Conservative MP Tom Tugendhat is facing questions over his conduct amid ongoing speculation about a potential leadership challenge to Prime Minister Boris Johnson. The chairman of the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee reportedly told Sky News: “The PM put the governance of the UK at risk to a single, severe Covid outbreak. That is to say nothing of the lack of respect it showed for the British people or the Queen. I have made my position clear to those who need to hear it.”
Tugendhat, who has previously indicated he would be open to running for the Tory leadership, stopped short of explicitly calling for Johnson to resign. His comments come as a growing number of Conservative MPs submit letters of no confidence in the Prime Minister, with the total believed to be approaching the 54 needed to trigger a vote.
On Monday, three new MPs publicly backed a confidence ballot or called for Johnson to step down. Former attorney general Jeremy Wright said events in Downing Street had caused “real and lasting damage” to the Government’s authority. Elliot Colburn, elected in 2019, confirmed he had submitted a letter of no confidence. Nickie Aiken suggested Johnson should submit himself to a vote to end “speculation”.
Andrew Bridgen, who had previously withdrawn his letter due to the Ukraine crisis, resubmitted it following the publication of the Sue Gray partygate report. In an email to constituents, he said: “There have been further revelations over the past week and there is obviously and rightly still a lot of anger about the culture in No 10 during the lockdown period.”
The Telegraph reported that Conservative whips are now discussing how to respond if the threshold is reached, including contacting all Tory MPs simultaneously to rally support for the Prime Minister. Downing Street faces renewed pressure over reports that Carrie Johnson hosted a second lockdown party in the Downing Street flat on the Prime Minister’s 56th birthday in June 2020.
