BoJo Sticks To His Guns, Won’t Quit

Says It’s PM’s Job To Keep Going In Tough Times; Cabinet Team To Meet Him, Press For Resignation

- Naomi Canton

London: Embattled UK PM Boris Johnson was fighting for his political life on Wednesday as the resignations of junior ministers, parliamentary aides and others continued to mount following the resignations of Cabinet heavyweights Sajid Javid and Rishi Sunak on Tuesday. At least 32lawmakers have left the government so far in less than 24 hours, saying the British leader no longer has their confidence. Britain’s Press Agency reported that a delegation of Cabinet ministers plan to meet with him at his Downing Street office to press him to resign. Transport secretary Grant Shapps and longtime loyalist Brandon Lewis are among those expected to demand that he quit.

Earlier on Wednesday, Johnson faced repeated calls to resign from both opposition and his own MPs during Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) on Wednesday where he was called a “dead parrot (a reference to a Monty Python comedy sketch)”, an “ex-prime minister” and a “pathetic spectacle”. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer asked whether the resignations of Sunak and Javid were not the first recorded case of “sinking ships fleeing the rat”. “In the middle of a crisis, does the country not deserve better than a Z-list cast of nodding dogs,” Sir Keir asked at PMQs, referring to the current cabinet who remain on the front bench. Johnson’s integrity and leadership are under fire as MPs accuse him of lying about Partygate and whether he knew about sexual misconduct allegations against an MP when he promoted him to a government role.