Boris Johnson still does not want to resign. In recent hours, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom has accepted forty resignations from his government and has heard criticism from members of his own party in private and in public. After an intense day answering questions in Parliament, Johnson met half a dozen of his ministers in Downing Street this Wednesday night, who went to ask him to resign in person.
Johnson’s hours could be numbered if the Conservative Party changes the rules and re-votes for his leadership in the coming days, without waiting a year since the last vote to be removed, as the rules now say. On June 6, the Prime Minister narrowly escaped his party’s motion against him.
Leader Tori He is mired in a new political crisis after a cascade of resignations, in part because of the latest scandals to mar his tenure, his handling of sexual harassment allegations against Conservative MP Chris Pincher.
In the weekly questions session before Parliament this Wednesday, Johnson insisted he had no intention of leaving. “The prime minister’s job in a difficult time, given a colossal mandate, is to keep going and that’s what I’m going to do,” he said.
At least 39 positions in his government resigned between Tuesday and Wednesday, including Economy Minister Rishi Sunak and Health Minister Sajid Javid, two Conservative heavyweights. In addition to part of his parliamentary group, several ministers this Wednesday asked Johnson to tender his resignation. Sources close to Johnson said the prime minister’s response was negative to avoid “chaos” over his replacement, although if he stays on, Now facing the route Much of his government. According to a government source, there were “tears” among the Prime Minister’s loyalists.
The deputy told the newspaper about it time That Johnson preferred a dramatic end to his tenure as Prime Minister: “Think in classical terms. For him, there is no greater honor in resigning than to be killed. If you die, die fighting.”
Accumulation of contradictions
Johnson came to power in July 2019 as foreign secretary after the party forced the ouster of Theresa May in the midst of Brexit negotiations and won the general election in December that year. His mandate has been marked by turbulent negotiations for the UK’s formal withdrawal from the European Union – which he has sought to question in recent months in a fresh row with Brussels – and the coronavirus pandemic, for which he himself was hospitalized. March 2020. Also for several scandals related to the lack of transparency of what the Prime Minister knew and what he did not know.
The latest controversy to concern Johnson stems from complaints about the behavior of Pincher, who resigned as head of the conservative exercise discipline after it was revealed he assaulted two men at a private London club. The deputy only said that he “drank too much” and “made a fool of himself”).
The premier admitted, after initially denying, that he knew Pincher had been investigated for workplace misconduct in the past. Johnson admitted it was a “mistake” to appoint Pincher to the post last February and apologized. “There is no place in this government for someone who engages in predatory behavior or abuses their position,” he said in an interview on Tuesday, shortly before the ministers announced their resignations.
The scandal comes on top of the Conservatives’ poor performance in the last two special local elections and Downing Street’s celebrations of breaking the strict pandemic lockdown rules that have been in place across the UK for most of 2020 and 2021.
“Enough is enough,” Javid told Johnson during a parliamentary scrutiny session on Wednesday. “My conclusion is that the problem starts with the leader, and I think that will not change. And that means it’s up to us, those of us who have the responsibility to make that change happen.”
On June 6, Johnson defeated a vote called by the Conservative Party to question his leadership following an independent report documenting the failure of various members of the government to follow health rules to control the pandemic, including celebrations in the seat of the executive in 2020. and 2021. Under current party rules, the prime minister cannot hold another internal vote for another year unless the rules change, which the Conservatives hope to do next week when new MPs take control of the committee responsible.
And now this?
If Johnson resigns or is impeached, the Conservative Party will be tasked with electing Johnson’s replacement before the next general election, originally scheduled for 2024. recently, Tories They released theirs premiereIn May’s case, the process took about six weeks.
Another possibility would be to call early elections, although this would require the consent of both parties. Johnson could have gone to the Queen and asked for an election, but since it would have been something special, Elizabeth II might have ignored the Prime Minister’s request and appointed another Conservative. party.
Source: El Diario
