AGENCIES

Cabinet ministers gathered in Boris Johnson’s official residence yesterday to tell him to quit as British leader after he insisted he would not stand down in the face of a mounting rebellion within his party.

With more than 30 government resignations and many lawmakers in his Conservative Party in open revolt, some senior ministers were in Downing Street to tell the prime minister he needed to go, BBC, Sky News and other outlets said. At least one was there to back him if he decided to fight on.

The 58-year-old leader’s grip on power has been slipping since Tuesday night, when Rishi Sunak resigned as finance minister and Sajid Javid quit as health secretary.

Both said they could no longer tolerate the culture of scandal that has dogged Johnson for months, including lockdown lawbreaking in Downing Street.

But at the parliamentary committee, and an earlier question and answer session with MPs in parliament, he defiantly vowed to get on with the job.

“I’m not going to give a running commentary on political events,” he told the committee when asked about the cabinet delegation.

“We’re going to get on with the government of the country.”

He added: “What we need is a stable government, loving each other as Conservatives, getting on with our priorities. That is what we need to do.”

Earlier, Javid urged other ministers to resign saying “the problem starts at the top, and I believe that is not going to change”.