Boris Johnson escapes censorship and retains his position, but at too high a price

Boris Johnson breathe easy knowing that he will retain the position of Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. However, the disappointment of the results of the vote to which the Conservative Party internal was subjected remains, whose members determined that they still trust Johnson as their leader. There was little difference between those who supported him and those who did not: of the 359 ballots, 211 were in his favor and 148 against.

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After spending most of the day sheltered in the 10 Downing StreetJohnson stated that the result was “Okay”. “This means that as a government we can move forward and focus on the things that really matter to people.“, said.

The process to resolve this matter was started just after the holidays by the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee. Then, Graham Brady, president of the 1922 Committee -whose real name is the Conservative Committee of Private Members- announced that the minimum number of letters received had been reached -15% of the total number of members- questioning Johnson’s leadership and, therefore, his position as Prime Minister. The real figure for the disaffected turned out to be 41%.

“It must be remembered that, in the United Kingdom, the crises of the Government are related to the crises of the parties. And, in this administration, the conservative majority endured several Johnson scandals“, he says international analyst Francesco Tucci. The ‘Partygate’ -the controversy over the parties organized in Downing Street during the coronavirus lockdown– would have been too much.

he said it right Tory Roger Gale, during an interview with the Sky channel: the problems have to do with him and not necessarily with his management. Johnson is not to be trusted and therefore he voted against him. Gale also argued that there shouldn’t be too much fuss about the result because those who previously held the position and went through the same scrutiny ended up resigning, regardless of whether they had obtained a favorable result.

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Gale refers to Theresa May Y Margaret Thatcher. In 2018, May was criticized for her management of the ‘brexit’ and agreements with European Union, and therefore faced the trust process. Reuters recalls that, despite surviving the vote, it was clear that he no longer had the support of the party. Six months later, she resigned from the post of prime minister.

Johnson distances himself from his predecessor and plays with the voting numbers to ensure that he will hold on to office. “Let’s not forget that when I was elected to be the leader of the party in 2019, I did not have as much support from my colleagues“, held.

A woman campaigns for the Conservatives not to trust Johnson. EFE (ANDY RAIN/)

But history says that the chances of resignation are high. In 1989, Thatcher “I was 14 years old” leading the party when his suitability for the job was questioned. However, 84% of her peers supported her. “Heraldo” remembers that her joy only lasted a year, when a second motion was presented. That time, she won the support of an insignificant majority, but before continuing to hold on to the job, she resigned herself.

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That is why Tucci warns that what follows inside the governing party will be “an internecine war” for making Johnson resign and take his place. And there are options for the position: Pritti PatelMinister of the Interior; Michael GoveSecretary of state; Tom TugendhatForeign Affairs Speaker of the House of Commons; Penny Mordaunt, Minister of Commerce. And so, according to Tory Roger Gale, a dozen candidates who, in addition to being up to the challenge, are good people.

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A government without power?

“He is like one of those stubborn dolls that, no matter how many times they are knocked down, they stand up again”, he says about Boris Johnson Enrique Banús, director of the Institute of European Studies of the University of Piura. According to the analyst, it has taken so long to deal him a hard blow like this vote of confidence, due to three reasons. The main one: he is “an electoral locomotive”, the most successful conservative after Margaret Thatcher.

“To a certain extent, his eccentricity, which the English like so much, also worked in his favour, and that, during the war between russia and ukrainewill demonstrate leadership”, he adds.

“But, as the saying goes: the pitcher goes to the fountain so much that in the end it breaks. In other words, many events took place that left him in a bad light, and there were more and more dissatisfied people.”.

In London, while the Conservative Party was voting on whether to trust Boris Johnson’s leadership, one person held up a banner with a message against the prime minister. EFE (ANDY RAIN/)

Indeed, Johnson he took too many licenses. Last year, his former adviser Dominic Cummings revealed that he took money donated to the Conservative Party to remodel your house. Said organization, later, was accused of having favored certain companies and that some parliamentarians worked as advisers in “private companies with interests in United Kingdom”.

your trip to Mustique, a Caribbean island for millionaires only, was also the subject of investigation. Who paid for the trip of 17 thousand euros?

But the final blow was ‘party gate’. The investigations pointed out as guilty to “senior officials involved” and, although Johnson was not named, he was fined $63 for participating in “a party for his 56th birthday on June 19, 2020 in the cabinet room”.

Now the management of Boris Johnson it will be totally different because, according to Banús, his position of power has weakened. “He will govern between death rattles and will end up resigning, as happened with his predecessors. He came out of this problem, but like a boxer who wins the fight after twelve rounds”.

Source: Elcomercio