He can now breathe a sigh of relief as the British Prime Minister was spared a vote against him by his party on Monday night.
Boris Johnson, who refused to resign in the past, needed to secure the trust of the majority (359 Tory deputies) or 180 votes to remain in office. He won 211 votes to his advantage against 148.
He can therefore not be targeted by another motion for no confidence for one year, but his authority risks being significantly reduced.
Two and a quarter years after his victory at the polls the 57-year old leader was becoming weaker and more contested. He was also caught up in “partygate”, the affair involving the parties in Downing Street during confinements. A devastating report detailing violations of rules created in the face Covid, was launched at the end May.
On Monday morning, events were so fast that they barely closed the festive parenthesis for the celebrations marking 70 years of Elizabeth II’s reign. Graham Brady, Chairman of the Conservative Party’s 1922 Committee had announced that the threshold of 54 letters from MPs or 15% of the parliamentary party calling for Boris Johnson’s departure had been met.
