensure that we are implementing Conservative policies without distractions. That requires fresh leadership and it requires a new vision for the country. That vision must be a country of low taxes and high growth; we must be the party of aspiration.”
11.22am
In his letter of resignation, Treasury minister John Glen, the Tory MP for Salisbury, said Mr Johnson’s “poor judgement” made it “impossible for me to square continued service with my conscience”.
“After much thought and with deep regret I must inform you that I have made the difficult decision to resign from the government,” he wrote.
“It has been a great privilege to serve as Economic Secretary to the Treasury under three Chancellors, but I can no longer reconcile my commitment to the role and to the financial services sector with the complete lack of confidence I have in your continuing leadership of our country.
“Recent events concerning the handling of the appointment of the former Deputy Chief Whip, and the poor judgement you have shown, have made it impossible for me to square continued service with my conscience.
“The country deserves better, and I must return to the backbenches to dedicate myself to the service of the people of Salisbury and South Wiltshire.”
11.20am
11.17am
11.15am
Tory peer and pollster Lord Hayward said there is “absolutely no doubt” Boris Johnson has lost his “curious” attachment to the public.
He told Sky News: “I think this whole row is damaging the Conservative Party very badly.
“I’m not a great fan of snap polls, but YouGov’s poll overnight is absolutely clear – 54% of people who voted Conservative in 2019 are saying that Boris Johnson should go and just over 20% are saying he should stay.
“So there is absolutely no doubt that Boris Johnson, who had this curious built-in attachment to the public at large, has lost that link and lost it very clearly indeed.”
11.14am
Kensington MP Felicity Buchan has resigned from her role as parliamentary private secretary to the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.
In a letter posted to Twitter, she said “the current situation is untenable”.
11.11am
Treasury minister John Glen has resigned, telling Mr Johnson “I can no longer reconcile my commitment to the role” with “the complete lack of confidence I have in your continuing leadership of our country”.
10.56am
10.41am
New Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi called for unity in the Conservative Party.
10.39am
Sir David Lidington added that the Government is at risk of losing the support of the electorate following the latest issues faced by the Conservative Party.
The former Cabinet Office minister told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “The problem with the impact of partygate, Pincher and so on, people stop me in the high street and actually say they’ve always been Conservative voters but they no longer feel that the Government speaks for them.
“It’s thinking about the interests of people in the Government, and in-fighting, not about putting the country first.
“I think the credibility of the Government has been much more seriously and deeply damaged than some of the people around the Prime Minister in No 10 seem to think at the moment.”
10.25am
10.18am
Lee Anderson, the Tory MP elected in 2019 for the Red Wall seat of Ashfield, questioned the Prime Minister’s integrity as he withdrew support for Mr Johnson.
“I have remained loyal to the Prime Minister since being elected in 2019,” he said.
“However my position has changed over the past few days since the incident which led to the deputy chief whip (Chris Pincher) losing the party whip.”
He said giving Mr Pincher the job, having been told about earlier inappropriate behaviour, was “not a good appointment” by Mr Johnson.
He highlighted the initial denial that the Prime Minister had been told about earlier allegations and then the change in the Government’s position to say Mr Johnson simply forgot.
“I cannot look myself in the mirror and accept this. It is my belief that our PM has got all the big decisions right and guided us through the most difficult time in my life time and I have always backed him to the hilt.
“That said, integrity should always come first and sadly this has not been the case over the past few days.”