Boris Johnson news – live: Jenkyns says she made middle finger gesture due to ‘baying mob’

Rishi Sunak said he is “truly overwhelmed” by the support he has so far received from MPs in his bid for the Tory party leadership.

Geoff Barton, General Secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, appeared to be less than satisfied with Andrea Jenkyns explanation for her middle finger gesture outside Downing Street.

Without directly referencing her explanation, or the incident in question, he tweeted: “In my 32 years as a teacher, 15 of them as headteacher, I inevitably dealt with moments of poor behaviour and inappropriate conduct – from young people and staff.

“I have to say, ‘I’m only human’ was never good enough as an excuse from any of them for any of it.”

Potential successors have already begun throwing their hats into the ring to replace Boris Johnson as Tory leader after he announced his resignation.

The outgoing prime minister finally accepted his time had come to step down on Thursday after more than 50 MPs resigned from government and party roles over his conduct.

The MP for Uxbridge and South Ruislip has been dogged by a string of scandals throughout his leadership since 2019, but the final nail in the coffin came after it emerged he promoted Tory MP Chris Pincher despite knowledge of sexual misconduct claims against him.

Mr Johnson said he would be staying on as prime minister in a caretaker role until a new Conservative Party leader is announced by the autumn.

The contest to succeed Mr Johnson has been described by one Tory politician as the “wacky races” – with up to 15 MPs announcing their candidates or preparing to launch a campaign..

Click the link below to see all the Tory MPs who have so far launched leadership campaigns:

A resurfaced clip captures Rishi Sunak suggesting he doesn’t have working-class friends.

Describing his friendships in the BBC’s 2007 documentary series Middle Classes – Their Rise and Sprawl, Mr Sunak said: “I have friends who are aristocrats, I have friends who are upper class, I have friends who are working-class…well, not working class.”

On Tuesday, July 5, Mr Sunak resigned from his position in the treasury before announcing days later on July 8, that he will be making a bid to become the next Conservative party leader and prime minister.

Education minister Andrea Jenkyns said she gave the middle finger gesture to a “baying mob” outside Downing Street but admitted she “should have shown more composure”.

Ms Jenkyns, who made the sign with her hand as she walked through the black gates, prior to her new appointment, said in a statement: “I had reached the end of my tether”.

She said she stood up for herself after being subject to “huge amounts of abuse” over the years, including two death threats in recent weeks.

“I should have shown more composure but am only human,” she added.

Ms Jenkyns was appointed to the role of parliamentary under-secretary of state at the Department for Education on Friday in a reshuffle by Boris Johnson.

The footage, shared on social media on Thursday evening, appears to have been filmed shortly before Mr Johnson announced he was stepping down as leader of the Conservative Party.

In response to the video, shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson tweeted: “Ministers aren’t expected to be perfect.

“But is it really too much to ask that they don’t treat the public like this?”

“The clown is going,” said Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of Russia’s parliament after the fall of Boris Johnson.

“He is one of the main ideologues of the war against Russia until the last Ukrainian. European leaders should think about where such a policy leads”.

Maria Zakharova, spokeswoman of the Foreign Ministry in the Kremlin, declared “the moral of the story is: do not seek to destroy Russia: it cannot be destroyed. You can break your teeth on it – and then choke on them.”

Mr Johnson may regard these insults as badges of honour. He certainly will not object to being called the leader in the support for Ukraine against Russian aggression : although the volume of America’s military and financial support to Kyiv outweighs those from other Western states.

But the UK is now leaderless, without a Prime Minister who wields any authority. To continue with the Russian theme, Boris Johnson is now the head of a Potemkin government – a false and hollow structure. This could continue for months, and it is a vulnerable place for the country to be in these uncertain times.

Kim Sengupta reports.

One MP who had backed Ben Wallace said he had been picking up a lot of support from MPs who stayed in government and were uncomfortable with Rishi Sunak’s “treachery”.

The defence secretary had support from several One Nation moderates, and had been considered a “unity” candidate who gain some support from the right of the party.

Mr Sunak has come under fire from Johnson loyalists even before the launch, with Brexit minister Jacob Rees-Mogg denouncing him as a “high tax chancellor” who failed to curb inflation.

Steve Baker, who has dropped his own ambitions to be leader and backed attorney general Suella Braverman, claimed Mr Sunak is in an “unfortunate bind” as he has got to “double down” on his own economic policy to date.

One top No 10 official told the Financial Times that Mr Sunak was “a treacherous b*****d”, A Johnson loyalist in the cabinet told the newspaper: “Rishi will get everything he deserves for leading the charge in bringing down the prime minister.”

Rishi Sunak is the betting favourite to be the next leader of the Tory party after the bookmakers second favourite Ben Wallace ruled himself out of the leadership contest.

The latest odds from Betfair Exchange are:

Rishi Sunak: 13/8

Penny Mordaunt: 11/2

Liz Truss: 13/2

Tom Tugendhat: 9/1

Jeremy Hunt: 16/1

Nadhim Zahawi: 19/1

Suella Braverman: 22/1

Sajid Javid: 22/1

Kemi Badenoch: 33/1

Betfair spokesperson Sam Rosbottom said: “With Boris Johnson resigning as Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak is the 13/8 favourite to replace him as Conservative leader, however, with Ben Wallace not running, last listed as 5/1 second favourite, odds on Penny Mordaunt to succeed Johnson are now 11/2 and she now sits in second favourite.”

Defence secretary Ben Wallace has ruled himself out of the Conservative Party leadership contest despite his status as favourite among the Tory grassroots.

In a thread on Twitter, he said: “After careful consideration and discussing with colleagues and family, I have taken the decision not to enter the contest for leadership of the Conservative Party. I am very grateful to all my parliamentary colleagues and wider members who have pledged support.

“It has not been an easy choice to make, but my focus is on my current job and keeping this great country safe. I wish the very best of luck to all candidates and hope we swiftly return to focusing on the issues that we are all elected to address.”