Conservatives in the British government will hold a censure vote on Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday, who could oust him as British leader.
Party leader Graham Brady says he has received enough letters from lawmakers calling for a vote on Johnson’s leadership to activate one.
That happens if 54 Conservative lawmakers, who are 15 percent of the party group in the House of Commons, write to Brady.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson delivers a speech at Lydd Airport in the south-east of England on Thursday 14 April 2022. The United Kingdom says it has reached an agreement with Rwanda to send some applicants asylum in the Central African country, a proposal that has been condemned. by opposition politicians and refugee groups. (Photo AP / Matt Dunham, Pool) (AP)
“The 15 percent threshold has been exceeded,” Brady said.
He said the vote would take place in person in the House of Commons on Monday evening, UK time.
If Johnson loses the vote among the 359 Conservative lawmakers, he will be replaced as Conservative leader and prime minister.
If he wins, he will not be able to face another challenge for a year.
Johnson has been struggling to turn the page on months of ethical scandals, especially for parties that break the rules in government buildings during the COVID-19 blockades.
Late last month, a report by a researcher on what has come to be known as a “partygate” criticized a culture of non-compliance in the 10th office of the Prime Minister of Downing St.
A protester is holding a banner depicting British Prime Minister Boris Johnson after an investigation report blamed Johnson and other senior leaders for authorizing government parties that breach UK COVID-19 blocking rules. (AP)
Civil Service researcher Sue Gray described alcohol-related crashes by Downing Street staff members in 2020 and 2021, when pandemic restrictions prevented UK residents from socializing or even visiting dying relatives. .
Gray said the “senior leadership team” must take responsibility for the “failed leadership and judgment.”
The Prime Minister said he was “humiliated” and assumed “full responsibility”, but insisted that now was the time to “move forward” and focus on the battered British economy and the war in Ukraine.
But a growing number of Conservatives believe Johnson, the charismatic leader who won them a large parliamentary majority in 2019, is now a responsibility.
If Johnson is ousted, he will lead a Conservative leadership contest, in which several prominent government ministers are likely to run.
Conservative lawmaker Roger Gale, a critic of Johnson, said: “We have some very good alternatives to the Prime Minister, so we have no shortage of options.
“In my opinion, any of these people would be a better prime minister than we have today,” he told the BBC.
Discontent seems to have peaked due to a parliamentary break that coincided with the celebrations of Queen Elizabeth II’s platinum jubilee. For many, the four-day-long weekend was an opportunity to relax, but there was no respite for Johnson, who was booed by some spectators when he arrived Friday for a service in honor of the queen in St. Paul’s Cathedral.
A protester against the Conservative Party holds a banner with a picture of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson with the words “Now Partygate” in the back of the Houses of Parliament in London. (AP)
Cabinet Secretary Steve Barclay, an ally of Johnson, said overthrowing the leader would now be “indefensible.”
“The problems we face are not easy to solve,” he wrote on the Conservative Home website.
“Democracies around the world are currently facing similar challenges. But under the leadership of Boris Johnson, our employment plan shows how we are navigating these global challenges.
“Disrupting this progress now would be inexcusable for many who voted for us for the first time in the last general election and who want to see our Prime Minister fulfill the promised changes for their communities.”