Wheels Falling Off Boris Johnson’s Bandwagon? Tory MPs Reportedly Sign Letters of ‘No Confidence’ Against PM

Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson talks to bus drivers aboard an electric bus during
STEVE PARSONS/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
Kurt Zindulka

A dozen Conservative MPs have reportedly sent letters of no confidence against Boris Johnson as questions swirl around the ability of the prime minister to lead the country.

Amid increasingly poor poll numbers and a series of political missteps and gaffes from Prime Minister Boris Johnson, a number of Tory MPs have reportedly signalled that they would move against Johnson should his leadership come up for a vote.

Speaking to The Sun newspaper an unnamed senior Tory MP said: “There is real anger. He has until Spring to get back on track or he will be in real trouble.”

“Letters [of no confidence] have gone in. I am on the cusp myself,” the MP added as at least a dozen letters having already been submitted according to the paper.

The top Tory said of the prime minister: “Yes he won an election, but a bowl of soup could have beaten Jeremy Corbyn.”

Under the current system, a leadership challenge can be initiated if fifteen per cent of Tory MPs submit letters of no confidence to the 1922 Committee — which consists of all Conservative MPs not in government — and chairman Sir Graham Brady calls for the challenge to be put forward.

Some within the ruling party have attempted to downplay the threat to Johnson’s leadership, with one unnamed MP telling The Telegraph that the letters of no confidence came from the “usual suspects”.

“Is this the start of more of that? If the next month is like the last month, and horror stories continue, more letters will be submitted,” the MP warned.

A Tory whip told the paper: “There is an assumption someone has put in a letter. The rumour is persistently around. It will not get anywhere near the 50 letters you would need, but it does cause angst.”

The latest questioning of Mr Johnson’s political fate come after a disastrous speech before the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) on Monday, in which the Conservative leader quoted Soviet dictator Vladimir Lenin to promote his radical green agenda.

The mainstream media and punditry decided to focus on some of the stranger aspects of the speech, however, including Johnson’s seemingly inexplicable use of a rambling Peppa Pig anecdote.

The PM is facing challenges in several key areas, including his Build Back Better green vision, his high tax agenda, and the outright crisis in the English Channel. The deaths of 27 migrants after an illegal smuggling boat overturned in French waters Wednesday night will intensify scrutiny of the government’s do-nothing attitude that has dominated so far.

Appearing on Sky News Australia on Tuesday, Brexit leader Nigel Farage said that the “wheels are falling off the Boris bandwagon,” adding “you can feel the support of his colleagues the support of much of the media is really beginning to melt away and quite quickly too.”

Mr Farage — who has hinted at a possible political comeback if the government continues failing on the boat migrant crisis — said that the only reason Mr Johnson was elected was because of Brexit.

“He went for Brexit and those voters those Brexit voters voted to take back control of our borders and right now we see them being abused and we see the country being humiliated,” he said.

“If this man cannot stop tens of thousands of undocumented young males coming into this country and posing a genuine security threat then he is toast,” Farage warned.

Follow Kurt Zindulka on Twitter here @KurtZindulka

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