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Boris Johnson: Former minister joins calls

for PM to resign
1 hour ago

GETTY IMAGES

Another Conservative MP has called for Boris Johnson to resign as the

 g
turmoil at 10 Downing Street continues.

Former minister Nick Gibb is the latest Tory to submit a letter of no confidence
in the row over events held at No 10 during lockdown.

He said his constituents were furious that No 10 had been "flagrantly

disregarding" the Covid rules they set.

But Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries insisted the "vast majority" of

Conservative MPs supported Mr Johnson.

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Meanwhile, the Daily Mirror reports a photograph of Mr Johnson holding a

beer at a birthday gathering has been handed to police investigating Covid
breaches.

The paper said the picture was one of 300 submitted to the Metropolitan
Police investigation into 12 alleged gatherings and was thought to have been
taken by the PM's official photographer, who is funded by the taxpayer.
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It said it showed the prime minister holding a can of beer at an event in No

10's Cabinet Room in June 2020, alongside Chancellor Rishi Sunak, who was
holding a so drink.

At the time, gatherings of more than two people inside were banned by law.

It comes at the end of a difficult week for the PM, which has seen five No 10
aides resign and the publication of the initial findings of the Sue Gray report
into events at Downing Street while Covid restrictions were in place.

Tory MP sends letter of no confidence in PM

What do key resignations mean for PM?

The Covid rules when Downing Street parties were held

Writing in the Daily Telegraph, Mr Gibb, who has served under three prime
ministers and who lost his position as schools minister in Boris Johnson's
reshuffle last September, said his constituents were "furious about the double
standards" and that "to restore trust, we need to change the prime minister".

He said Covid restrictions imposed by Mr Johnson were "flagrantly

disregarded" in Downing Street, and the PM was inaccurate when, in
December, he told the House of Commons there was no party.

"Some argue that eating a few canapes with a glass of prosecco is hardly a
reason to resign. But telling the truth matters, and nowhere more so than in
the House of Commons where, like a court of law, truth must be told
regardless of the personal consequences," he wrote.

Mr Gibb said fellow backbench Tory Aaron Bell had "struck a chord" when he
criticised Mr Johnson over lockdown parties earlier this week.
Mr Bell had asked the prime minister if he took him for a fool for following the
rules himself - including not hugging his family at his grandmother's funeral,
or going for a cup of tea aer the service.

Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries defends the PM saying he does tell the truth

On Friday, Mr Bell said the "breach of trust" over the rule breaking and how it
had been handled made the PM's position untenable, as he confirmed he had
also submitted a letter of no confidence to Sir Graham Brady - the chair of the
1922 Committee of backbench MPs.

At least 54 MPs need to write to Sir Graham to trigger a vote on the PM's
leadership of the party.

Other Conservative MPs are expected to consider whether to put in their

letters over the weekend.

Mr Johnson has written to all Tory MPs to say he is committed to improving

the way 10 Downing Street works.

What does Sue Gray's parties report say?

How many parties are police investigating?

Fact-checking Boris Johnson's Jimmy Savile claim

Ms Dorries told the BBC most MPs were "right behind the prime minister
because he has delivered... and will continue to do so" and said Mr Johnson
had been "very positive" when she communicated with him within the past 24
hours.

She said a huge amount of change was now under way within No 10 but she
She said a huge amount of change was now under way within No 10, but she
was "cautious" of asking him to change too much, because of achievements
such as having the biggest majority since Margaret Thatcher.

Ms Dorries said those speaking out against Mr Johnson were "the same
names" that "keep cropping up" and "no prime minister would please any of

those".

She said there were "a few voices being amplified" by the media, describing the
comments made by Mr Gibb and Mr Bell as "disappointing".

Aaron Bell asked the PM on Monday if he considered him a "fool".

Speaking on Newsnight, Conservative MP Andrew Bridgen suggested it was

now the job of the cabinet to "show leadership" and "confront" the issue of the
prime minister's leadership.

But his fellow Tory MP Richard Bacon suggested it was not for politicians to
change governments - that was for the electorate to take care of.

And Liam Fox, former trade secretary, said there was a danger the party was
becoming distracted from big issues such as inflation, the energy crisis and the
situation in Ukraine.

He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "There will need to be closure on this
issue, in the Conservative Party and in the country, and I think when there's
more to say, we should say it, and there are questions that will need to be
answered."

Some of Mr Johnson's supporters, including one former cabinet minister, have

criticised the Chancellor Rishi Sunak, who this week distanced himself from
the prime minister's controversial comments about Sir Keir Starmer, for being
disloyal at a difficult time.

No 10 policy chief Munira Mirza quit on Thursday, describing Mr Johnson's

comments on Sir Keir as "scurrilous".

The prime minister falsely claimed the Labour leader had failed to prosecute
paedophile Jimmy Savile during his time as director of public prosecutions.

Mr Sunak said he "wouldn't have said it", while on Friday Health Secretary
Sajid Javid said Sir Keir "did a good job and should be respected for it".

Sue Gray’s record of the gatherings

The government has faced intense pressure over events held in and around Downing
Street. Senior civil servant Sue Gray has said: “A number of these gatherings should
not have been allowed to take place or to develop in the way that they did.” Here is
what we know about them and the restrictions in place at the time:

15 May 2020

A photo from May 2020 showed the prime minister and his staff with bottles of
wine and a cheeseboard in the Downing Street garden. When asked about it,
Boris Johnson said “those people were at work talking about work”.

GUARDIAN/EYEVINE

Boris Johnson was pictured with his wife Carrie as well as Downing Street staff

The rules:

Legal restrictions at the time said you could not leave your house without a
reasonable excuse and government guidance was that you could meet one
t id f h h ld i td tti hil i i
 person outside of your household in an outdoor setting while exercising.

This event is not being investigated by the police.

20 May 2020

Show more
About 100 people were invited by email to “socially distanced drinks in the No
10 garden this evening”. Witnesses told the BBC the PM and his wife were
among about 30 people who attended. Boris Johnson has declined to say

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