Boris Johnson has decided to go but it wasn’t the opposition or the public who sounded the death knell for the soon-to-be ex-Prime Minister.
A full-scale revolt of unprecedented proportion by his own Ministers and MPs finally forced him to walk the plank and jump into the murky depths below.
In a lunch time statement outside 10 Downing Street he told waiting media "when the herd moves, it moves" and conceded "them's the breaks".
Announcing his decision to be giving up the "best job in the world" he also stated he was "immensely proud" of getting Brexit done", "reclaiming the power for the country to make its own laws" and the "vaccine rollout".
He did admit that "in politics no one is remotely indispensable" and that it was "painful not to be able to see so many projects through".
More than 50 resignations were handed over the last two days with many Tory MPs publishing their letters on social media channels for the public to see, and a number of them were high-profile members of the cabinet who were once amongst the PM’s closest party allies. Remarkably, Michael Gove was fired last night after urging Johnson to quit.
Bullish Boris had yesterday refused to go but a flood of resignations last night and a further wave of Ministers quitting this morning left him with little option.
He could have clung on to the position for some time longer, that would have been futile with his power being wrenched from him at an incredible rate over the last 48 hours. His grip on British politics and indeed his own party was hanging by a very slim and worn thread.
Looking back it would seem that the writing had been on the wall for some time, but Johnson stubbornly believed that he could again drop anchor, ride out the storm and carry on regardless.
The United Kingdom finds itself in a worrying position following Brexit, the cost of living crisis and rising inflation.
Partygate was the first nail in the coffin, when Johnson became the first sitting British PM in history to receive a fine for breaking the law, and the scandal refused to go away as revelations of further parties under his watch seemed like a weekly occurrence.
UK inflation hit a 40-year high under his watch and families are struggling to meet the rising costs of fuel, food and energy bills. Taxes are also on the rise, with Johnson yesterday desperately trying to fend off assaults at Prime Minister’s Questions in the Commons, from not only the opposition but his own backbenchers, by citing a cut in tax for the poorest in society.
The final nail in the coffin seemed to come this morning when Michelle Donelan, who had only been appointed Education Secretary hours earlier, resigned from the post. Becoming the eighth Minister to do so today.
It’s all a far cry from 2019 when Johnson and the Tories cruised to a landslide victory in the General Election, just months after being elected party leader.
Prior to becoming PM, Johnson had been a key backer of Brexit, and following the vote to leave the EU and the resignation of David Cameron, it seemed only to be a matter of time before he took on the leadership of the UK himself. However, he pulled out of the leadership race and the Tories subsequently chose Theresa May to take the reins.
When May stepped down in 2019, a head-to head leadership race between Jeremy Hunt and Johnson ended with a resounding two-thirds of Tory members voting for the latter. He promised to “get Brexit done”, and the UK formally left the EU in 2020 but not with the deal that had been expected.
Then the Covid pandemic hit and Johnson and his supporters have often been heard since proclaiming the early rollout of vaccines as their key major success as a Government. He himself spent time in hospital after being infected with the virus.
Then there was the fall out with former senior adviser Dominic Cummings.
Difficult questions also arose over a number of other issues including PPE contract awards, and who had paid for wallpaper and the refurbishment of his Downing Street abode.
He had to apologise for attending parties at lockdown in contravention of laws his own Government had passed, but seemed to repeatedly attempt to kick the issue into the long grass by delaying “Partygate” reports.
More recently a newspaper report emerged which alleged Boris had tried to secure his now wife Carrie a £150,000-a-year top job in the Foreign Office, while she was his girlfriend.
He also survived a vote of no confidence just last month but the party suffered at the polls with by-election results going against them, convincingly.
Last week Chris Pincher, the Tories’ deputy chief whip, was accused of sexually assaulting two men. Ministers who were questioned by the media were angered after being hung out to dry with Downing Street’s account of what had been known about the allegations changing a number of times.
It was the final straw for some with key cabinet Ministers Sajid Javid and Rishi Sunak leading what would become a deluge of resignations.
Still it looked as if Johnson would again ride roughshod over the tidal wave of opinion from both the public and his own party members and attempt to remain in place. Technically he could have remained in his position legally without the approval of parliament, but without the backing of MPs that would have been pointless.
But have we seen the back of Boris now? The short answer is no, he stated his intention remain in place as PM until the Conservative Party elect a new leader, which means he could still be PM until the autumn. And of course he will remain an MP, at least until the next General Election.
It also remains to be seen what roles those who remained loyal to the Prime Minister will play going forward.
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