British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was clinging to pow🍃er Tuesday after two of his most senior Cabinet ministers quit, saying they had lost confidence in Johnson's leadership amid shifting explanations about his handling of a sexual misconduct scandal.
Treasury chief Rishi Sunak and Health Secretary Sajid Javid resigned within minutes of each other, costing Johnson the support of the m♍en responsible for tackling two of the biggest✱ issues facing Britain — the cost-of-living crisis and surging COVID-19 infections.
Both cited Johnson's credibility after a day in which the prime minister was forced to b🌊acktrack on earlier statements about the scandal that has rattled his government for the past six days.
The debacle is only the latest to hit Johnson, who last month narrowly survived a vote of no confidence triggered by similarly shifting stories about lockꦦdown-breaking parties in government offices.
In his letter of resignation, Javid said t🐼he confide🐽nce vote showed a large number of Conservative Party lawmakers had lost trust in Johnson.
“It was a moment for humility, grip and a new dire🎉ction,” Javid said. “I regret to say, however, that it is clear this situation will not change under your leadership — and you have therefor💎e lost my confidence too.”
A few minutes later, Sunak eღchoed those sent𒉰iments.
“The public rightly expect government to be conducted properly, competently and seriously,” S⛎unak said. “I realize that this may be my last mini💮sterial job, but I believe these standards are worth fighting for and that is why I am resigning.”
Both Sunak and Jav💛id are se🌊en as possible contenders to replace Johnson if he is forced out.
While the resignations heaped pressure on the prime minister, Johnson has in the past proven to b✤e an adept politician, fighting🍃 off criticism to prolong his career.
Johnson quickly named two loyalists to the positions: Steve Barclay got Javid's old job, while Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi replaces Sunak as Treasury 𝔉chief, Downing Street said.
At the same time, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss swiftly threw her support behind Johnson. Oth𝓀er Cabinet members, including Culture Secretary Nadine Dories, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace and Home Secretary Priti Patel, were alᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚso in his corner.
But Scott Lucas, an emeritus professor at the University of Birmingham and a lo🦂ngtime political observer, said it would be difficult⛎ for Johnson to ultimately survive the departure of two such senior members of his Cabinet.
“He's not going to go without a fight,” Lucas said. “I just don't know how꧅ many people are left to fight alongside him.”
The latest scandal began Thursday, when Chris Pincher resigned as deputy chief whip amid complaints that he groped two men at a private club. That triggered a series of reports about past🦩 allegations levelled against Pincher and questions about why Johnson promoted him to a senior job enforcing party discipline.
Pincher denies the allegations.
Johnson's office initially said he wasn't aware of the pr🔯evious accusations when he promoted Pincher in February. By Monday, a spokesman said Johnson knew of allegations that were “either resolved or did not progress to a formal complaint.”
That account didn't sit well with Simon McDonald, the most senior civil servant at the UK Foreign Office from 2015 to 2020. In a highly unusu🍎al move, McDonald went public with claims that the prime minister's office wasn't telling the truth.
McDonald said in a letter to the parliamentary commissioner for standards that he received complaints about Pincher's behaviour in the summer of 2019, shortly after Pincher be𓆏came a Foreign Office minister. An investigation upheld the complaint, and Pincher apologised for his actions, McDonald said.
“Mr. Johnson was briefed in person about the initi🔜ation and outcome of the investigation," McDonald wrote.
Hours after 💟McDonald's comments were published, Johnson's office changed its story again, saying the prime minister had forgotten that Pincher was the subject 🌠of an official complaint.
Then minutes before Javid and Sunak announced their resignations, Johnson told reporters tha𒈔t Pincher should have been fired from the government after a previous 2019 in🅰cident.
Asked if it was an error to appoint Pincher to the government, Johnson said, “I think it was a mistake, and I apologise for it. Inꦫ hindsight it was the wrong thing to do.”
The shifting explanation from Johnson fuelled discontent within the Cabinet after ministers were forced to publicly deliver🐈 the prime minister's denials, only to have the explanation shift the next day.
Johnson's authority had already been shaken by last month's confideཧnce vote. Although he survived, 41 per cent of ไConservatives voted to remove him from office. But until Tuesday his Cabinet had largely stayed put and loyal.
Concerns about Johnson's leadership were fuelled by his responses to months of allegations about lockdown-breaking parties in government offices that ultimately 🔯resulted in 126 fines, including one levied against Johnson.
Two weeks later, Conservative candidates were badly beaten in two special elections to fill vacant seats in Parliament, adding to the discontent within Johnson's party and suggesting the ong﷽oing accusa♑tions were finding a toehold with the public.
Johnson initially refused to suspend Pincher f✱rom the Conservative Party, but he relented after a formal complaint about the groping allegations was filed with parliamentary authorities.
