Beleaguered Boris Johnson attempted to put on a brave face today as he brushed off the resignation of five top aides with a quote from the Lion King.
In a rallying cry to Downing Street staff, the PM said: ‘As Rafiki in the Lion King says, change is good, and change is necessary even though it’s tough.’
He gave his team the pep talk in the Cabinet room as No 10 was plunged deeper into crisis following five brutal resignations, which come in the wake of the partygate scandal.
Yesterday Munira Mirza, one of the PM’s longest-serving aides, quit in disgust over the prime minister’s inaccurate claim that Keir Starmer failed to prosecute the paedophile Jimmy Savile when he was head of the CPS.
Three more aides then followed her out the door – Private secretary Martin Reynolds, chief of staff Dan Rosenfield and communications chief Jack Doyle.
All three have been linked to the Downing Street party scandal.
No 10 allies claimed they were part of a planned clearout, but then a fifth aide’s resignation emerged this morning, when well-respected policy adviser Elena Narozanski walked out the door.
During an emergency meeting, the prime minister is said to have invoked Rafiki, the philosopher Mandrill from the Lion King, before telling staff: ‘This is like a half-time pep talk.. This is the moment when you spit out the chewed up slice of orange.
‘You put the gum-shield back in and then you get back on the pitch. That’s what we’re doing.’
The PM’s official spokesperson confirmed he had quoted the Disney classic.
The spokesperson said: ‘He reflected on the privilege of working in No 10 in order to deliver for the British people and reiterated his and No10’s commitment to serving the public by keeping people safe, improving lives and spreading opportunity.
‘As he reiterated to the team today, there is an important job to do, the public expects us to be focused on it, whether it is the situation in Ukraine, recovering from the pandemic or, as the Chancellor was setting out yesterday, on issues such as cost of living.’
Rafiki makes the ‘change is good’ comment as he urges Simba, the son of lion King Mufasa, to return to his homeland to reclaim power after it was wrongfully taken from him by his uncle Scar.
The pep talk came on a day of high drama in Westminster, as a second senior minister distanced himself from Mr Johnson’s controversial attack on Sir Keir Starmer and another Tory MP submitted a letter of No Confidence.
Health Secretary Sajid Javid criticised the prime minister’s Savile slur, a day after Chancellor Rishi Sunak threw him under the bus when he told reporters: ‘I wouldn’t have said it.’
Mr Sunak appeared to issue a string of swipes at the PM, saying the Tories would remain focused ‘on my watch’, and repeatedly refusing to rule out a leadership run in an interview with the BBC last night.
Mr Johnson faced further embarrassment today when backbencher Andrew Bell – a Brexiteer and previous big supporter of Mr Johnson – confirmed he had submitted a No Confidence letter over the partygate scandal.
The Newcastle MP, who was elected in 2019, said: ‘The breach of trust that events in No 10 Downing Street represent, and the manner in which they have been handled, makes his position untenable.’
Other Tory MPs are expected to consider over the weekend whether to write to the chairman of the 1922 Committee Sir Graham Brady in an attempt to force a leadership contest.
Mr Johnson will face a vote of confidence if 54 Conservatives – 15% of the party’s 360 MPs – send letters to Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 Committee, demanding a leadership contest.As of Friday 13 Tory MPs had confirmed they had submitted such a letter, though more may have done so privately.
Those who have gone public include senior Conservative Tobias Ellwood, who said it was ‘time for the prime minister to take a grip’ and call a confidence vote himself, rather than wait for the ‘inevitable’.Sir Graham will not say how many letters have been submitted until the number reaches 54.
With the PM’s future hanging in the balamce, some MPs have jumped to defend him.
Energy minister Greg Hands said the prime minister was ‘taking charge’ after promising sweeping changes in No 10 in response to the findings of the pared-down Sue Gray report into Downing Street parties.
‘The prime minister was absolutely clear on Monday that there would be changes at the top of No 10 and that is what he has delivered,’ he told Sky News.
‘The Sue Gray report update said that there were failings at the top of the operation. This is the prime minister taking charge.’
Ms Gray’s report r
evealed three previously unknown lockdown events in Downing Street. But findings were limited due to an on-going criminal investigation.The Metropolitan Police are currently probing alleged rule-breaking at a total of 12 parties in No 10 and Whitehall.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
from News – Metro https://ift.tt/UlBpYCa
0 Comments