Status: 07/06/2022 7:38 p.m
The pressure on British Prime Minister Johnson is increasing: leading ministers apparently want to ask him to resign at short notice, well over 30 officials have resigned within hours. He could also face a new vote of no confidence.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is losing more and more support in his own government. As reported by the media, a delegation of several cabinet members wants to suggest that the conservative prime minister resign in the evening at 10 Downing Street, the seat of government.
Key ministers apparently opposed to Johnson
Among them is said to be Finance Minister Nadhim Zahawi, who was only appointed to his post on Tuesday evening. Economy Minister Kwasi Kwarteng is now also working for the prime minister to resign, reported Sky News reporter Sam Coates. Works and Housing Secretary Michael Gove has also reportedly turned his back on Johnson and advised him to resign in a private conversation.
Several state secretaries have already issued a letter asking Johnson to resign. “Without ulterior motives, we must ask you to make room for the good of the party and the country,” they wrote.
Annette Dittert, ARD London, “He is now threatened with a second vote of no confidence”
tagesschau24 6:00 p.m., 6.7.2022
Health Minister Sajid Javid and Finance Minister Rishi Sunak resigned on Tuesday in protest against Johnson. This damages the reputation of the Conservatives.
Javid had called on his colleagues in the British House of Commons that afternoon to also resign. He indirectly called for the overthrow of Johnson. “Doing nothing is an active choice,” says Javid. “Those of us who are in a position to do so have a responsibility to make a difference. The BBC put the number of resignations since Tuesday at 38.
Demands for Johnson’s resignation come not only from the opposition, but also from his own party. When questioned in a parliamentary committee in the afternoon, Johnson vehemently refused to resign. “I will not resign,” he said.
Addressing his critics, he said they underestimated the ambitions of himself and his comrades-in-arms. The government has a plan and wants to go ahead.
New vote of no confidence could come
Partly because of the scandal surrounding parties at the seat of government during the corona lockdown, an internal party vote of no confidence against Johnson was launched at the beginning of June. The prime minister barely survived the vote.
Under Tory party rules, no new attempt at a vote of no confidence may be made for a period of 12 months after such a vote. However, the influential 1922 Committee has the authority to change this rule. Observers had already expected this step for the afternoon.
According to reports from several media, however, the committee plans to elect a new board next Monday. Only then should a decision be made as to whether the rule should be changed. Should Johnson be confronted with a new vote of no confidence, it will apparently not be until next week at the earliest.
An apology that probably wasn’t enough
The trigger for the political quake was that Johnson heaved the Conservative MP Chris Pincher into an important parliamentary group office – even though he was aware of allegations of sexual harassment. The resignations come minutes after Johnson apologized on Tuesday night for making Pincher Deputy Secretary of Parliament.
Pincher resigned late last week. It became known that there had been allegations against him in the past.
Johnson accused of lying
A government spokesman initially denied that Johnson knew about the old allegations against Pincher. That line of defense collapsed on Tuesday after a senior former official said Johnson had been briefed on an incident in 2019. Opposition MPs and some Tories then accused the prime minister of lying.
Johnson has survived a series of scandals and affairs in recent years. In mid-May, a member of parliament was temporarily arrested on suspicion of rape. Also in May, a former Tory MP was sentenced to a year and a half in prison for sexually abusing a minor.