Boris Johnson should resign as Prime Minister as he has lost the ability to win votes, a former leader of the Conservative Party has said.
Michael Howard led calls for Johnson to go in the wake of the double loss of two by-elections to Labour and the Lib Dems and the devastating resignation of party chairman Oliver Dowden in the aftermath.
Howard, who sacked Johnson from his front bench team in 2004 but remained loyal to him as Prime Minister, said he did not take the step lightly and had always been loyal to the leader of the Tory party.
READ MORE: Boris Johnson vows to 'keep going' after double by-election humiliation
He said of Johnson: “His greatest asset has always been his ability to win votes. But I’m afraid yesterday’s results make it clear that he no longer has that ability.
“The party, and more importantly the country, would be better off under new leadership.”
Speaking to the BBC’s World at One, Howard said: “ First of all I think members of the Cabinet should very carefully consider their positions as Oliver Dowd, has done, and it may be necessary for the executive of the 1922 Committee to meet, to decide to change the rules so that another leadership election could take place. Those, those are the two things which I think could make a difference.
Johnson recently won a no confidence vote in his leadership and under current party rules he can not be challenged again for a year.
Speaking in Rwanda, at a Commonwealth summit, the Prime Minister said he will “keep going” despite the double election loss.
He said: “I think as a government I’ve got to listen to what people are saying – in particular to the difficulties people are facing over the cost of living, which I think for most people is the number one issue.”
“We’ve got to recognise there is more we’ve got to do and we certainly will; we will keep going, addressing the concerns of people until we get through this patch.”
Another Tory grandee, Sir Malcolm Rifkind, foreign secretary in John Major’s government, told Sky News that if ministers want Boris Johnson to quit, they should go and tell him.
Rifkind said the leadership crisis in the party “has to be brought to a conclusion” and claimed that a dozen ministers would force him out.
Rikind said: :I think it is hugely in the public interest that preferably the Prime Minister seeks their views. If he’s not willing to see their views, because you might be rather worried of what they might say to him, then they must, at least in some number, come together and go and see him
“It doesn’t require all of them. If a dozen ministers, for example, share these views on top of all 140 backbenchers, then that will be the end of his prime ministership.”
There were no signs yesterday of other Ministers following Oliver Dowden out the door from cabinet, leaving Johnson relatively secure.
But there are signs that elections to the backbench 1922 committee of Tory MPs will take place before the summer recess and if enough rebel MPs are elected they could change the party rules to challenge Johnson again within a year.
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