A rising Conservative rebellion against Boris Johnson that could see the prime minister ousted over the No 10 party scandals dominates the front pages. The manoeuvring by some Red Wall Tory MPs – dubbed the “pork pie putsch” – follows a disastrous interview given by Johnson in which he says he had not lied over the Downing Street parties. The Guardian leads with “Clamour to oust Johnson grows as Tory MPs plot confidence vote”. It says Conservatives are discussing how to push out the prime minister and who should succeed him. Tory MPs from various ranks and wings of the party said they believed there would be enough letters to trigger a leadership contest after the publication of the Sue Gray report, it said. Read the full story here.
The Times has “Red wall Tory MPs team up to topple Boris Johnson”. The paper says Johnson faces a growing revolt as Conservative MPs elected in 2019 “openly plot” to remove him from office. It reports while the prime minister held meetings overnight with groups of the 2019 intake, whips were concerned the no-confidence threshold may soon be reached.
The Mirror’s take is “Porkie pie plot to ditch PM”. As many as 20 of the 2019 Tory intake reportedly plan to submit letters of no confidence in the prime minister today, the paper writes, quoting one Tory as saying “His time has gone.”
The Mail uses similar language with “Exposed: The ‘Pork Pie’ plot to topple PM” but the paper seems to offer the embattled prime minister some support. It says Plan B coronavirus curbs will be axed today and Britain is “basking in a post-Covid jobs miracle” but “panicking Red Wall MPs are turning on the man who got them elected”.
The Telegraph also mentions the axing of Covid restrictions in its lead with “Plan B to be scrapped as PM faces plot from rebel MPs” alongside a picture of a downcast Johnson wearing a mask.
The Express has “What a sorry state! New MPs plot to oust PM” saying Johnson apologises “TEN times for partygate” but still faces a rebellion.
The i newspaper plays it straight with “Tory plotters in talks to topple Boris Johnson”.
The Independent’s take is “No one warned me a party was against rules, says man who set the rules”. Its story says Johnson hung his head as he apologised in his first appearance since former aide Dominic Cummings claimed the prime minister was told the No 10 event was not work related.
The Metro has simply “Nobody told me” alongside the now familiar picture of a masked Johnson and a shot of Cummings, reporting that the former aide will give evidence to the Gray inquiry into the events at No 10.
The Sun offers up something different with its splash: “Strictly dancer Nadiya Bychkova has split from her footballer fiance”. Johnson’s troubles find a smaller spot under the masthead with the headline “Pork Pie plot to oust Bojo”.