UK Politics

Chancellor Rishi Sunak decided to skip the awkward grilling of Boris Johnson at PMQs over the partygate scandal, travelling 200 miles from London to discuss a jobs announcement.Mr Sunak – the favourite to replace Mr Johnson at No 10 according to bookmakers and polling of the public – headed to Ilfracombe in Devon on Wednesday.Rather than offer support to the beleaguered prime minister in the House of Commons, Mr Sunak chose to visit a company purifying pharmaceutical drugs.Mr Sunak said he was “excited” to be in the town with North Devon Tory MP Selaine Saxby, and said the Pall Corporation was investing £60m at the site and creating 200 new jobs.Labour’s shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves made a dig at her opposite number by tweeting a card saying “The Invisible Chancellor”, adding: “On today of all days, where is the chancellor?”Mr Johnson apologised for attending a “bring your own booze” gathering in the No 10 garden 10 during England’s first lockdown in May 2020. He acknowledged the public “rage” over the incident, but also claimed thought it could have been technically within the rules.Tory MP Sir Roger concluded that Mr Johnson had “misled” the Commons with his previous denials. “Politically, the prime minister is a dead man walking,” he told the BBC – calling on the 1922 Committee of backbench Tories to “determine how we proceed”.As the PM battles to save his premiership, bookmakers slashed the ideas of a new prime minister this year. Mr Johnson is now odds-on to be replaced in 2022, according to one leading betting firm.Mr Sunak is the favourite to replace Mr Johnson if there is a leadership contest, narrowly ahead of foreign secretary Liz Truss. The chancellor is 9/4 to be the next PM while Ms Truss is 22/5, according to Oddschecker, a comparison site compiling odds from leading British bookmakers.According to regular ConservativeHome surveys Ms Truss remains the most popular cabinet member among Tory supporters, but the latest poll numbers suggest that Mr Sunak is the most popular choice to take over at No 10 with the wider public. More

Tory MPs in ‘Red Wall’ seats are telling a beleaguered Boris Johnson to act on the cost-of-living crisis or “end up out of power”, in a new challenge to his authority.The Northern Research Group of 70 MPs is warning that voters who put the prime minister in No 10 that they will “lose trust in us” unless taxes and fuel bills are slashed.Jake Berry, the group’s founder – and formerly a close ally of Mr Johnson – pointed to the way Labour lost seats across the North and Midlands at the 2019 general election, because it didn’t “understand” voters.And he warned: “I worry that, unless there is urgent action on the cost of living, millions of voters who switched to the Tories in 2019 are going to lose trust in us after just one term.“It is sadly undeniable that we are all going to struggle to make ends meet over the next few months,” Mr Berry said, adding: “We can all see this crisis coming, so now is the time to act.”The group’s three-point plan would spare poorer households from the hike in National Insurance contributions in April, by lifting the threshold for paying the tax to £12,570.The MPs are also demanding a two-year freeze to council tax – to prevent bills also soaring in April – arguing local authorities can dip into their reserves instead.Third, ‘green levies’ would be removed from domestic fuel bills for one year, to ease the pain of a predicted £600 leap in the energy price cap, also from April.“This triple whammy is creating a cost of living crisis and it is going to hurt,” said Mr Berry, writing in The Sun.“Our simple, three-point plan would put hundreds of pounds back into your pocket and demonstrate it is the Conservative Party that is the true party of the North and in touch and on the side of our hard-pressed working families.” More

Boris Johnson has apologised for attending a party in the Downing Street garden during lockdown — but insisted he thought it was a “work event”.It comes after a leaked email showed over 100 No 10 staff were invited to a drinks gathering in the rose garden of Downing Street on 20 May, 2020, while the country was still subject to strict Covid lockdown restrictions.After days of stonewalling questions, the prime minister told MPs he acknowledged the “rage” of the public “with me and with the government I lead when they think in Downing Street itself the rules are not being properly followed by the people who make the rules”.“And though I cannot anticipate the conclusions of the current inquiry, I have learned enough to know there were things we simply did not get right and I must take responsibility,” he said at prime minister’s questions.He told the Commons: “No 10 is a big department with a garden as an extension of the office which has been in constant use because of the role of fresh air in stopping the virus.