Desperate Boris Johnson is planning to cling on tightly to his premiership if Tory members back him, a Tory peer has claimed.
The PM is set to leave No10 on September 6, 24 hours after the next PM has been voted in.
But Lord Cruddas of Shoreditch, a former Conservative Party treasurer told the Telegraph, Mr Johnson "wants to fight the next general election as leader of the Conservative party".
He claimed the comments were made to him over lunch at Chequers last Friday.
The peer has organised a petition, calling for Mr Johnson to carry on as Prime Minister.
More than 10,000 Tory members have signed it, demanding his name be added to the ballot when members vote for a new leader next month.
"He wants to carry on and he believes that, with the membership behind him, he can", Lord Cruddas told the newspaper.
Downing Street responded by insisting Mr Johnson will leave the post when a new Tory leader is chosen in September.
A Number 10 spokeswoman said: “The Prime Minister has resigned as party leader and set out his intention to stand down as PM when the new leader is in place.”
His comments come as wannabe leaders Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak are braced to go head-to-head last night and make their bids to become the next Conservative Party leader.
Mr Johnson, in his final appearance at Prime Minister’s Questions, declared “mission largely accomplished, for now” before signing-off by telling MPs: “Hasta la vista, baby.”
Conservative MP Andrew Bowie told Channel 4 News: “This Lord Cruddas’ petition is a sideshow, it should be given no attention whatsoever, we are focusing on the future.”
