Asked at Prime Minister’s Questions by Conservative peer Tim Lawton if there were “any circumstances in which he would have to stand down”, Mr Johnson said he would do so if he “felt it was impossible … to continue” as a government. But he added: “The job of a prime minister in difficult circumstances when he’s been given a colossal mandate is to carry on, and that’s what I’m going to do.” However, it may not be up to him, with the 1922 Committee executive of key Tory MPs due to meet at 4pm. The full committee will then meet at 5pm. Javid delivers damning speech after resignation – Politics Hub The resignations began after Number 10 admitted Johnson was aware of allegations of misconduct by MP Chris Pincher from 2019 before hiring him as deputy leader in February. Ministers had been sent to defend Mr Johnson and said he was not aware of any “specific” allegations. Mr Pincher resigned from the role last week after further allegations that he abused two men at a private club in London and was later expelled from the Conservative Party. Former senior civil servant Lord MacDonald revealed on Tuesday that the Prime Minister had been told personally about the 2019 allegations, despite what Downing Street told the press. Less than 12 hours later, Rishi Sunak resigned as chancellor and Sajid Javid stepped down as health secretary, sparking an uproar from more junior ministers who said they could no longer support Mr Johnson. Read more: “Easy to walk away”, says the new chancellor Sir Keir Starmer attacked the prime minister for his handling of the scandal, reading the allegations against Mr Pincher as “a reminder to everyone who supports this prime minister how serious the situation is”. In heated exchanges at PMQs, the Labor leader said his list of resignations had left a “z-list of nodding dogs” on his front bench. He also criticized those who resigned from the government, saying they lacked a shred of integrity as they failed to quit because of other scandals to engulf Mr Johnson’s administration. Use Chrome browser for more accessible video player 10:54 “What a pathetic sight” Opposition MPs were not the only ones to get the boot, with several in the Conservative backbenches using PMQs to tell Mr Johnson to go. Gary Sambrook, an executive member of the Tories’ 1922 committee, which could be key to the prime minister’s future, said Mr Johnson was “always trying to get off the mark, always trying to blame other people for mistakes and [there is] there was nothing left for him but to take responsibility and resign.” David Davis, who called on the Prime Minister to leave six months ago, repeated his plea, saying he had to “do the decent thing [and] he puts the interests of the nation above his own and before, in his own words, it becomes impossible for the government to do its job.” But Mr Johnson insisted: “It’s just when times are tough, when the country is facing pressures on the economy and pressures on its budgets and when we have the biggest war in Europe for 80 years, this is exactly the time you would expect. a government to continue its work, not to leave and continue the work.” After PMQs, Number 10 also said Mr Johnson would fight any new vote of confidence in him from supporters and believed he still had the support of a majority of his MPs. Read more: The highs and lows of Boris Johnson’s time in power
