Priti Patel has sided with a delegation of Cabinet ministers urging Boris Johnson to leave Downing Street, it has been reported.
New Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi was also among the group, which included other once-loyal allies Grant Shapps and Brandon Lewis, demanding the prime minister quits.
Ms Patel, one of Mr Johnson’s most ardent supporters, joined them in Number 10 to tell the PM his position is untenable without the support of the parliamentary party, The Times reports.
Seventeen ministers, and a line of ministerial aides, resigned as Mr Johnson’s authority drained away in a dramatic 24 hours in Westminster.
Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab also remained loyal to Mr Johnson and defended him at a session of the backbench 1922 Committee.
Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the Conservative 1922 Committee, was thought to be in Downing Street communicating the views of backbenchers following the meeting in Parliament dominated by MPs calling for Mr Johnson to go.
The talks came after the Prime Minister faced an intense grilling before opposition critics and Tory MPs alike on the Commons Liaison Committee, as the stream of ministerial resignations continued.
After being repeatedly pressed for a direct answer, Mr Johnson said ‘of course’ he ruled out triggering a general election if the Tories force him from office.
Told that there was a delegation of Cabinet ministers waiting for him at Downing Street, Mr Johnson referred to the invasion of Ukraine and said ‘I can’t for the life of me see how it is responsible just to walk away from that’.
He did not deny reports that Cabinet minister Michael Gove told him early on Wednesday that he must stand down, but insisted he would still be leader on Thursday.
The mass resignation of ministers, along with a string of parliamentary aides, came after Rishi Sunak and Sajid Javid quit their Cabinet posts on Tuesday evening.
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