British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was dealt a massive blow when four of his top ministers announced their resignations, saying they could no longer work for a government drowning in scandals.
The abrupt resignations leave Johnson fighting for his political survival.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak, the finance minister, and Sajid Javid, the health minister, both announced they would be stepping down from their senior ministerial positions in letters posted on Twitter. The two now ex-ministers posted their resignations within minutes of each other on Tuesday evening.
Sunak and Javid’s letters both took aim at Johnson’s ability to run an administration that adhered to standards.
In another blow to Johnson, Will Quince, the education minister, tendered his resignation on Wednesday morning, as did schools minister Robin Walker.
The resignations come as Johnson continues to apologize for appointing a lawmaker to a role involved in offering pastoral care even though he had been briefed that the politician had sexual misconduct accusations against him.
The resignations came only minutes after Johnson appeared on television to apologize for appointing Christopher Pincher to the role, his latest public expression of contrition for his mistakes.
Quince defended Johnson mere days before over Pincher’s conduct after being given inaccurate “assurances” from No 10. His resignation came after wrongly claiming Johnson was not aware of “specific” allegations made against Pincher, the former chief whip.
In his statement, Quince said he was resigning because he accepted and repeated assurances to the media that were inaccurate.
Today, another minister at the Department for Education, Robin Walker, also announced his resignation, saying the government has been “overshadowed by mistakes and questions about integrity.” Walker said the government was now making too many mistakes to remain a part of Johnson’s team.
Sunak and Javid’s resignations marked the first so far within the top cabinet team to resign, with Quince’s quickly following, making it four top ministers in under 24 hours.
There have been multiple other resignations recently. Three other lawmakers quit their government roles, and a trade envoy also resigned, as did a vice-chairman of the Conservative Party.
The growing pile of resignations comes after months of scandals and missteps. Johnson has managed to cling onto power and weather a storm of criticism over damning reports into parties at his Downing Street residence and office that broke his own strict Covid lockdown rules.
In addition to “Partygate,” there have been other policy U-turns, an ill-fated defense of another lawmaker who broke lobbying rules, and extreme public anger for failing to address the cost-of-living crisis. Sunak and Javid had previously publicly supported Johnson, but in their letters, they said enough was enough.
Sunak reportedly clashed with Johnson in private about government spending. In his letter, he said that for him to step down as Chancellor of the Exchequer while the world suffers the economic consequences of the Covid pandemic, the Russian war in Ukraine, and other serious challenges, “is a decision that I have not taken lightly.”
“The public rightly expects the government to be conducted properly, competently, and seriously,” Sunak said, adding that these standards are “worth fighting for” and that is why he is resigning.
Javid pointed to a loss of confidence in Johnson by both lawmakers and the public.
“It is clear to me that this situation will not change under your leadership – and you have therefore lost my confidence too,” Javid said.
The resignations caused a drop of the pound, falling to a two-year low.
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