Boris Johnson’s position is now “untenable”, according to the first Conservative MP, who said the prime minister should resign because he had been fined for violating his own Covid laws.
Backbench Tori Nigel Mills said: “I don’t think the prime minister can survive or should survive by breaking the rules he introduced… He was fined, I don’t think his position is resilient.”
Mr Mills, an Amber Valley MP, said people were “rightly angry” about the parties. “When they followed the strictest rules, the people who created the rules did not have the dignity to follow them.”
He also told BBC Radio Derby that “we need to have higher standards than those at the top” – saying he was “afraid to think” about how many more fines could be imposed.
However, Mr Mills added: “It is quite clear that he will not resign and I would be very surprised if there were 180 of my colleagues who want to replace the Prime Minister at this stage.
Mr Johnson seemed ready to avoid the initial consequences of becoming the first prime minister to be punished with criminal sanctions while in office for breaking the law, celebrating his 10th birthday.
The Prime Minister, his wife and Chancellor Rishi Sunak have paid fines imposed by the Sofia police for a party held on 19 June 2020 to mark Mr Johnson’s 56th birthday.
Cabinet ministers, including Liz Trus, Dominique Raab, Michael Gove, Nadine Doris and Sajid Javid, tweeted in support of Mr Johnson, praising his leadership and pointing to the continuing challenge of the war in Ukraine.
But Mr Mills said he was “not convinced” by the argument that it was not the right time to change leadership in the UK, given the crisis in Ukraine.
The back judge said: “I have two comments on the matter. The first is when Ukraine will be better than now? If you tell me that this crisis will end in three months, then you could say, “Okay, let’s do this (then) the Prime Minister can meet his destiny.”
Tory veteran MP Sir Roger Gale, a vocal critic of Johnson, said now was not the time to oust him during the war in Ukraine. He said “history will not forgive us” if the prime minister is replaced during an international crisis.
But Sir Roger said that although he thought Johnson had “actually misled the House of Commons” and “obviously will have to be held accountable”.
Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross echoed the sentiments of his colleagues, saying it would be “wrong” to remove the prime minister “now” during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Tory MP Andrew Bridgen, who recently withdrew his no-confidence motion against Johnson, said it was not the time to challenge leadership. But he warned, “This is not the end of the matter.”
However, Baroness Ruth Davidson spoke out against Mr Johnson, saying he had “broken the rules he imposed on the country” and lost his moral authority to lead. He has to go. “
Boris Johnson claims it “did not occur to him” that he was breaking the rules
Lord Frost, a former Brexit minister, told LBC he did not consider “a fixed criminal liability notice in itself a reason to resign” – supporting Mr Johnson to lead the Tories in the next election.
But a Tory colleague said the prime minister should come to the Commons to correct his comments. “The prime minister says he is telling parliament that all the rules have been followed and there are no parties – obviously not.
Ben Huhen, the influential Tories mayor of Tees Valley, also defended the prime minister. He said the public “recognizes that he is not enough” and wears that on his sleeve. And that makes him more humane to a lot of people. ”
A YouGov poll found that 57% of voters believe Johnson should resign, while 75% say he deliberately lied.
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