Fifth Tory MP Calls For Boris Johnson To Resign Since Partygate Report

Another Tory MP has called for Boris Johnson to quit over partygate in what appears to be a rolling series of announcements putting the prime minister under pressure.

Sir Bob Neill, also a select committee chair, said he has submitted a letter of no confidence in Johnson, arguing a “change in leadership is required” to restore trust in politics.

He said: “Trust is the most important commodity in politics, but these events have undermined trust in not just the office of the prime minister, but in the political process itself.”

Prior to Neill’s announcement, four MPs called for Johnson to go since Sue Gray’s damning report was published on Wednesday.

Several other Tory MPs had previously demanded the PM step down.

It takes 54 MPs to submit letters Sir Graham Brady, chair of the 1922 committee of backbench Conservatives, to trigger a no confidence vote in Johnson, which would force a leadership contest.

Neill, who chairs the Commons justice committee, said he had waited to read the senior civil servant’s full report into No 10 lockdown parties before making up his mind but said he found the prime minister’s explanations for his behaviour lacked credibility.

Posting a statement on his website, the MP for Bromley and Chislehurst said: “I have listened carefully to the explanations the prime minister has given, in parliament and elsewhere, and, regrettably, do not find his assertions to be credible.

“That is why, with a heavy heart, I submitted a letter of no confidence to Sir Graham Brady on Wednesday afternoon.

“Trust is the most important commodity in politics, but these events have undermined trust in not just the office of the prime minister, but in the political process itself.

“To rebuild that trust and move on, a change in leadership is required.”