Liz Truss resigns as PM after just 45 days in Downing Street
Boris Johnson could formally enter the race to replace Liz Truss in Downing Street, with a campaign source reportedly claiming he has secured the necessary backing of 100 Tory MPs.
The number to have publicly declared support for the disgraced former prime minister is roughly half of that, however, and he trails significantly behind the more than 110 openly supporting his former chancellor Rishi Sunak – who is also yet to officially stand in the quick-fire leadership contest.
Mr Johnson’s hopes for a dramatic return to No 10 – after flying back overnight from a Caribbean holiday on Saturday – were dealt a further blow, as leading Brexiteer Lord David Frost backed Mr Sunak and warned the Conservative Party must “move on” or “risk repeating the chaos and confusion of the last year”.
His former deputy Dominic Raab, who is among those backing Mr Sunak, warned that electing Mr Johnson would plunge the government back into “the Groundhog Day ... the soap opera, of Partygate” – given that he faces a parliamentary inquiry over the scandal.
