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A former Cabinet minister has called for Boris Johnson to quit over the partygate scandal as the steady stream of Tory MPs withdrawing their support from the premier continues.
Jeremy Wright, a former culture secretary and ex-attorney general, said he feared Covid rule-breaking in Downing Street had done "real and lasting damage to the reputation not just of this Government but to the institutions and authority of government more generally".
Mr Wright said it is "sadly likely" that ministers will again in future have to ask the nation to comply with tough rules and restrictions and the events of partygate "makes that consent less likely".
The senior Tory MP said "moving on" civil servants or repeated apologies from the PM will not be enough to repair public trust and Mr Johnson remaining in office "will hinder" efforts to move forward.
He said in a statement posted on his website: "I have therefore, with regret, concluded that, for the good of this and future governments, the Prime Minister should resign."
It came as it was confirmed that Elliot Colburn, the Tory MP for Carshalton and Wallington, has become the latest backbencher to submit a letter to Sir Graham Brady, the chairman of the 1922 Committee, calling for a vote of no confidence in the PM's leadership.
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