PM salutes Elizabeth II’s ‘unwavering dedication’ as she becomes first British monarch to celebrate platinum jubilee
Boris Johnson has paid tribute to the Queen’s “unwavering dedication to this nation” as she became the first British monarch to celebrate a platinum jubilee.
The Queen marks a historic 70 years on the throne on Sunday 6 February.
Continue reading...More MPs set to submit resignation demands as No 10 rejigs team
Boris Johnson’s desperate efforts to save his premiership were undermined on Saturday as one of his most loyal backbench supporters said it was now “inevitable” that Tory MPs would remove him from office over the “partygate” scandal.
In an interview with the Observer, Sir Charles Walker, a former vice-chairman of the 1922 Committee of backbench Conservative MPs, implored the prime minister to go of his own accord in the national interest, and likened events in the Tory party to a Greek tragedy.
Continue reading...The prime minister was widely criticised for repeating the slur that is widespread online – but extremists were delighted
A network of white supremacists, neo-Nazis and antisemites has celebrated Boris Johnson’s false claim that Keir Starmer failed to prosecute Jimmy Savile.
Johnson was roundly criticised, including by some Tory MPs, after he made the accusation during an ill-tempered exchange in the Commons last Monday.
Continue reading...Hundreds still dying from Covid each day in the UK as fear of the virus wanes
The Covid booster campaign has stalled, and declining trust in the prime minister is part of the problem, say scientists.
Only 26,875 people in England had a third dose or booster on 1 February, the latest complete figures available, and 6 million people are at least six weeks overdue for their shot.
Continue reading...Culture secretary dismisses resignation calls over ‘partygate’ after another Tory says PM should go
The culture secretary, Nadine Dorries, has rejected calls for Boris Johnson to resign in order to restore trust after the “partygate” scandal, claiming that the “vast majority” of the party were behind the prime minister.
It comes after the former schools minister, Nick Gibb, became the latest Conservative MP to publicly call for Johnson to go, citing constituents “furious about the double standards” and the prime minster’s “inaccurate” statements in the Commons.
Continue reading...Some argue Boris Johnson’s wife is pulling the strings at No 10 but others note that claims contain more than a whiff of sexism
Boris Johnson’s inner circle imploded so spectacularly in recent days that only one close political confidante from the early days of No 10 remains: his wife, Carrie Johnson.
The most powerful prime ministerial spouse in recent memory, the 33-year-old Johnson has a job of her own for a wildlife charity, but multiple sources from Downing Street past and present say her influence on the prime minister’s operation is undeniable.
Continue reading...More than a dozen MPs have now called openly for prime minister to resign over lockdown parties scandal
Aaron Bell has become the latest Conservative MP to announce publicly that he has submitted a letter of no confidence in Boris Johnson.
More than a dozen MPs have called openly for the prime minister to resign, including the former defence secretary Tobias Ellwood and the backbenchers Peter Aldous and Anthony Mangnall. More are believed to have submitted letters privately.
Continue reading...Cost of living crisis, departure of top aides and Rishi Sunak’s rebuke dominate the newspapers on another bad day for PM
Three big stories dominate Friday’s front pages – and none of them are good news for Boris Johnson. Editors were spoilt for choice with the “big squeeze” in living standards, the “bloodbath” of departing Downing Street aides and Rishi Sunak’s less-than-total backing for his leader.
Several papers combine the stories in what the Mail calls “Meltdown in Downing Street” above an image of a forlorn-looking prime minister and the subhead, “will the last one to leave please turn out the lights” evoking the Sun’s infamous 1992 election front page.
Continue reading...Policy chief Munira Mirza was first to go, followed shortly by Jack Doyle, Dan Rosenfield and Martin Reynolds
Four of Boris Johnson’s key staff have quit as the fallout from the Downing Street party scandal continued to shake his hold on government.
Johnson’s longstanding policy chief Munira Mirza was the first to go, using a stinging resignation letter to accuse the prime minister of “scurrilous” behaviour when he falsely linked Keir Starmer to the failure to bring paedophile Jimmy Savile to justice.
Continue reading...The prime minister has parted ways with key aides seven times since September 2020
All prime ministers lose advisers at various points, but those working for Boris Johnson seem to jump ship or otherwise exit at a faster rate than most. Here is a list of significant people who have left his No 10.
Continue reading...Labour leader says ‘it’s time to restore dignity’ as PM refuses to apologise for Jimmy Savile remarks
Keir Starmer has accused Boris Johnson of “parroting the conspiracy theories of violent fascists” for political gain after the prime minister doubled down on false claims about the Labour leader’s blame for the failure to prosecute Jimmy Savile.
Johnson has been condemned by victims of the disgraced broadcaster, as well by as some MPs and the Commons Speaker, Lindsay Hoyle, for making the claim in parliament on Monday.
Continue reading...Exclusive: sources say PM dropped in at prosecco-fuelled farewell in 2021 now being investigated by police
Boris Johnson attended a prosecco-fuelled leaving do for a No 10 aide during the strict post-Christmas lockdown, which is now under police investigation, the Guardian has learned.
