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Pressure mounts on UK PM Johnson after crushing election defeats - Reuters UK
Jun 24, 2022 1 min, 20 secs

Following the losses in Tiverton and Honiton in southwest England, and Wakefield in the north, Conservative Party Chairman Oliver Dowden resigned in a carefully worded letter that hinted he believed Johnson should take responsibility for the defeats.

A Conservative party source said Johnson was not concerned about further resignations from his cabinet team of top ministers and took a swipe at the media for what they called "misreporting" of lockdown parties.

But the explanations offered by Johnson and his team may do little to ease frustration in the Conservative Party.

Although under his party's rules Johnson cannot face another confidence motion for a year, lawmakers fearing for their own futures may try to force a change to bring about a second vote.

A wave of cabinet resignations could also be another route to force Johnson out before the next national election, expected in 2024.

The by-elections were triggered by the resignations of Conservative lawmakers - one who admitted watching pornography in parliament, and another found guilty of sexually assaulting a teenage boy.

"If Conservative MPs don't wake up, I think at the next election, the voters will send them packing," the Liberal Democrats' leader, Ed Davey, said.

"This result is a clear judgment on a Conservative Party that has run out of energy and ideas," Labour leader Keir Starmer said.

British finance minister Rishi Sunak said on Friday that he was determined to continue working to tackle the cost-of-living crisis, saying they "all" took responsibility for the ruling Conservative Party's crushing by-election defeats earlier.

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