PMQs RECAP: Boris Johnson grilled in fiery PMQs amid leadership crisis
Mr Johnson will face off with Sir Keir Starmer and other MPs for Prime Minister’s Questions and will also seek to boost his position with Tory MPs and the public by announcing an easing of England’s coronavirus restrictions.
So far, seven Tory MPs have publicly called for Mr Johnson to go, far short of the 54 required to submit letters of no-confidence to the backbench 1922 Committee – but privately, many more believe the Prime Minister’s time is up.
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PMQs LIVE: Boris Johnson to face MPs amid leadership crisis
Keir Starmer says that the country deserves so much better than Boris Johnson
He says the PM is “out of touch, out of control, out of ideas and soon to be out of office.”
Boris Johnson says that the Conservatives have been cutting the cost of living, cutting taxes and increasing payments...
The word rattled comes to mind...
Boris Johnson seems to have found a little bit of confidence - listing party achievements when in government, with the Tory MPs lapping it up.
Sir Keir Starmer told the Commons: “Last year Her Majesty the Queen sat alone when she marked the passing of the man she’d been married to for 73 years, she followed the rules of the country that she leads.
“On the eve of that funeral, a suitcase was filled with booze and wheeled into Downing Street, a DJ played and staffed partied late into the night.
“The Prime Minister has been forced to hand an apology to Her Majesty the Queen. Isn’t he ashamed that he didn’t hand in his resignation at the same time?”
Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle, intervening, said: “We normally would not, quite rightly, mention the royal family. We don’t get into discussions on the royal family.”
Boris Johnson added: “Well in that case, Mr Speaker, I must ask (Sir Keir) to withdraw it.”
Sir Lindsay said he had dealt with it before Mr Johnson got back to his feet but was pulled back to his seat by Chancellor Rishi Sunak tugging on the Prime Minister’s jacket.
Ian Blackford: “Operation Save Big Dog has become Operation Dog’s Dinner”
He lists the stances of Boris Johnson calling his defence of “nobody told me” absolutely “pathetic”
“Over the past few days we’ve had more damaging revelations about Downing Street rule-breaking, more evidence that Parliament has been misled and an even longer list of ludicrous, absolutely ludicrous, excuses from the Prime Minister.
“First he claimed there were no parties, then he wasn’t present, then he admitted he was at them but he didn’t know it was a party and then the latest sorry excuse is really them most pathetic of them all, nobody told me … nobody told the Prime Minister he was breaking his own rules. Absolutely pathetic.
“The Prime Minister laughing once again, laughing at the British public. The Prime Minister is taking the public for fools, nobody believes him. Will the Prime Minister finally take responsibility, resign, go, Prime Minister.”
Boris Johnson replied: “No, but I thank him for his question again and let me just remind him that there’s an inquiry that is due to conclude. I believe he is wrong in what he asserts, but we’ll have to wait and see what the inquiry says.
“The most important thing from the point of view of the UK Government is that we’re coming out of the restrictions that we’ve been in. I’m delighted to see that that’s happening in Scotland as well.”
Mark Pawsey MP asks Boris Johnson to back plans for a car battery gigafactory in Coventry that will create 6,000 jobs.
Jessica Morden asks why it is so hard for the PM to understand his own rules saying that if you make the rules you obey the rules. She calls for Boris Johnson to go, the PM once again says to wait for the report next week.
Labour MP Dame Diana Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) said: “When a Prime Minister is spending his time trying to convince the great British public that he’s actually stupid rather than dishonest, isn’t it time that he goes now?”
Boris Johnson said: “I’ve made my point. I think that the British public have responded to what this Government has had to say in the most eloquent way possible.
“They have beaten Covid so far. They have helped to defeat Covid so far, with the steps they have taken, by getting vaccinated and implementing Plan B, and I thank them.”