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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Politics
Katie Weston

Boris Johnson's ex slams PM and reveals 'what he REALLY thinks about Tory voters'

Boris Johnson 's ex-girlfriend Petronella Wyatt has accused the Prime Minister of "not caring about the electorate".

The journalist, who had a four-year affair with Mr Johnson while they worked at The Spectator magazine, claimed he told her several times that he "regards Tory voters with contempt".

She tweeted: "Boris doesn’t care about the electorate. He regards Tory voters with contempt, and told me so on several occasions."

Her comments come as Mr Johnson defies calls to resign despite a fresh wave of ministerial resignations, following the exit of Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Health Secretary Sajid Javid last night.

A total of 21 MPs have now resigned their positions as ministers, parliamentary private secretaries, trade envoys or Tory party vice-chair since 6pm on Tuesday.

The journalist claimed the PM told her several times that he "regards Tory voters with contempt" (Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

Previously on Good Morning Britain, Ms Wyatt predicted her ex-lover's premiership would turn sour, and said he was in a “mess of his own making”.

She told the programme last month: "He’s very much a people pleaser, which leads to all sorts of problems in government, because he makes promises he can’t keep, he makes enemies of MPs.

“While you can do that in your personal life, it catches up with you in politics.”

She added: “He hates confrontation. He hates rows. He doesn’t like telling people anything unpleasant.

Petronella Wyatt's tweet (PetronellaWyatt/Twitter)

"In politics you have to be more grown up about it and you have to grit your teeth in the way Margaret Thatcher did, in the way John Major, [Tony] Blair and even Theresa May.

“His qualities are very endearing but they’re not necessarily the qualities of a great Prime Minister.”

At Prime Minister's Questions, Mr Johnson said the "colossal mandate" he had been handed by voters in 2019 means he should keep going despite the "difficult circumstances" he faces.

His appearance came as a wave of Government ministers quit on Wednesday.

Her comments come as Mr Johnson defies calls to resign despite a fresh wave of ministerial resignations (Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Tory Tim Loughton asked Mr Johnson in the Commons if there are "any circumstances" in which he should resign.

The Prime Minister replied: "Clearly if there were circumstances in which I felt it was impossible for the Government to go on and discharge the mandate that we have been given or if I felt, for instance, that we were being frustrated in our desire to support the Ukrainian people... then I would.

Boris Johnson and Petronella Wyatt at the Spectator Magazine Summer Party in July 2006 (Alan Davidson/REX/Shutterstock)

"But frankly the job of a Prime Minister in difficult circumstances when he has been handed a colossal mandate is to keep going, and that's what I'm going to do."

But Tory MP Gary Sambrook told Mr Johnson directly: "There is nothing left for him but to take responsibility and resign," while former Cabinet minister David Davis called on the PM to "put the interests of the nation before his own interests".

Mr Johnson and his wife Carrie on the first day of the G7 summit on June 26 (Getty Images)

The Prime Minister stayed in the Commons chamber as former health secretary Mr Javid set out the reasons for his resignation, saying Mr Johnson was not going to change and "enough is enough".

Mr Javid said: "Treading the tightrope between loyalty and integrity has become impossible in recent months. I will never risk losing my integrity."

He said "the problem starts at the top and I believe that is not going to change".

In a message to Cabinet ministers who decided not to quit, he said: "Not doing something is an active decision.

"I'm deeply concerned about how the next generation will see the Conservative Party on our current course. It is incumbent on all of us to set high standards for ourselves and to take action when they are not met by others."

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