Boris Johnson has stepped down as the United Kingdom’s prime minister on July 7 after his latest political crisis, following the resignation of key ministers and other officials.
He said he would stay on as a caretaker prime minister until his replacement is chosen by his party.
The wave of resignations started on Tuesday despite Johnson’s apology for not realising that Chris Pincher, a former minister in charge of pastoral care, was unsuitable for a job in government after complaints of sexual misconduct were made against him.
Pincher quit as deputy chief whip last week following claims that he groped two men at a private members’ club, but Johnson was told about allegations against him as far back as 2019.
Those who resigned over the scandal said they lost confidence in Johnson’s ability to govern in the national interest.
The final crisis came just weeks after Johnson survived a no-confidence vote in early June from his own Conservative Party members of parliament by 211 votes to 148.
READ MORE!
Johnson’s leadership has come under intense scrutiny after an investigator’s report in May criticised a culture of rule-breaking inside the prime minister’s office in a scandal known as “Partygate”.
The report described alcohol-fuelled bashes held by Downing Street staff members in 2020 and 2021, when coronavirus pandemic restrictions prevented UK residents from socialising or even visiting dying relatives.
Johnson, 58, has spent months battling to maintain his grip on power after the controversy saw him become the first serving UK prime minister found to have broken the law.