“When I went into that garden just after six on May 20, 2020, to thank groups of staff before going back into my office 25 minutes later to continue working, I believed implicitly that this was a work event.”But “with hindsight I should have sent everyone back inside, I should have found some other way to thank them, and I should have recognised that — even if it could have been said technically to fall within the guidance — there would be millions and millions of people who simply would not see it that way.”Reacting to his statement, the Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer, called on the prime minister to resign and told him: “The party’s over”.Speaking in the Commons, Sir Keir said: “There we have it. After months of deceit and deception, the pathetic spectacle of a man who has run out of road.“His defence … that he didn’t realise he was at a party is so ridiculous that it’s actually offensive to the British public. He’s finally been forced to admit what everyone knew, that when the whole country was locked down he was hosting boozing parties in Downing Street. Is he now going to do the decent thing and resign?”But Mr Johnson said: “I appreciate the point that he’s making about the event that I attended. I want to repeat that I thought it was a work event and I regret very much that we did not do things differently that evening.“I take responsibility and I apologise. But as for his political point, I don’t think that he should pre-empt the outcome of the inquiry. He will have a further opportunity, I hope, to question me as soon as possible.”There were some cheers from Conservative MPs as Mr Johnson entered the Commons chamber, but the mood on Tory benches was gloomy as the PM fended off repeated calls for his resignation from the opposition.There were no expressions of anger from Tory MPs over the party row during the 40-minute grilling, but many stared ahead in stony silence as the prime minister offered his apology.There were guffaws of derision from the opposition benches for those Conservatives who pitched Mr Johnson soft questions over washing machines, bus services and tourism. Some speculated that whips had struggled to find MPs willing to support the prime minister in this way.Earlier this week, the email sent by Mr Johnson’s principal private secretary, Martin Reynolds, invited staff in No 10 to “bring your own booze” to the event on 20 May 2020, was leaked to ITV News, provoking outrage among MPs and the public.Just an hour before the event Oliver Dowden, the culture secretary, had told the public at a No 10 press conference they must not meet with more than one other person from another household in an outside setting.Mr Johnson had sidestepped questions over his own involvement in the 20 May, 2020 event when questioned by reporters on Monday, insisting it was a matter for Sue Gray — the senior civil servant tasked with examining allegations of rule-breaking.Just last night, a poll also showed around two-thirds (66 per cent) of voters believed Mr Johnson should stand down as prime minister. More

Boris Johnson apologised ahead of Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday for attending a Downing Street party during lockdown in May 2020.Here is his statment to the House of Commons in full.Mr Johnson said: “I want to apologise. I know that millions of people across this country have made extraordinary sacrifices over the last 18 months.”I know the anguish they have been through – unable to mourn their relatives, unable to live their lives as they want, or to do the things they love.”I know the rage they feel with me and with the Government I lead when they think in Downing Street itself the rules are not being properly followed by the people who make the rules.”And though I cannot anticipate the conclusions of the current inquiry, I have learned enough to know there were things we simply did not get right and I must take responsibility.”No 10 is a big department with a garden as an extension of the office which has been in constant use because of the role of fresh air in stopping the virus.”When I went into that garden just after six on May 20 2020, to thank groups of staff before going back into my office 25 minutes later to continue working, I believed implicitly that this was a work event.”With hindsight I should have sent everyone back inside. I should have found some other way to thank them.”I should have recognised that even if it could be said technically to fall within the guidance, there are millions and millions of people who simply would not see it that way, people who have suffered terribly, people who were forbidden from meeting loved ones at all inside or outside, and to them and to this House I offer my heartfelt apologies.”All I ask is that Sue Gray be allowed to complete her inquiry into that day and several others so that the full facts can be established.”I will of course come back to this House and make a statement.” More

