London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Oct 24, 2025

Time to draw a line under Partygate, Boris Johnson tells cabinet

Time to draw a line under Partygate, Boris Johnson tells cabinet

Boris Johnson has promised to cut taxes and government waste after surviving an attempt by his own MPs to oust him.

The prime minister thanked ministers for their support in a confidence vote, which saw 41% of Tory MPs saying they had lost faith in him.

He urged them to "draw a line" under questions about his leadership and vowed a return to "fundamental" Tory economic policies.

The number of rebels in Monday night's vote was higher than predicted.

And some Conservative MPs are still publicly calling on him to quit over widespread Covid rule-breaking in Downing Street.

Tobias Ellwood, a longstanding critic of the PM, said the "honourable way forward" would be for him to "step back" and accept that the task of uniting the Conservative Party to win the next general election is "too big".

But he added: "We have to deal with the reality that those days of an honourable resignation are not there."
Senior government figures have come out to defend Mr Johnson, including Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab who said there was "no credible alternative" to the prime minister.

And backbencher Philip Davies - who voted against Mr Johnson on Monday - said: "The prime minister won fair and square. My view is that you've got to accept the result. If you lose a vote, you accept it. That's the whole point of democracy."

The PM has also received support from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who told a Financial Times event he was "very happy" the UK leader had remained in post.


The prime minister may want to draw a line under questions over his leadership - but many of his MPs are not willing to do so.

Senior MPs have told the BBC that there would be significant pressure on the 1922 committee to change the current rules - which protect the prime minister from another confidence vote for 12 months.

Rebels believe if the Conservatives lose the two by-elections being held later this month, in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, and Tiverton Honiton, in Devon - that will prompt a new leadership crisis.

They also believe the scandal over lockdown parties in Downing Street is far from over, with the Commons privileges committee still to look into whether the PM misled Parliament when he denied parties had been held in downing street and insisted all rules had been followed.

That could unearth new evidence - and the conclusions could be highly damaging.

Last night's confidence vote result does not resolve the debate on Boris Johnson's future.

As one senior backbencher put it, it means the prime minster thinks he can stay on - but the rebels think they are within touching distance of bringing him down.

In the confidence vote, triggered by Partygate, Mr Johnson was backed by 211 Conservative MPs, but 148 voted to remove him.

Mr Johnson hailed this as a "decisive" victory - and on Tuesday morning told a cabinet meeting his "fundamental Conservative instinct" was to allow people to decide how to spend their money.

He urged cabinet ministers to find ways to make savings and told them "delivering tax cuts" would help deliver "considerable growth in employment and economic progress".

But Labour's shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said Mr Johnson did not have "any sense of honour" and should resign.

Speaking to BBC News, she said Tory MPs who voted to keep the PM in office were "just not listening to the scale of frustration and anger across the country".

"There's really got to be some consequences when someone just isn't telling the truth, isn't fit for office, isn't taking the action the country needs".


Mr Johnson won the confidence of 59% of his MPs, however, his critics have noted that his predecessor Theresa May secured the support of 63% when she faced her own confidence vote but was still forced out of office six months later.

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey described Mr Johnson as a "lying lawbreaker" who was "clinging on by the skin of his teeth" while SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford likened him to a "dead man walking".

"Whether it's by Tory MPs finally acting in a responsible manner or indeed the Privileges Committee taking action against him, he will be gone," Mr Blackford said.


Watch: Time to draw a line and take country forward - PM to Cabinet


Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Microsoft AI CEO: ‘We’re making an AI that you can trust your kids to use’ — but can Microsoft rebuild its own trust before fixing the industry’s?
China and Russia Deploy Seductive Espionage Networks to Infiltrate U.S. Tech Sector
Apple’s ‘iPhone Air’ Collapses After One Month — Another Major Misstep for the Tech Giant
Graham Potter Begins New Chapter as Sweden Head Coach on Short-Term Deal
Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa Alleges Poison Plot via Chocolate and Jam
Lakestar to Halt External Fundraising as Investor in Revolut and Spotify
U.S. Innovation Ranking Under Scrutiny as China Leads Output Outputs but Ranks 10th
Three Men Arrested in London on Suspicion of Spying for Russia
Porsche Reverses EV Strategy as New CEO Bets on Petrol and Hybrids
Singapore’s Prime Minister Warns of ‘Messy’ Transition to Post-American Global Order
Andreessen Horowitz Sets Sights on Ten-Billion-Dollar Fund for Tech Surge
US Administration Under President Donald Trump Reportedly Lifts Ban on Ukraine’s Use of Storm Shadow Missiles Against Russia
‘Frightening’ First Night in Prison for Sarkozy: Inmates Riot and Shout ‘Little Nicolas’
White House Announces No Imminent Summit Between Trump and Putin
US and Qatar Warn EU of Trade and Energy Risks from Tough Climate Regulation
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Nicolas Sarkozy begins five-year prison term at La Santé in Paris
Japan stocks surge to record as Sanae Takaichi becomes Prime Minister
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
Shouting Match at the White House: 'Trump Cursed, Threw Maps, and Told Zelensky – "Putin Will Destroy You"'
Windows’ Own ‘Siri’ Has Arrived: You Can Now Talk to Your Computer
Thailand and Singapore Investigate Cambodian-Based Prince Group as U.S. and U.K. Sanctions Unfold
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Chinese Tech Giants Halt Stablecoin Launches After Beijing’s Regulatory Intervention
Manhattan Jury Holds BNP Paribas Liable for Enabling Sudanese Government Abuses
Trump Orders Immediate Release of Former Congressman George Santos After Commuting Prison Sentence
S&P Downgrades France’s Credit Rating, Citing Soaring Debt and Political Instability
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
Diane Keaton’s Cause of Death Revealed as Pneumonia, Family Confirms
Former Lostprophets Frontman Ian Watkins Stabbed to Death in British Prison
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Outsider, Heroine, Trailblazer: Diane Keaton Was Always a Little Strange — and Forever One of a Kind
Dramatic Development in the Death of 'Mango' Founder: Billionaire's Son Suspected of Murder
Two Years of Darkness: The Harrowing Testimonies of Israeli Hostages Emerging From Gaza Captivity
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
HSBC Confronts Strategic Crossroads as NAB Seeks Only Retail Arm in Australia Exit
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
×