Sajid Javid has resigned as health secretary, telling the infamous Boris Johnson that the Conservative Party is “bigger than any individual”.
As Tory MPs begged the cabinet to remove the prime minister, Mr Javid walked out, saying: “I regret that I can no longer continue in good conscience.”
The resignation came moments after Mr Johnson broke his silence on the Chris Pincher scandal, apologizing for promoting him despite evidence of his sexual behaviour.
“The tone you set as a leader and the values you represent reflect on your colleagues, your party and ultimately the country,” Mr Javid wrote.
Moments later, Chancellor Rishi Sunak also stepped down – the end of Johnson’s premiership appears to be in sight
“The public rightly expects government to be run properly, competently and seriously,” Mr Sunak said, adding: “These standards are worth fighting for and that is why I am resigning.”
The twin resignations came after the cabinet was caught looking pale, grim-faced at its weekly meeting – prompting speculation that a revolt was imminent.
Senior Tories had called on Mr Johnson’s senior team to suspend his premiership – after No 10 admitted he knew a misconduct complaint had been upheld against the man he made deputy chief whip.
“The back bench did everything they could. It’s up to the cabinet whether they put up with it or continue to be silent,” former health minister Steve Brain told The Independent.
William Ragg, chairman of the House of Commons public administration committee, urged ministers to follow their “common sense of decency”, while John Penrose, who quit as Mr Johnson’s anti-corruption czar, suggested they would reach a point where to not be able to “protect this anymore”.
And Nick Gibb, the respected former schools secretary, compared the situation to the crisis in the US where “you worry whether democracy is safe”, as he also urged the Cabinet to act.
“We have to make sure that doesn’t happen in this country.” We need to get rid of the rot in our political system,” he told BBC Radio 4.
The co-ordinated resignations followed a devastating intervention by a former head of the Foreign Office – who revealed that Mr Johnson had been informed of the complaint against Mr Pincher in 2019.
Simon MacDonald said he was speaking out because the narrative given by Downing Street – which first claimed the prime minister was unaware of any allegations – was “not true”.
In a letter to the Parliamentary Standards Commissioner, the retired mandarin said the 2019 allegations “are similar to his conduct at the Carlton Club” – where Mr Pincher is accused of groping two men.
“Mr. Pincher defrauded me and others in 2019. He cannot be allowed to use the confidentiality of the trial three years ago to continue his predatory behavior in another context.”
However, the Prime Minister’s spokesman continued to insist that the information about Mr Pincher’s behavior was not a reason for him to be stripped of his job as deputy chief whip in charge of the Tory MP’s welfare.
The respected Institute of Government attacked the dishonesty in Number 10, calling on Cabinet Secretary Simon Case to step in and saying: “The Prime Minister’s official spokesman cannot be portrayed as a liar either.”
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