Labour leader Keir Starmer has urged Boris Johnson to “do the decent thing” and resign as prime minister after he admitted attending a drinks gathering at No 10 at the height of lockdown.The Labour leader said “the party’s over” and said the British public could see Mr Johnson had been “lying through his teeth” about parties at Downing Street during the pandemic.The prime minister has apologised for attending the event in the No 10 on 20 May 2020 – but insisted he thought it was a “work event” and could have been said technically to fall within the guidance.“His defence that he didn’t realise he was at a party is so ridiculous that it is actually offensive to the British public,” said Sir Keir at PMQs on Wednesday.“He has finally been forced to admit what everyone knows – that while the whole country was in lockdown, he was hosting boozy parties in Downing Street. Is he going to do the decent thing and resign?”Mr Johnson replied: “I regret very much that we did not do things differently that evening. I take responsibility and apologise. But as for his political point, I don’t think he should pre-empt the [Sue Case] inquiry.”Calling his apology “worthless”, Sir Keir said: “Is the prime minister really so contemptuous of the British public that he thinks he can just ride this out? Why does the prime minister still think that the rules don’t apply to him? … Can’t the prime minister see why the British public think he is lying through his teeth?”The opposition leader said: “We’ve got the prime minister attending Downing Street parties – a clear breach of the rules. We’ve got the prime minister making a series of ridiculous denials, which he knows are untrue – a clear breach of the ministerial code.”Sir Keir added: “The party is over, prime minister. The only question is: will the British public kick him out, will his party kick him out, or will he do the decent think and resign?”Mr Johnson claimed a lawyer should “respect” the parties inquiry led by top civil servant Sue Gray, but accepted that “misjudgments had been made” under his watch.Admitting to his attendance to the lockdown gathering at the start of PMQs, the PM told the Commons that the No 10 garden had been used “as an extension of the office which has been in constant use because of the role of fresh air in stopping the virus”.Mr Johnson said that he attended the 20 May drinks event to thank groups of his staff, saying: “I believed implicitly that this was a work event.”He added: “With hindsight I should have sent everyone back inside, I should have found some other way to thank them, and I should have recognised that – even if it could have been said technically to fall within the guidance – there would be millions and millions of people who simply would not see it that way.”Calling again on the prime minister to quit, the SNP’s Westminster leader Ian Blackford said that if Mr Johnson “has no sense of shame” then Tory backbenchers “must act to remove him”.Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross said on Tuesday that Mr Johnson would have to resign if he was found to have broken Covid laws and misled parliament, while backbencher Nigel Mills said the PM’s position would be “untenable” if he was found to have attended the 20 May 2020 event.Meanwhile, Mr Johnson’s former aide Dominic Cummings said the PM’s excuse that he thought the May 2020 event was within the rules was “bullshit”.Mr Cummings said he had objected to the invitation sent by No 10’s principal private secretary Martin Reynolds because it was obviously a social event. “Whole point of why I & other official told MR – WTF YOU DOING HOLDING A PARTY – was cos the invite = obv totally SOCIAL NOT WORK (Unlike all the mtngs in garden).” More

Boris Johnson should not only resign as prime minister but be suspended from the Conservative Party if his attendance at a Downing Street party was found to be illegal, a Tory mayor has said.Having a PM who had broken coronavirus laws at a time when others were suffering would be an untenable position, according to Roy Aldcroft, the Mayor of Market Drayton.The intervention will be seen as significant because his town is in North Shropshire, the constituency where the party surrendered a 23,000 majority in a parliamentary by-election last month to lose the seat for the first time in more than a century.Councillor Aldcroft, who also sits on the Conservative-run Shropshire Council, said: “Everyone…who is found to have broken the guidelines or the law – they must be dealt with as severely as you or I would have been. And, for