Barrow MP urges Prime Minister Boris Johnson to resign

Simon Fell said he has ‘reached the end of his tether’ and has urged the PM to hand in his resignation.

Mr Fell joins emphatic calls for the Tory leader to step down after the resignations of chancellor Rishi Sunak and health secretary Sajid Javid on Tuesday evening.

Their resignations mean that 28 ministers have quit from Mr Johnson’s Government since he took office.

Mr Fell said in a letter: “Today I called for the Prime Minister to resign. That’s not a sentence I ever hoped or expected to write but I’ve reached the end of my tether, and it’s clear from speaking to many of you that you feel the same way.

“The Prime Minister broke the logjam in parliament and delivered a Brexit deal. He steered the ship at an incredibly difficult time during the pandemic and led a vaccine programme that we should be very proud of. He has focussed the Government on levelling up the North. He has stood side by side with President Zelensky during the illegal invasion of Ukraine. And he’s backed Dreadnought and our nuclear industry. I will always be grateful to him for those things.

“But he has also eroded trust in politics to a fatal degree. We can’t dismiss that at any time, but certainly not when people are reliant on us - and the decisions we make in Westminster on their behalves - more than ever. I’ve written before that trust is a fragile thing, and I meant it. Once it’s lost, there’s no going back.

“We have an opportunity to make a fresh start, to put all this unnecessary distraction behind us, and to use all that energy to get back to delivering for the people who put their faith in us back in 2019. I was elected to fight for Barrow & Furness and that remains my focus. We have a huge opportunity to change our community for the better, and I am determined to spend my time doing just that.”

The resignations of Mr Sunak and Mr Javid came as Mr Johnson was forced into a humiliating apology over his handling of the Chris Pincher row after it emerged he had forgotten about being told of previous allegations of ‘inappropriate’ conduct.

Mr Pincher quit as deputy chief whip last week following claims he groped two men at a private members’ club but Mr Johnson was told about allegations against him as far back as 2019.

The Prime Minister acknowledged he should have sacked Mr Pincher when he was told about the claims against him when he was a Foreign Office minister in 2019 but instead Mr Johnson went on to appoint him to other government roles.

South Lakes MP Tim Farron said he had ‘little sympathy’ for those speaking out against the PM now when Tories ‘remained silent’ during revelations of lockdown breaches seven months ago.

He said: “The Tories are coming out and speaking against the Prime Minister but you’ve got to ask why they didn’t say enough was enough in December when it was made clear that the rules didn’t apply to him.

“It’s time for Mr Johnson to go.”

Executive Committee members of Barrow and Furness Labour Party said the people of Barrow 'deserve better'.

Steve Nott said: "Whilst people may welcome these resignations and try to spin it as cabinet members displaying integrity and principles it must be noted this has only come after two years of inept leadership and mismanagement."

Bev Morgan said: "This appears more about saving political careers than integrity. It wasn't that long ago that they were publicly crowing about confidence in the PM."

Connor McPhail said: "The fact Sunak and Javid chose now to tender their resignations suggests they do not care for integrity and honesty as they so claim but rather wish to position themselves for a future leadership contest, making them essentially acts of self interest."

Gary Robinson said: "Fell’s comments as Johnson has one foot out of door is too little too late. This type of indecision is an embarrassment. The people of Barrow and Furness deserve better. And they will get when Labour takes this seat back at the next election I can assure you of that."