Boris Johnson faces the Partygate scandal hanging over him for months to come after MPs backed a probe into claims he misled Parliament.
The Prime Minister is now subject to three official investigations into Covid lockdown law-breaking at the heart of Government.
Tonight Tory MPs were mulling Mr Johnson’s future prompting fears at No 10 that more could publicly call for him to quit.
Veteran Tory Steve Baker, who played a key role in bringing down Theresa May, told the PM: “The gig’s up.”
Mr Johnson will now officially be investigated by the Privileges Committee over allegations he misled Parliament at least four times over Partygate.
The rattled PM today batted away questions about Partygate as “not very useful” as the scandal continued to overshadow his trip to India.
But he insisted he had “absolutely nothing, frankly, to hide” and that he had “no concerns” about the committee investigation.
After a frantic day at Westminster, a last-minute Tory bid to delay a decision to refer the PM for investigation passed unopposed.
The committee will investigate four times the PM allegedly lied by denying knowledge of lockdown parties.
It is potentially dangerous for the PM because it can ask Whitehall enforcer Sue Gray for the 300 pictures and 500 documents she obtained in her inquiry, although she could turn the request down.
If found guilty, he could even be suspended from the Commons - like War Minister John Profumo during the 1960s - in a massive blow for his leadership.
But it will not report back for months as the probe will not even start until the Metropolitan Police completes its own investigation.
It came after the Tories dramatically U-turned on their plan to kick the vote into the long-grass after dozens of disgruntled Tory MPs threatened to abstain.
Earlier, Mr Johnson had said he was “very keen” for the committee probe to go ahead, forcing his whips back home into a shambolic retreat.
After his remarks, Tory MPs were told they would get a free vote.
Labour leader Keir Starmer blasted: “ Boris Johnson has lost the trust of the public over parties held in Downing Street during lockdown.
“Now it’s clear he has lost the confidence of his MPs. Today’s humiliating climb-down showed that they know they can no longer defend the indefensible.”
SNP Leader at Westminster Ian Blackford added that Mr Johnson had “lied to avoid getting caught, and once he got caught, he lied again”.
In a blow for the PM, influential Tory Steve Baker added his name to the growing list of backbenchers calling for the PM to quit over breaking the laws he set.
“I’ve been tempted to forgive. But I have to say now the possibility of that really has gone,” he said.
“I’m sorry but for not obeying the letter and the spirit, the prime minister must be long gone... The Prime Minister should know the gig’s up.”
William Wragg, Tory chairman of the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee, used a scathing speech to confirm he had submitted a letter of no confidence in Mr Johnson’s leadership.
“I cannot reconcile myself to the Prime Minister’s continued leadership of our country and the Conservative Party,” he told the Commons.
He revealed that many Tory MPs are “struggling” with Partygate in the face of fury from their constituents.
“We bear the scars of misjudgements of leadership,” he blasted.
“There can be few colleagues who are truly enjoying being MPs at the moment.
“It is utterly depressing to be asked to defend the indefensible”.
In a sign that the discontent has spread to the House of Lords, Tory Baroness Altman joined the calls for Mr Johnson to quit.
She warned that the majority of Tory peers “in their heart of hearts” did not feel they could support Mr Johnson over his law-breaking.
Scotland Yard is investigating lockdown breaches and has already issued 50 fines, including to the PM, his wife Carrie and Chancellor Rishi Sunak.
Mr Johnson is thought to have been at six of the 12 possible rule-breaking events being considered by Operation Hillman officers Downing Street is braced for more fines in the weeks ahead.
However, the PM received a small boost when Scotland Yard announced it would not issue any more Partygate updates until after the local elections on May 5.
A Met spokesman said: “While the investigation will continue during the pre-election period, due to the restrictions around communicating before the May local elections we will not provide further updates until after 5 May.”
The move drew criticism with human rights lawyer Adam Wagner saying withholding information could influence the result.
He said: “They are missing the point that deciding not to release information will itself influence the election”.
Police could still issue fines in the next two weeks and No 10 has indicated it will say whether Mr Johnson receives more despite the pause.
Mr Johnson was unable to escape questions over the scandal on his India trip - but claimed he remained confident of leading the Tories into the next election.
“There’s not a lot more I can say and what I want to do is focus on the things that I think are a massive long-term benefit to this country,” he added.
“People were saying it looks like we are trying to stop stuff. I didn’t want that.
“I didn’t want people to be able to say that. I don’t want this thing to endlessly go on.”
Responding to Mr Baker’s call for him to quit, he added: “I understand people’s feelings. I don’t think that is the right thing to do.”
Rishi Sunak ducked questions about whether he considered quitting when he was fined, saying: “I’m focused on getting on with the job”.
Speaking from a trip to Washington, he added: “I’ve always acted, I believe, in good faith with regard to what I’ve said to Parliament”.