the prime minister, he would have to consider his position.”He added that a “suspension” from the party should also be considered: “you cannot just carry on if you have broken the law without the party acting. That’s not how we work. He [ the PM] is no different to anyone else.”Such a removal of the whip would be unprecedented and would stand almost no chance of being supported by Tory MPs, Councillor Aldcroft’sc omments highlight the anger among rank-and-file party members.Mr Johnson admitted on Wednesday that he attended a drinks event for 25 minutes in the garden of 10 Downing Street on 20 May 2020, a time when Britons were only allowed to meet one other person outdoors.An email inviting roughly 100 staff to the “BYOB” shindig was sent out by the PM’s principal private secretary, Martin Reynolds.But the delay in the PM’s admission had only caused more pain for Tory councillors and MPs.“I thought it was all over after we had [all the revelations about] Christmas parties but now it’s just getting tiresome,” he said. “It needs to be put behind us so we can crack on with the important work of dealing with recovering from a pandemic.”His call comes after Douglas Ross the leader of leader of the Scottish Conservative Party, and a plethora of senior northern Tories called for the PM to resign if he went to the bash.On Wednesday morning, meanwhile, Christian Wakeford, the MP for the old Red Wall seat of Bury South became the first of the 2019 intake of new Conservative MPs to openly turn on the PM.“How do you defend the indefensible?” he tweeted. “You can’t! It’s embarrassing and what’s worse is it further erodes trust in politics when it’s already low. We need openness, trust and honesty in our politics now more than ever and that starts from the top!” More

Boris Johnson is facing one of the most politically perilous moments of his premiership, as he continues to come under intense scrutiny over his own involvement in a No 10 drinks party held in the midst of England’s first national lockdown.The prime minister has sidestepped questions over whether he attended the event on the 20 May, 2020, after an explosive email provided evidence that over 100 Downing Street staff were invited to attend and to “bring your own booze”.No 10 has also stonewalled questions over the party — pointing to the Whitehall investigation led by the senior civil servant Sue Gray into rule-breaking events — but anger is growing among Tory MPs and Conservative-leaning newspapers.Inevitably, attention has rapidly turned towards Mr Johnson’s future in No 10 and just last night a poll showed that two-thirds of the public (66 per cent) believed he should resign amid the latest allegation of rule-busting parties.But will Boris Johnson resign? If he admits to MPs he attended the party and broke lockdown rules, he will face immediate calls to step aside for misleading Parliament from opposition parties.Just yesterday Douglas Ross, the Scottish Conservative leader, also warned: “If he [the PM] has breached his own guidance, if he has not been truthful, then it is an extremely important issue.” He added: “If the prime minister has misled Parliament, then he must resign”.But the prime minister could reach for the increasingly farcical defence that he cannot comment on the allegations until Ms Gray’s inquiry concludes. The results of this probe (no timetable has been set out publicly) will be crucial for Mr Johnson’s future. If it finds he broke lockdown rules at the No 10 gathering, calls for his resignation will grow further.On Wednesday morning, the backbench Conservative MP, Nigel Mills, said his position would be “untenable” and it would be a resigning mater if he was found to be at the May 2020 event. Perhaps, but any frequent observer of Johnson’s administration might point to the prime minister’s reluctance to sack his own ministers for breaches of the ministerial code and could attempt to ride out the storm.It also remains to be seen whether the Metropolitan Police launches a formal investigation into rule-breaking in No 10. After reports emerged on Monday of the 20 May 2020 gathering, the force said it was “in contact” with the Cabinet Office over “alleged breaches of the Health Protection Regulations at Downing Street”. Ministers have previously said the inquiry by Ms Gray will be “paused” if the Met does formally investigate. But even if the force does opt for this route and wrong-doing is found, it is by no means certain Mr Johnson will step down as prime minister.There are many different routes towards a potential resignation, but just two years after winning a thumping majority at a general election, he is unlikely to resign on his own accord. As Conservative commentators have previously highlighted, the party has a brutal record of deposing of leaders it