Former Conservative Party leader Michael Howard has called on Boris Johnson to resign following the disastrous double defeat at by-elections in Wakefield and Tiverton.
The Tory peer – who has remained quiet on the question of the leadership – also suggested that cabinet ministers should consider moving against the PM if he clings on at No 10.
Earlier, Oliver Dowden quit his role as Tory Party chair because he “can’t go on defending the indefensible”, a senior Tory has suggested.
Mr Dowden, a cabinet minister, resigned shortly after the Conservatives lost byelections in Wakefield and Tiverton & Honiton, where Partygate was again raised by voters on the doorstep.
The PM has insisted that he will “keep going” at No 10 despite the crushing double by-election losses.
Simon Lightwood won for Labour in Wakefield in West Yorkshire after gaining 13,166 votes to the Conservatives 8,231. Meanwhile, The Liberal Democrats’ Richard Foord won convincingly in Devon gaining 22,537 votes overturning a 24,000 Tory majority.
Attorney general backs PM after by-election defeats
The attorney general has spoken in support of Boris Johnson, following the Conservatives’ crushing by-election defeats yesterday.
Suella Braverman said the prime minister was to thank for the party’s significant majority in 2019, saying this success has “not been undermined in any way” by recent defeats.
Speaking to the BBC, she said: “Whilst we have these two disappointing results today, I don’t think those should be extrapolated across to read as a reflection on Boris Johnson’s leadership.
“I think right now we’ve got to learn the lessons from these elections, for sure, but also focus on the national priorities,” she added.
The 6 weirdest Liberal Democrat election victory stunts
The Liberal Democrats have sometimes struggled to get media attention, usually losing out in column inches to Labour and the Tories.
As a result the party has developed a flair for imaginative and eye-catching media stunts. Today Ed Davey and his party’s new MP for Tiverton and Honiton, Richard Foord, stood in front of a blue door which had “show Boris Johnson the door” written across it.
Our policy correspondent, Jon Stone, takes a look back at some of the other props the party has used at elections in the past:
Readers poll: If Boris Johnson is removed from office, who should replace him?
Boris Johnson is facing fresh questions about his premiership after leading the Tories to two byelection defeats last night in Wakefield and Tiverton & Honiton.
If he is eventually ousted from 10 Downing Street, who would you like to see replace him?
Have your say in our readers poll, which can be found via the link below:
Johnson ultra-loyalist Nadine Dorries backs PM – but other cabinet ministers remain silent
Boris Johnson ultra-loyalist Nadine Dorries has rowed in behind the prime minister following last night’s byelection defeats, saying he is delivering for the country.
Rishi Sunak, the chancellor; Dominic Raab, the deputy PM and justice secretary and Priti Patel, the home secretary, have also voiced their support for the Big Dog – after Oliver Dowden resigned.
But a significant number of other cabinet ministers – including Liz Truss, the foreign secretary – have remained silent. Ms Trusss is currently in Rwanda for the Commonwealth leaders’ summit.
“Great to be in Kigali for @CHOGM2022 for discussions on how we build a stronger, more resilient Commonwealth,” Ms Truss tweeted earlier. “As a group of democratic nations, the Commonwealth has a vital role to play in defending freedom and self-determination, and acting as a counterweight to malign actors.”
Other senior cabinet minister who have not commented on the defeats in Wakefield and Tiverton include Sajid Javid (health), Ben Wallace (defence), Nadhim Zahawi (education) and Kwasi Kwarteng (business).
Video: Former Tory leader Michael Howard says PM should resign after by-election defeat
Johnson a ‘very unpopular’ PM living in ‘parallel universe’, says former Tory MP
Neil Parish, the Tory MP who resigned after watching porn in the Commons, has said the prime minister is “very unpopular” and is living in a “parallel universe”.
Mr Parish’s former constituency of Tiverton & Honiton was won by the Liberal Democrats in yesterday’s by-election.
“Full credit to the Lib Dems for winning, but it’s a combination of our vote dropping dramatically, people switching, people staying at home and a very unpopular prime minister, which people have tactically voted against,” Mr Parish told Sky News after the result.
“I feel responsible in as much as I had to leave. I made a very foolish and bad mistake but I did the honourable thing and left.”
“He (the PM) has many good qualities. The trouble is he can’t just keep living in a parallel universe, there has to be reality,” the former MP added.
PM’s position now ‘more challenging’, says Welsh Tory leader
The leader of the Welsh Conservatives has become the latest Tory to suggest Boris Johnson’s premiership is growing ever “more challenging”.
Andrew RT Davies said: “Each and every day the prime minister gets up, like any leader, they have to look in the mirror and ask themselves ‘can they continue to deliver for their country and for the people who have put them into office?’
“I presume that’s getting far more challenging when the prime minister looked in the mirror these days with the messages that are coming from the ballot box such as by-elections we had last night.”
Voices: Labour’s win in Wakefield is not enough to put Keir Starmer in No 10
Labour and the Liberal Democrats seemingly had a lot to celebrate this morning after convincing by-election victories over the Conservatives in Wakeford and Tiverton & Honiton.
However, our political commentator John Rentoul believes the margin of victory indicates that Labour will struggle to win a majority at the next election.
Read more here:
Tory minister hits out at Dowden over resignation
Environment minister Zac Goldsmith appears to have criticised Oliver Dowden for resigning as chair of the Conservative party.
The Tory peer, who is a close Johnson ally, tweeted a video of Mr Dowden on Friday along with the words:
“Many, if not most politicians will enthusiastically embrace an idea if they think it helps them personally, but they will just as enthusiastically ditch it if they think that helps their fortunes. This is true of all parties.”
Lib Dems refuse to speculate about chances at next election
Sir Ed Davey, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, has refused to say how many seats his party would like to win at the next general election.
This comes after their victory in the Tiverton by-election yesterday.
“It is difficult to say as we are maybe two years from a general election,” Sir Ed said.
“The fact we have won three parliamentary by-elections in just over 12 months suggests we are going to make advances and are going to get rid of a lot of Conservative MPs.
“It is too early to put a number on it but we certainly intend to get rid of a lot of Conservative MPs.”
