A government in pieces, already in fact in crisis. Boris Johnson is with one foot in the pit, perhaps both of them, after three years at 10’s Downing Street: overwhelmed by scandals and abandoned by two 90s from the Tory cabinet (and potential aspirants to succession) as the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunakholder of economic policy, e Sajid Javid, Minister of Health. “I’m sorry, I will miss working with you,” Johnson wrote.
The straw that broke the camel’s back is there Boccaccio affair which has invested a key ally of the premier, the much talked about Chris Pincher, forced by the Sun’s revelations to resign from the strategic position of ‘deputy chief whip’ after getting drunk in a London gentlemen’s club and “groping” two men, including a deputy. A scandal once again badly managed by Number 10, according to the rising wave of detractors. And on which BoJo – already stumbled in recent months in embarrassing missteps like that of the Partygate – was forced to admit that he was personally informed at least on one of the many previous suspicions circulated about his praetorian when he was deputy foreign minister among the 2019 and 2020; to publicly apologize again; to swear that there can be no room in the government for any “sexual predator”, gay or straight; to define “a mistake” the failure to torpedo Chris since two years ago.
After the resignation of the two ministers, Johnson appointed the substitutes: Nadhim Zahawi, currently in education, becomes Chancellor of the Exchequer, while Steve Barclay, Downing Street chief of staff, goes to Health.