‘Boris Johnson is toast’: Tory fury grows over Partygate as a DOZEN MPs issue public criticism of PM

Tory backlash was growing towards Boris Johnson over Partygate last night as a dozen MPs issued public criticism of the Prime Minister and slammed Downing Street ‘prats’.

Tory MP Nigel Mills, who backed Johnson during the Tory leadership contest, expressed his confusion over how ‘so many stupid things could have happened’.

And Peter Bone, the MP for Wellingborough since 2005, said anyone who partied in No10 on the eve of Prince Philip’s funeral ‘needs to be sacked’.

Lee Anderson, a new Red Wall MP for Ashfield, even created a poll on Facebook asking voters if Johnson should stay as Prime Minister.

Amid the party’s internal fallout, one ex-minister warned that Johnson is ‘toast’, while another said the crisis now feels ‘terminal’.

One senior backbencher revealed they had received more than 200 angry emails from infuriated constituents over the parties, alongside only five supporting the PM.

It follows five Tory MPs calling for the embattled premier to step down over his handling of the lockdown party scandal.

Andrew Bridgen submitted a letter of no-confidence in Johnson, joining Douglas Ross, Sir Roger Gale, William Wragg and Caroline Nokes in urging him to quit.

It is understood that up to 30 letters of no-confidence have been submitted to Sir Graham Brady, the chairman of the 1922 committee of Tory MPs. If more than 15 per cent of the party’s MPs submit letters, there has to be a vote on the leadership.

The growing Tory backlash over Johnson’s handling of the Partygate scandal comes as:

• Mr Johnson’s personal ratings have slumped to an all-time low of minus 52 according to YouGov, with 20 per cent viewing him favourably and 72 per cent unfavourably;
• There are claims the investigation by top civil servant Sue Gray will find no evidence of criminal behaviour, despite the growing evidence about guidance being flouted;
• The Metropolitan Police has made clear it is unlikely to launch a probe unless the Cabinet Office flags potential incidents where offences might have been committed;
• Speaker Lindsay Hoyle has warned it would be ‘entirely inappropriate and discourteous’ if the results of Ms Gray’s inquiry leak before being announced to the Commons;
• The Conservative association in ultra-safe Sutton Coldfield has voted to withdraw its support for the PM, saying that the ‘culture starts at the top’.

Nigel Mills, MP for Amber Valley, told The Times: ‘These people are meant to be the brightest and the best running the country. It’s hard to conceive how so many stupid things could have happened.’

Peter Bone, MP for Wellingborough, said: ‘If there were people in Downing Street prior to the Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral partying, well they’re prats and need to be sacked.’

Julian Knight, MP for Solihull, said he is ‘very open minded’ about the idea of Johnson resigning.

Tobias Ellwood, MP for Bournemouth East, added: ‘I say to the prime minister, “Lead, or get out of the way and step aside”.’

Danny Kruger, Mr Johnson’s former political secretary turned MP for Devizes, accused the PM of a ‘callous disregard for the personal sacrifices that families were making’.

Former cabinet member Karen Bradley said she shares the outrage with her dismayed constituents about the revelations.

Meanwhile, one MP told the BBC: ‘Many colleagues now believe Boris won’t be leader at next general election… for many of us this feels terminal.’

And a former minister added: ‘Johnson is toast… if you were the chief whip looking at him you’d say he’s not fit to do any other jobs in government, you wouldn’t make him a junior minister, he doesn’t work hard enough.’

A Midlands Tory MP simply said: ‘The inbox is bad, really bad.’

The comments come amid claims that Downing Street held ‘wine-time Fridays’ every week throughout the pandemic which Johnson attended.

Staff even invested in a £142 drinks fridge to keep their beer, prosecco and wine cold, with the PM urging aides to ‘let off steam’ at a time when Britons were banned from socialising indoors, sources told The Mirror.

Employees also took turns to stock up on drinks at the local Tesco Metro with a wheely suitcase to fill up the 34-bottle fridge which was delivered through the back door of Downing Street on December 11, 2020, extraordinary pictures have revealed.

At the time, households were not allowed to mix indoors or in most outdoor places with exemptions for people in support bubbles, and a maximum of six people were allowed to meet in some outdoor public spaces like parks and public gardens.

Despite the harsh rules, Downing Street scheduled ‘wine-time Fridays’ into the electronic calendars of 50 No 10 staff every week between 4pm and 7pm.

The end-of-week drinks are part of a long-standing tradition in government but they reportedly continued while the rest of the country were mostly confined to their homes.

They were organised by the No 10 press office but advisors from other departments would often join in, it has been claimed.

It is just the latest in a series of damning revelations about the alleged culture of drinking and partying throughout the pandemic at Downing Street amid growing calls for Johnson to resign, some from within his own party.

It was revealed on Thursday that a leaving do was held on the eve of Prince Philip’s funeral, prompting Johnson to order No 10 to apologise to the Queen.

Sue Gray, the senior civil servant investigating the litany of claims, is said to have been ‘completely blindsided’ by the latest revelations, The Times reported.

Meanwhile cabinet ministers who publicly backed their leader this week said it is becoming increasingly difficult to justify their support, with one saying: ‘This is the last chance saloon. More revelations of parties, and a pummelling at the local elections, and the party will rise up.’

A dozen Tory MPs have now criticised the prime minister publicly, while another in a red wall constituency ran a Facebook poll asking if he should go and a senior party activist said he wished to ‘never hear of him again’.

Regardless, it appears voters have made up their minds, with seven out of ten believing Mr Johnson has not been telling the truth about his involvement in the BYOB garden party while 63 per cent said he should resign, a poll has revealed.

Eight in ten also believe the event was illegal according to the PM’s own Covid legislation.

Kate Josephs, who was a director general in the unit that coordinated the government Covid response and is now chief executive at Sheffield City Council, said she was ‘truly sorry’ for a gathering held in the Cabinet Office to mark her leaving the civil service on December 17, 2020.

Ms Josephs said she and colleagues who had been working assembled for drinks in the evening. Dozens of staff are reported to have attended - even though London was in Tier 3 lockdown at the time and the rules prohibited households socialising indoors.

Earlier, the PM’s spokesman admitted an apology had been made to Buckingham Palace over ‘regrettable’ behaviour in Downing Street on April 16 last year - when two other leaving dos took place, including for departing director of communications James Slack. The lockdown rules at that point banned indoor social mixing.

However, it is understood an official made the grovelling call, and aides refused to say whether Mr Johnson - who was not at the booze-fuelled event - will be speaking to the monarch personally about the issue.

All three leaving events have now been referred to Sue Gray’s investigation, which is not expected to report before the end of next week.