no longer sees an electoral asset, and a forced exit could the most probable route for any resignation.Either the cabinet could launch a full-scale revolt with senior ministers telling the prime minister to stand down (perhaps unlikely) or the key would be for 15 per cent of the Conservative Party’s MPs to submit a letter of no confidence in the prime minister to Sir Graham Brady, the chair of the influential 1922 committee of backbench Tories.The number of letters submitted at any given point is a closely guarded secret by Sir Graham, but if the required number is reached, it would trigger a vote of confidence in Mr Johnson and his premiership would be on the line. Theresa May, whose premiership was dealt a terminal blow by her ill-fated election gamble, survived a confidence vote in December 2018 but eventually resigned six months later.For the time being, however, only one Tory MP has publicly said they have had submitted a letter and Mr Johnson’s allies are adamant he is “going nowhere”, with a minister insisting just yesterday: “The prime minister retains the confidence of the people of this country and he did so two years ago with the biggest majority in decades”. More

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson faced a high-stakes showdown Wednesday in Parliament that could help defuse a crisis over claims that he and his staff held broke coronavirus lockdown rules with illicit parties — or fan the flames even further.Opponents and allies alike want Johnson to come clean about whether he attended a gathering in May 2020, when Britain was under a strict lockdown imposed by Johnson to curb the spread of the coronavirus. Johnson has so far declined to comment on reports he was at the “bring your own booze” get-together in the garden of his Downing Street residence.An invitation to the “socially distanced drinks” gathering was emailed to about 100 people by a senior prime ministerial aide. At the time, people in Britain were barred by law from meeting more than one person outside their household.Johnson’s lunchtime appearance at the weekly Prime Minister’s Questions session in the House of Commons will be his first public appearance since details of the party emerged. On Tuesday, a spokesman declined to comment on the allegations, citing an ongoing investigation by a senior civil servant, Sue Gray, into several alleged parties by government staff. Johnson has previously said that he personally broke no lockdown rules, but his troubles are mounting.Angela Rayner, deputy leader of the opposition Labour Party said Johnson’s refusal to say whether he was at the May 2020 party was “astonishing.”“People have been reflecting about what was happening to them at the time in May and many people are still grieving their loved ones who they weren’t able to say goodbye to at the time, and to think the prime minister was laughing and partying is just unforgivable,” she told the BBC.Rayner said that if Johnson had “lied to the British public, lied to Parliament and he has attended parties during lockdown, then his position is untenable.”The scandal dubbed “partygate” has become the biggest crisis of Johnson’s two-and-a-half years in power. During the U.K.’s first lockdown, which began in March 2020 and lasted for more than two months, almost all gatherings were banned. Millions of people were cut off from friends and family, and even barred from visiting dying relatives in hospitals.So there has been widespread anger at claims Johnson’s Conservative government flouted the rules it had imposed on the rest of the country by holding garden parties, Christmas get-togethers and office quiz nights in Downing Street, which is both the prime minister’s home and his office.Opposition politicians are calling for Johnson’s resignation. More worryingly for the prime minister, many members of his own party are increasingly concerned about Johnson’s judgment and leadership.The Conservatives picked Johnson as leader in 2019 for his upbeat manner and popular touch, a choice that appeared vindicated when he led the party to a big election win in December that year. But support in the party is being eroded by discontent over continuing pandemic restrictions, which some Conservatives view as draconian. He is also facing disquiet about his judgment after a slew of financial and ethical misconduct allegations against him and his government.The Conservatives have a history of ousting leaders if they become a liability —and a recent surprising loss in a by-election for a district the party held for more than a century has increased their jitters. Conservative lawmaker Tobias Ellwood said Johnson needed to apologize and “show some contrition” if he wanted to ride out the storm.“We can’t allow things to drift, that is not an option,” he told Sky News. More