Boris Johnson should trigger a confidence vote in his own leadership if the Tories are trounced at polls next month, a senior Conservative MP demanded.
The Prime Minister is under mounting pressure to quit following his £50 Partygate fine and amid claims he will be hit with more fixed penalty notices.
Tory insiders fear the scandal will see the party kicked in the ballots at the May 5 local elections.
Commons Defence Select Committee chairman Tobias Ellwood - a long-time Johnson critic - urged the PM not to hide behind the “fig leaf” of war in Ukraine.
“I do hope that we won't use the war as a fig leaf to dodge these tough questions that, absolutely, we must address,” he said.
“The Prime Minister has made his intentions clear - he wants to stay - but this is bigger than the Prime Minister, it's about the reputation of the party for which all colleagues must defend.
"I believe he owes it to the parliamentary party, once the reports have concluded and the local elections have allowed the public view to be factored in, to agree to hold his own vote of confidence if those elections go badly."
He added: “We'd like to see the United Kingdom as a beacon of democracy, an exemplar on the world stage, so for me it's actually a worrying turning point when we lose sight of those high standards, as ironically they're being eroded across the world.
"Back to Ukraine, something Putin will no doubt exploit - how can a lawmaker also be a law breaker?
"This is not a good look."
Mr Ellwood also accused the Prime Minister for trying to distract from his Partygate woes by unveiled a scheme to fly asylum seekers more than 4,000 miles to Rwanda for "processing ".
Mr Johnson, his wife Carrie and Chancellor Rishi Sunak were all issued with Partygate fines over the PM's surprise birthday do in the Cabinet Room in Downing Street on June 19 2020.
The trio have all apologise but the PM and the Chancellor have refused to resign for breaking the law.
Mr Ellwood said: "He's [ Boris Johnson ] trying to make an announcement today on migration, and all of this is a massive distraction.
"It's not going away. It is a crisis. It requires crisis management. There needs to be a plan."
