British Prime Minister Boris Johnson remained challenged in power on Thursday despite the resignation of four prime ministers, while his attorney general added his voice to leave, saying he wanted his job.
More than 50 ministers have left the government in less than 48 hours, saying Johnson was not fit to be at the helm after a series of scandals, while dozens of his Conservative Party openly revolt.
“I can’t sacrifice my personal integrity to stand up for things as they are now,” Lewis said. It is clear that our party, fellow parliamentarians, volunteers and the whole country deserve better.
Suella Braverman, the Attorney General of England and Wales, told ITV on Wednesday afternoon that she would remain in office but would take part in any future leadership competition.
“I think the time has come for the prime minister to step down,” he said. “If there’s a leadership contest, I’ll put my name in the ring.”
A delegation of senior ministers and a representative of non-government Conservative lawmakers went to Downing Street to see Johnson on Wednesday evening to tell him he had to go and make a dignified exit.
But Johnson has so far refused to give in, and even fired Michael Gove, a senior minister the media previously reported had told the British leader he should resign.
“I will not give up,” Johnson told a parliamentary committee. The Sun newspaper quoted an ally of the prime minister who said his party’s rebels “would have to get their hands wet in blood” if they wanted to get rid of him.
Johnson has suggested he had a mandate to govern from the nearly 14 million voters who voted for the Conservatives in December 2019 when he came to power with the promise of resolving the UK’s exit from the European Union after years of agris fights.
He says he would not be responsible for quitting his job in the midst of an economic crisis and a war in Europe. Johnson has been a visible supporter of Ukraine since the invasion of Russia in late February.
He has also declined to say whether he would try to stay in work even if he loses a vote of confidence from his own lawmakers. This could come next week if they agree to change the rules of the party, which only allow for one such challenge a year. He won a similar vote last month.
Reuters