Sue Gray’s investigation into lockdown parties this week revealed several events that had not previously been publicised, including a gathering on 14 January 2021 “on the departure of two No 10 private secretaries”. But the redacted report revealed no further details.
Continue reading...A Russian invasion of Ukraine would end in a humanitarian, political and military disaster for Russia and the world, Boris Johnson has warned as he stood alongside the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, in Kyiv, saying the UK would be judged by the level of help it gave to Ukraine
Continue reading...PM joins Volodymyr Zelenskiy to spell out consequences of Russian aggression and declare UK will be judged by the level of its support
A Russian invasion of Ukraine would end in a humanitarian, political and military disaster for Russia and the world, Boris Johnson has warned as he stood alongside the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, in Kyiv, saying the UK would be judged by the level of help it gave to Ukraine.
On a flying visit to the Ukrainian capital, he denied the US and the UK were exaggerating the scale of the Russian threat, saying they were not trying to “big up” the intelligence. “The grim reality” was that Russian troops were “massing on Ukraine’s border. This is a clear and present danger,” he said, addingthat the troop concentration was “perhaps the biggest demonstration of hostility to Ukraine in our lifetimes”, saying it dwarfed the Russian forces mounted before the invasion in 2014.
Continue reading...Questions of fairness and trust linger for constituents in Tonge Fold, in the most marginal of Tory-won red wall seats
When Boris Johnson addressed MPs an hour after the release of Sue Gray’s redacted report, he will have hoped his apology would travel far beyond the Commons chamber and reached places like Tonge Fold, on the outskirts of Bolton.
But the immediate reaction suggests the prime minister might be in trouble. “It’s just extremely disappointing and very frustrating. There’s no other words for it,” said Adele Warren, a Conservative councillor, after watching Johnson’s Commons statement with some of her party colleagues.
Continue reading...Angry Tories confront Boris Johnson as report finds many of 16 lockdown events ‘difficult to justify’
Boris Johnson has been left desperately trying to shore up his premiership after the Sue Gray report as detectives were revealed to be investigating 300 photos and 12 events in Downing Street, including a party in the prime minister’s private flat.
Johnson faced a wall of anger from Conservative MPs in the House of Commons after Gray’s investigation concluded that many of the 16 parties were “difficult to justify” and condemned “failures of leadership and judgment” in No 10 and the Cabinet Office.
Continue reading...Latest updates: report into parties in Downing Street is published after being sent to No 10 earlier on Monday
In his pooled interview in Essex, Boris Johnson brushed aside suggestions that the version of the Sue Gray report being published this week, with the most incriminating material removed at the request of the Met police (who believe its publication would compromise their own investigation), would be a “whitewash”. When this was put to him, he replied:
You are going to have to wait and see both what Sue says and of course what the Met says.
What I will say to the president, as I’ve said before, is that I think we really all need to step back from the brink and I think Russia needs to step back from the brink.
I think that an invasion of Ukraine, any incursion into Ukraine beyond the territory that Russia has already taken in 2014 would be an absolute disaster for the world, but above all it would be a disaster for Russia.
Continue reading...PM hopes to move on from parties scandal with plans to make it easier to scrap EU laws and tackle cost of living crisis
Boris Johnson will attempt to seize back control of the government agenda this week with a policy blitz, a Brexit bill and flying visit to Ukraine, as Westminster remains in the grip of paralysis over the Sue Gray and police inquiries into No 10 parties.
Amid frustration in No 10 at the uncertainty surrounding the report on rule-breaking parties in Downing Street, sources said Johnson was determined to deflect public outrage with a schedule of high-profile announcements and photo opportunities that he also hopes will show MPs he remains focused.
Continue reading...Russia confirms a record 121,228 new daily cases of the virus; NHS will offer vaccinations to vulnerable children between five and 11
Polling has begun in Portugal in a parliamentary election marred by fears of a low turnout due to record coronavirus infections, Reuters reports.
At the University of Lisbon, staff outnumbered mostly elderly voters, with signs on the walls asking people to wear a mask, observe social distancing and to use their own pen.
I have huge respect for rank-and-file police officers who put their lives on the line to keep us safe.
For them to do their job, the public have to have trust and confidence in them. But the way the Met has handled this, I think, is undermining that.
Continue reading...Lisa Nandy slams claim of boost for 20 towns, saying ‘new’ fund for poorer areas is recycled pledge
The government has been accused of trying to manipulate announcements on extra funding for poorer parts of the UK in a desperate attempt to save Boris Johnson’s premiership.
An extraordinary row blew up after Michael Gove’s Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities released a press statement – before publication of a levelling up white paper this week – saying 20 towns and cities would benefit from a “new £1.5bn brownfield fund”. The release, which named only Sheffield and Wolverhampton as recipients, said the 20 areas “will benefit from developments combining housing, leisure and business in sustainable, walkable beautiful new neighbourhoods”.
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