He will not be gone on the sly. Friday evening, June 9, former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson resigned from his mandate as an MP. The conservative claims to be the target of a “self-proclaimed court” through the parliamentary inquiry into “Partygate”, the festive gatherings that were held in Downing Street and in various ministries in violation of restrictions linked to Covid-19.
“I have received a letter from the Committee on Privileges which makes it clear – to my great astonishment – that they are determined to use the procedure against me to oust me from Parliament,” wrote in a statement. communicated the one who left his post as Prime Minister a year ago. “I am very sad to leave Parliament – at least for the moment – but above all I am dismayed to have been forced to leave in an undemocratic way”, he also indicated, considering that the committee “knowingly chose ignore the truth”. His resignation also sounds like a punishment for his successor in Downing Street, Rishi Sunak, whom Boris Johnson accuses of having participated in his downfall last year.
Complicated electoral situation
The Conservative party is currently in a complicated situation, with unflattering polls crediting it with 25% of voting intentions, against 44% for the rival Labor party, according to figures from YouGov. “When I left office last year, the government was only a few points behind in the polls. This gap has since widened considerably, added Boris Johnson in his departure statement. Just a few years after winning the largest majority in nearly half a century, that majority is now clearly in danger.” The “Tories” have already accused ofsignificant losses in local elections last May.
Risky future elections
If Rishi Sunak thought he could take advantage of a few months of respite to try to reduce this gap before future local elections (in January 2025), the departure of Boris Johnson could precipitate a snap election as early as this summer, notes Bloomberg. He automatically calls a by-election in his constituency in north-west London, where he had a majority of just a few thousand votes.
A few hours before Boris Johnson slammed the door, the former Minister of Culture, Nadine Dorries, a key ally of the ex-Prime Minister, had also resigned from her seat after being denied an honorary title. On Saturday afternoon, one of his allies, the Conservative MP Nigel Adams announced in turn his resignation “with immediate effect”. As a result, risky local elections will be held in three constituencies.
“With a series of defeats – because it is hard to see how he could win one of these by-elections – Sunak’s authority as prime minister will evaporate”, judges the daily. Daily Express, which evokes a “war” within the conservative party. Boris Johnson is indeed playing the division card in his own camp: he claims to have been pushed out by his anti-Brexit opponents, whom he accuses of having exploited the facts of which he was accused, but also aims Rishi Sunak and Sue Gray, a British civil servant whose investigation took part in his downfall.