Peston suggests that Boris might be preparing the ground to flounce out of the cabinet
Could this be BoJo’s Heseltine moment?
In an interesting Facebook post under the heading ““Is Boris preparing to flounce out of the cabinet?” Robert Peston ponders the question of whether we are seeing the Foreign Secretary prepare the ground for a bid at the leadership.
This is, of course, in the context of Johnson’s demand, reported in the Times this morning, for an extra £5bn for the NHS. Peston concludes:
“..If Johnson feels his best chance of becoming leader would be by first preparing the ground from the back benches, the principled reason for resigning – in order to win back the support of sceptical colleagues – would be because the prime minister is offering the wrong kind of Brexit.
And his personal manifesto pledge would be the late delivery of that £350m for hospitals!”
Certainly the longer that TMay remains at number 10 the bigger the challenge facing Johnson if he wants to go for the job. As time passes other names could come into the frame and strategically it is probably better for him if the challenge comes before Brexit has happened. It certainly makes sense in that context for him to be seen to be the one making the move.
Remember he was the strong favourite to succeed in the weekend after the election when TMay had lost the Tories their majority.
Ladbrokes have Boris at 5/1 for next Cabinet exit – Paddy Power offer 6/1.