Four reasons why a Boris Johnson return could end in disaster

A return to the top job for Boris Johnson would split – or even destroy, some fear - the Conservative party. Photograph: Murdo MacLeod/The Guardian

Boris Johnson divides opinion in the Tory party and the country alike. His Conservative supporters believe he is the only person who would stand a chance of winning the next election for them. They point out that despite having been ousted in July he still has a mandate, having won an 80 seat majority for the Tories at the 2019 general election. Because of that, they argue that calls by Labour and other parties for a general election would have far less resonance under a Johnson Mark II premiership. But other Tories believe a second stint in No 10 would be even more of a disaster than the first one, and the short leadership of Liz Truss, for the following reasons.

His return would split, and possibly destroy, the party