Johnson-Sunak meet amid internal Tory leadership struggle
According to reports, Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak, rivals in the Conservative party who previously led Britain’s government, met in person late on Saturday as they prepared to compete for control of their splintered ruling party.
Former prime minister Johnson met with ex-finance minister Sunak to discuss the election after returning from a Caribbean vacation earlier in the day with the intention of making a daring political comeback just weeks after leaving office, according to reports from the BBC and others.
Both have not yet made it known that they intend to compete to succeed departing leader Liz Truss, who announced on Thursday that she will step down after only 44 turbulent days in office.
It is believed to be their first in-person talks in months following a dramatic falling out after Sunak’s resignation in July, which contributed to the government uprising that finally led to Johnson’s removal.
There aren’t many specifics available about the “secret summit” The Sun and the Sunday Times said was taking place at around 10 p.m. (2100 GMT). To prevent a Tory “civil war,” they were reportedly going to talk about “agreeing to a joint ticket.”
That improbable scenario is taking place as Sunak, a 42-year-old Conservative MP, quickly surpasses the party’s minimum need of 100 nominations to run for the position of UK leader.
128 Tory legislators have publicly endorsed him, compared to 53 for Johnson and 23 for cabinet member Penny Mordaunt, who was the first to officially announce on Friday.
Despite pals stating he was “up for it,” Johnson cut short a luxurious vacation to the Dominican Republic to take part in the apparent three-way fight.
Two months after announcing his departure due to a cabinet uprising over a number of scandals, the contentious 58-year-old architect of Brexit only handed over control in the first few days of September.
Since Truss quit in the summer after she failed tax-cutting mini-budget provoked economic and political unrest, the Tories have been forced into a second, this time accelerated, leadership contest.
Rating agency Moody’s announced on Friday that it had downgraded Britain’s outlook, citing in part “heightened unpredictability in policy making” as evidence of the toll the turbulence has taken.
The pound also fell, although having recently rebounded after hitting a record low versus the dollar in the immediate wake of the mini-budget.
Politicians in the opposition and even some members of his own split ruling party have already criticized Johnson’s alleged attempt to retake power and called for stability and unification.
David Frost, a right-wing former loyal minister who Johnson promoted to the House of Lords, said, “It is just not right to risk repeating the chaos (and) confusion of the last year.”
He exhorted the Conservatives, “We must move on,” and said that they “must support a capable leader who can deliver a Conservative programme,” naming former finance minister Sunak as that leader.
Johnson’s deputy prime minister, Dominic Raab, repeated the remarks and told Sky News that an upcoming parliamentary investigation into the “Partygate” issue that hounded his former boss would prove to be too distracting.
Veteran backbencher Roger Gale has additionally cautioned that Johnson may experience a wave of resignations from lawmakers who are unwilling to work for him once more.
In the meantime, Sunak scored a huge victory when powerful right-winger and commerce minister Kemi Badenoch declared in a Sunday Times piece that “he would be a terrific leader during a time of crisis.”
In the rushed election, the 357 Conservative MPs will vote on Monday on any candidates who receive the 100 nominations, with a possible online vote of party members later in the week if two candidates are still in the running.
Johnson’s major friend and Tory MP James Duddridge, who on Friday stated his intention to run, announced on Saturday that he had now won the backing of 100 colleagues.
However, other Conservatives reacted skeptically to the assertion, with one MP telling the BBC that it was “hogwash.”
Nevertheless, a number of prominent Tories have backed Johnson, including former interior minister Priti Patel on Saturday.
After “a long talk about everything past and present,” backbench Conservative MP Lee Anderson indicated he was supporting Johnson by sharing a picture of him on the phone to his Facebook page.
The acronym and hashtag used by his followers, “bring back Boris,” were referenced by him as saying, “My email is full of BBB.”
