UK General Discussion:The Rt. Hon Alex Boris de Pfeffel Johnson, Populist Hero

[Oryxslayer]

My hot take is Partygate isnt what really caused this but rather what caused this was after 12 years of Tory rule, the voters were looking for any excuse to turn on the Tories. Partygate and Starmer being inoffensive enough gave that excuse and the rest is history

I'm not sure this makes much sense. If the electorate wanted to turn on the Tories, they've had a number of opportunities before this year.

Indeed - 2021 was a year of great electoral success for them until the autumn.

Maybe the electorate have *finally* turned on the Tories *now* (we can but hope) but they've proved malleable by the right wing's (and captive media's) ever changing cynicism for a pretty long time.

I mean the reason why this is all happening now is because Boris's Drip-Drip scandals (which were there before true party-gate revelations) are coinciding with the cost of living. Like in 2021 there was the sleaze stuff about his residence which failed to stick whatsoever. One on top of the other created a feedback loop that presently is consuming the Tories.

Alex Chalk resigns as Solicitor General.

Also worth noting he’s sitting on a razor-thin majority in Cheltenham - 981 votes.

https://mobile.twitter.com/AlexChalkChelt/status/1544437737771655169

I mean given where the Lib-Dems are right now, he's probably DOA unless things change or a nomination in a different seat. I think YouGov's seat MRP had that as L-D by over 15%...

[Statilius the Epicurean]

Boris briefing that they’re going for deficit financed tax cuts now Rishi’s gone.

Absolute economic lunacy when inflation is over 9% but when has macroeconomic illiteracy stopped the Tories before?

[All Along The Watchtower]

live footage of Conservative HQ

[Blair]

Cabinet have bottled it.

Why on earth would Coffey not quit after being sent to lie and look foolish in public?

[YL]

LOL Daily Express

https://twitter.com/TmorrowsPapers/status/1544448544718966787

[YL]

Cabinet have bottled it.

Why on earth would Coffey not quit after being sent to lie and look foolish in public?

There may be something of "the hand that wields the knife rarely wears the crown" here.

Also, there are quite a few Cabinet ministers (e.g. Dorries, Patel, Raab, Rees-Mogg) who are widely assumed to be likely to be discarded by any new leader, so it's not surprising they're sticking with him.

[Blair]

My early bunch based on his time at Education is that Zahawi will struggle as Chancellor.

Cabinet have bottled it.

Why on earth would Coffey not quit after being sent to lie and look foolish in public?

There may be something of "the hand that wears the knife rarely wears the crown" here.

Also, there are quite a few Cabinet ministers (e.g. Dorries, Patel, Raab, Rees-Mogg) who are widely assumed to be likely to be discarded by any new leader, so it's not surprising they're sticking with him.

Yeah it’s a funny myth seeing how the current occupant of No.10 very much held the knife!

But yeah I think it’s more so that those remaining will not get jobs in a normal Tory Government- which only leaves a handful (Coffey, Eustice, Spencer) who could quit.

[Torrain]

Laura Trott (Dept. of Transport PPS) and Will Quince (Minister in Dept. of Education) have resigned.

[TheTide]

Robin Walker, another Minister in the Education Department, has resigned.

[Torrain]

Robin Walker, another Minister in the Education Department, has resigned.

At this rate the Dept. of Education is going to be as empty as a high school during lockdown 1.

Current status in the Department:
- Secretary of State: Michelle Donelan MP
- Minister of State for Unis: VACANT
- Minister for Schools Standards: VACANT
- Minister for Children and Families: VACANT
- Minister for Apprenticeships: Alex Burghart MP
- Minister for School System: Baroness Bannan ~AA

[TheTide]

Javid statement in the Commons after PMQs.

[Torrain]

https://mobile.twitter.com/hzeffman/status/1544608046621622272

The significance of this is that Halfon is on the 1922 Committee Executive. If he, Brady and the rest keep making public noise like this, then I think the logical inference is that they’ll be privately telling Johnson that a rule change is imminent, and to jump before he’s pushed in the coming week. Real revolver and whisky moment coming up.

[TheTide]

Lee Anderson, another 2019er and a fairly high profile one, has declared no confidence.

[Cassius]

author=All Along The Watchtower link=topic=350716.msg8670621#msg8670621 date=1657076873 uid=3460]
live footage of Conservative HQ

Several of the liberatores ended up knifing each other as well as Caesar so this is indeed apt.

[TheTide]

Chris Skidmore, MP for Kingswood, has declared no confidence. One of the Cameron gains from Labour in 2010.

[Wiswylfen]

Anne-Marie Trevelyan stays.

Yes, of that Trevelyan family (by marriage). That's how things work in Northumberland.

[Joe Republic]

Has anyone asked Larry if he still has confidence in the government?

https://twitter.com/number10cat/status/1544370237432381441?s=21

[TheTide]

https://twitter.com/JGForsyth/status/1544617641142370304?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ct...

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Robin Walker, another Minister in the Education Department, has resigned.

At this rate the Dept. of Education is going to be as empty as a high school during lockdown 1.

Current status in the Department:
- Secretary of State: Michelle Donelan MP
- Minister of State for Unis: VACANT
- Minister for Schools Standards: VACANT
- Minister for Children and Families: VACANT
- Minister for Apprenticeships: Alex Burghart MP
- Minister for School System: Baroness Bannan ~AA

Given that the flagship Schools Bill has turned into quite the flaming zeppelin, well...

[Torrain]

https://twitter.com/JGForsyth/status/1544617641142370304?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ct...

It worked against Theresa May, and I think we have to be one PMQs, and possibly a cabinet level resignation away from it working with Johnson too. Even a man as self-interested as the PM has to recognise that at the current rate of ministerial resignation, we’re measuring his premiership in hours and days, rather than months or years?

[Torrain]

Speaking of resignations, the Economic Secretary to the Treasury (no.3 job in the Treasury) has just gone.

https://mobile.twitter.com/JohnGlenUK/status/1544623825307959300

[Torrain]

Felicity Buchan, PPS in Dept. of Business has resigned.
https://mobile.twitter.com/FelicityBuchan/status/1544623549213810689?t=rQWllGgD1lPlyfs7B2-ltQ&s=19

[TheTide]

Tom Hunt (MP for Ipswich, a classic marginal) has no confidence.

[TheTide]

There's a pattern here. Most (not all) seem to be MPs for seats that will be difficult to hold on the current polling. This is a not entirely subtle signal that they know they could be ed unless they get rid of him swiftly.

[Torrain]

Johnson’s support in the party before today was 211-148. If we assume that each of the fifteen resignations of the past 24 hours represent genuine loss of confidence, then it’s now more like 196-163, based on public statements alone.

We’re only 17 members away from a majority of the party (180 MPs) moving against him in some form or another, whether VONC vote or government resignation.