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 — 15 percent of the party’s group in the House of Commons — write to Brady.
“The 15 percent threshold has been exceeded,” Brady said. He said the vote will take place in person in the House of Commons on Monday evening. The Prime Minister’s spokesman said Johnson would address the party before the afternoon vote.
If Johnson loses the majority of votes 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, although a limited victory could weaken his leadership.
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.
Rule-breaking culture: report
Johnson’s office on Downing Street said the prime minister welcomed the vote.
“Tonight is an opportunity to end months of speculation and allow the government to draw a line and move forward, meeting the people’s priorities,” he said.
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.
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.”
Johnson was also fined £ 50 ($ 78 CDN) by police for attending a party, making him the prime minister sanctioned for breaking the law while in office.
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.
Johnson arrives Sunday to attend the Platinum Jubilee pageant that marks the end of Queen Elizabeth’s platinum jubilee celebrations in London. (Aaron Chown / Reuters)
But a growing number of Conservatives believe Johnson, the charismatic leader who won them a large parliamentary majority in 2019, is now a responsibility.
Lawmaker Jesse Norman, a longtime Johnson supporter, said the prime minister had “presided over a culture of accidental breach of the law” and had left the government “adrift and distracted”.
“I’m afraid I don’t see any circumstances in which I can serve in a government led by you,” Norman wrote in a letter posted on social media.
Having relied on power, Conservative MPs know in our hearts that we are not giving the British people the leadership they deserve. We do not provide the integrity, competence and vision necessary to unleash the enormous potential of our country.
– @Jeremy_Hunt
Jeremy Hunt, the final candidate for Conservative leadership whom Johnson defeated in mid-2019, agreed that change was needed now, though he said he hoped the issue would not be addressed with the ongoing war in Ukraine.
“We do not provide the integrity, competence and vision necessary to unleash the enormous potential of our country,” he said in a series of tweets. “And because the electorate, which also knows this, no longer trusts us, we are ready to lose the next general election.”
Conservatives suffered disappointing results last month in local elections, especially in London and the south of England. A pair of by-elections this month are also expected to be a challenge for the party.
This review is unprecedented.
Theresa May survived a censure vote in 2018, but never regained authority and resigned months later, leading to the leadership contest won by Johnson. Decades earlier, Margaret Thatcher’s long term as prime minister ended in the late 1990’s, shortly after a leadership challenge was unleashed.
Minister says ousting Prime Minister would be “indefensible”
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, told the BBC that “we have 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.”
Discontent seems to have peaked due to a parliamentary break that coincided with Queen Elizabeth’s platinum jubilee celebrations. For many, the four-day-long weekend was a chance to relax, but there was no respite for Johnson, who was booed by some spectators when he arrived on Friday for a service in honor of the queen. in St. Paul’s Cathedral.
But 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.”