Boris Johnson is facing “a death of a thousand cuts” if he continues to cling on to office, former Cabinet minister David Davis has warned.
After three more Tory MPs submitted letters calling for a vote of no confidence in the Prime Minister Mr Davis said there is likely to be a prolonged struggle to prise him out of Number 10.
Allies of Mr Johnson however insist it is not the moment for a leadership contest at a time of heightened international tensions over Ukraine.
Mr Davis, a former Brexit secretary, told Times Radio he fears the country is facing a period of partial paralysis as the Conservatives fight over the fate of their leader.
“My concern about this… was that this would be a death of a thousand cuts over months or even over a year, which is what’s happened with every previous leader of the Conservative Party who has been removed; it’s taken a long time,” he said.
“And in that time the country is partially paralysed, every single issue is seen through the lens of ‘is it there to promote Boris or prop up Boris’.”
On Wednesday, senior backbenchers Tobias Ellwood and Sir Gary Streeter, and Anthony Mangnall, who was elected in 2019, became the latest MPs to declare publicly that they have written to Sir Graham Brady calling for a confidence vote.
It followed the publication of the interim report by the senior civil servant Sue Gray into lockdown drinking parties in Downing street which was highly critical of the leadership in No 10.
Other Tory MPs are thought to be waiting for the publication of her full findings, which have been delayed due to the ongoing Metropolitan Police investigation into 12 gathering over the course of 2020 and 2021.
Mr Davis, who first called on Mr Johnson to stand down two weeks ago, said he would be consulting with his local Conservative association before deciding finally whether to write to Sir Graham.
Under party rules, there must be a vote of confidence if 54 Tory MPs – 15% of the parliamentary party – write to the chairman of the 1922 calling for one.
Foreign Office minister James Cleverly, a long time ally of Mr Johnson, warned a leadership battle would be a mistake given the dangerous situation in Ukraine.
“When you have got a situation like that, it’s not smart to self-impose an internal disagreement in the party of government, a protracted leadership campaign, which is what we would be doing,” he told Times Radio.
He urged MPs to back the Prime Minister because of his “track record of delivery”, securing Brexit and a general election landslide victory.
“This is his record in Government this is why I’m supporting him and this is why we should stay focused on what people gave us that 80-seat majority to do,” he said.
For Labour, shadow chief secretary to the Treasury Pat McFadden said Mr Johnson is damaging trust in politics and should go.
“It’s quite cynical in the end because he hopes to survive on the basis that everybody will think all politicians are rogues and to drag everyone down to his level,” he told Sky News.
“I think the country and our governance deserves better than that.”
