But his determination to stay in office may not be enough to secure his future as those in his party who want him out appear to be plotting their next move. Politics Hub: More resignations to start day as pressure mounts on PM – live updates It all boils down to the top tier of the 1922 Committee – the body representing Tory supporters in the Commons. Its governing body consists of 18 members in total, including six officers – a president, two vice-presidents, two executive secretaries and a treasurer. And they wield tremendous power in the party – especially when it comes to ousting leaders. The ’22 chair, as it is known – currently Sir Graham Brady – tends to be the one who grabs the headlines, as he is the only person who knows how many letters of no confidence in the prime minister have been submitted by backbenchers. . They then have the task of announcing when the number exceeds the threshold to trigger a vote of confidence, as Mr Johnson knows all too well. The prime minister won such a vote in early June and under current committee rules, cannot be challenged again for another 12 months. But here’s the rub – the executive committee can change the rules if they want to. And it will meet to discuss the outlook at 5pm tonight (Wednesday). Read more: Beth Rigby on why things could get even worse for Boris Johnson Use Chrome browser for more accessible video player 12:46 Raab: ‘Move forward’ after vote Is this likely to happen? It’s happened again. After a series of defeats in parliament over her Brexit deal, the committee agreed to change them to allow a challenge to Theresa May’s leadership six months after she won a confidence vote. However, it never reached that stage. Sir Graham seems to have told her that a decision had been made to change the rule, but before he got into the details, she named the date of her departure. In recent weeks, existing members of the executive branch have been lukewarm to the idea of changing the rules – fearful of the precedent it would set for future leaders. But that shouldn’t reassure Mr Johnson, because the staff on that staff is about to change. Every time there is a Queen’s Speech and a new session of Parliament begins, the top ’22 roles come up for re-election – meaning a vote is expected. Sir Graham is expected to announce the start of nominations later today, with the first meeting to swear in the new executive next Wednesday and the first chance to change the rules next week. That means if the rules were changed to allow a second confidence vote in the prime minister, it could happen the day before MPs leave Westminster for their summer break on July 21. Tory MP Andrew Bridgen, who is a staunch critic of the Prime Minister, has already said he will stand, campaigning in a manifesto to change the rules to allow another vote of confidence in Mr Johnson. It is likely that more potential executives may follow the same path. Read more: The frontrunners to replace Boris Johnson Use Chrome browser for more accessible video player 0:46 MP calls on Cabinet to tell PM to resign Can the prime minister do anything about it? There have been rumors that the No 10 could try to seek out some loyalists to put themselves forward as well, to make sure that critics of the current leadership do not hold the balance of power. But the executive branch is only voted on by grassroots MPs, not those on the government payroll. As many as three-quarters of backbenchers may have voted no confidence last time, making this strategy unlikely to pay off. Electing an executive committee of an obscure backbench organization may seem like uninteresting internal management, but it could have major implications for the leadership of the Conservative Party and, in turn, the leadership of the country.
