Members of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s cabinet are urging disgruntled Conservative lawmakers to hold off trying to oust their leader and wait for an official probe into his attendance at a party during a Covid-19 lockdown
’s cabinet urged Conservative lawmakers, disgruntled over the prime minister’s attendance of a party during lockdown, to wait for an official probe to conclude before deciding whether to oust their leader.leave Mr. Johnson, a famed political Houdini, facing one of his toughest acts to date. Even if he does hold on to office, the 57-year-old will find himself increasingly vulnerable to emboldened factions in his party looking to dictate policy as economic headwinds mount.
Four lawmakers from his party publicly demanded he quit, but none of his cabinet members have resigned over the matter. Other lawmakers said they are awaiting a report into the events by senior civil servant Sue Gray. It is unclear whether a probe into a drinks party will prove to be the unexpected denouement to Mr. Johnson’s time in office. The terms of reference for the investigation don’t make clear whether Ms. Gray will adjudicate on whether Mr. Johnson broke the rules or simply provide a factual account of several alleged parties that took place in Downing Street during various lockdowns between May 2020 and December last year.
Much will depend on whether British public anger abates. Mr. Johnson’s explanation was met with skepticism by many Britons who were prevented from seeing dying relatives during the 2020 lockdown. With unemployment low, thanks largely to a government program that subsidized idled workers’ wages during the pandemic, Mr. Johnson’s biggest. Consumer-price inflation is forecast by the Bank of England to hit 6% in the spring, and households are also feeling the pinch from sputtering wage gains, higher energy prices and tax increases.
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