No Confidence Vote for PM

The news is in - the coveted 54 letter threshold has been met and the 1922 Committee has announced that a vote of no confidence in PM Boris Johnson has been triggered and will take place tonight. What is next?

Reports say that chairman of the 1922 Committee, Sir Graham Brady, notified the PM on Sunday, with some MPs asking for their letters to be post-dated to avoid disrupting the celebrations held in the Queen's honour. So why now have Tory MPs decided to send in letters? It has been one thing after another with this sitting government, from fines over Partygate to changes in the Ministerial Code meaning that no Minister need resign over breaking the law. Once more photos emerged of Johnson at party during lockdown that he was not fined for, uproar ensued and letters started being received by the 1922 Committee.

But, uproar is perhaps not the right word, as many issues are taking attention away from the government's behaviour. Ukraine is facing crisis, and the Jubilee Weekend was an excuse to focus on the 'unity and brilliance' of the country. Whilst these are important to the British people, our leadership needs closer examination and consequences for the way they have conducted themselves at a time of national crisis. At this point, no-one is surprised at this type of behaviour in politics because it has become normalised to break the law, pay the fine and continue in the role of public servant. We deserve better, and clearly enough Tory MPs have agreed with the public mood, sending in letters. It is worth noting that Johnson was booed by crowds whilst entering St Paul's Cathedral on Saturday (4th June) for the Jubilee Service, indicating that the public is frustrated.

So the vote will take place tonight, and more than half of Tory MPs have to vote against Johnson to oust him as PM, triggering a Conservative leadership contest. In this (unlikely) scenario, the key players will include people like Rishi Sunak and Priti Patel. The vote will take place around 6pm-8pm in Westminster, with Johnson expected to make a speech at 4pm to persuade his MPs to vote in favour of him.

Many news outlets are saying this could be the end for Johnson. I think it is unlikely that he will lose his vote, because he has strong support within his party and there is no other candidate that the Conservatives would choose over him, the man who won the party the biggest majority since the 1980s. But, we could be surprised, with Tory rebels growing in numbers and becoming more vocal such as Jeremy Hunt openly opposing Johnson.

This is not an issue of party politics, Conservative vs Labour vs Lib Dem vs Green: all parties should be held to the same ethical standards. Politicians who break the law should face sanctions accordingly, whether it is Johnson, Starmer, Davey or Denyer/Ramsay.

Johnson should have resigned over Partygate, his government has had a record number of U-turns and his conduct is not representative of British politics. It would take 180 Tory MPs to decide that enough is enough, and oust him for what he should have had the nerve to do - step down. But who would lead the country next? The decision is one that only the Tory MPs can make, the result of which will we see tonight.

#partygate #shambles #government #noconfidencevote #june2022 #ukpolitics #conservativeleader #borisjohnson #grahambrady #1922committee #jubileeweekend

*All rights reserved from the photo obtained from: UK's Boris Johnson's alleged 'let bodies pile high' Covid comments (cnbc.com)