Four More Resignations Rock Johnson's Government Ahead of Wednesday PMQs
07:52 GMT 06.07.2022 (Updated: 15:20 GMT 28.05.2023)
© AP Photo / John Sibley
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On Tuesday Boris Johnson had to shore up his Cabinet after the shock resignation of two of his most senior ministers – Sajid Javid and Rishi Sunak. The UK Health Secretary and the Chancellor quit within 10 minutes of each other, claiming they could 'no longer support' the Prime Minister amid fallout from the latest scandal rocking No 10.
UK Treasury Minister John Glen has announced he is quitting with "deep regret".
In a letter to the prime minister, he revealed that "poor judgement" over the appointment of Chris Pincher made it "impossible to square continued service with my conscience". he added the country "deserves better".
With deep regret I am resigning from the government.
— John Glen MP (@JohnGlenUK) July 6, 2022
I will not be doing media interviews regarding this. pic.twitter.com/IT0C50g8My
Before that, Robin Walker resigned as schools minister, saying he no longer has faith in PM's leadership. The MP for Worcester posted his resignation letter on social media this morning.
Will Quince, a junior education minister, also joined a wave of shock resignations from Boris Johnson’s Cabinet.
"With great sadness and regret, I have this morning tendered my resignation to the prime minister after I accepted and repeated assurances on Monday to the media which have now been found to be inaccurate,” the Minister for Children and Families stated.
With great sadness and regret, I have this morning tendered my resignation to the Prime Minister after I accepted and repeated assurances on Monday to the media which have now been found to be inaccurate.
— Will Quince MP 🇬🇧 (@willquince) July 6, 2022
I wish my successor well - it is the best job in government. pic.twitter.com/65EOmHd47p
On Monday, Quince had defended Boris Johnson over what he knew about disgraced suspended Tory MP Chris Pincher and sexual misconduct allegations against him. He had been given a categorical assurance" by No 10 that the Prime Minister was not aware of any “specific” allegation made against ex-deputy chief whip Christopher Pincher before appointing him to the Government role, Quince had said.
On Wednesday, however, Will Quince quit, saying he had “no choice” after using “false” information from No 10 in interviews.
In his resignation letter, the ex-minister revealed he had spoken to Johnson the night before and the PM had delivered a “sincere apology”. But, Quince stated, he felt duty bound to walk away after repeating to the media what he was told by No 10 “in good faith”.
The resignation of the Member of Parliament for Colchester came minutes after Laura Trott, who was a parliamentary private secretary at the Department of Transport, also stepped down.
"I want to update you all, that I have resigned from my role as Parliamentary Private Secretary, to the Department of Transport. Trust in politics is - and must always be - of the upmost importance, but sadly in recent months this has been lost. Thank you to all of you who have written to me expressing your views. I have read them carefully, and taken them into consideration as part of my decision," she said in a statement..
The latest two resignations are part of a wave that was triggered last night after Health Secretary Sajid Javid and Chancellor Rishi Sunak stepped down.
On Tuesday night, embattled Boris Johnson, who had survived a no confidence vote earlier over the “Partygate” row, found his situation increasingly precarious again.
The Health Secretary and the Chancellor walked away just minutes after the Prime Minister admitted on an interview he should not have appointed now-suspended Tory MP Chris Pincher as deputy chief whip in February after claims the MP groped two men at a private club last week. The row over No 10’s handling of the controversial allegations had erupted with fresh force amid a slew of revelations regarding Pincher’s previous conduct. Questions were asked regarding the extent of the PM’s knowledge of the claims and how the MP had every gotten appointed to the key government role.
Responding to the resignations last night, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said:
“If they [ministers] had a shred of integrity they would have gone months ago. The British public will not be fooled. The Tory party is corrupted and changing one man won’t fix that. Only a real change of government can give Britain the fresh start it needs.”
Lib Dem leader, Sir Ed Davey, appearing on BBC Breakfast, called upon the Conservatives to do their “patriotic duty” and “get rid of Boris Johnson today”.
Boris Johnson appeared to indicate on Tuesday night that he had no intention of quitting, as he carried out a speedy Cabinet reshuffle, while a succession of junior ministers followed in the wake of the two bombshell resignations and also walked away.
