Partygate: Dominic Raab plays down leadership challenge to PM

Dominic Raab has dismissed claims Boris Johnson is about to face a leadership contest, despite growing resignation calls from Tory MPs.

Speculation is mounting that Mr Johnson could soon face a leadership ballot over widespread Covid rule-breaking in Downing Street.

Deputy PM Mr Raab said: "I don't think this ends in a leadership challenge".

It comes as Mr Johnson's ethics adviser called on him to say how his actions complied with the ministerial code.

Lord Geidt said Mr Johnson had failed to publicly set out why his fine for breaking Covid rules did not also break the rules governing ministers' behaviour, which say they must comply with the law.

Breaking the ministerial code is normally seen as a resigning matter.

In a written reply, Mr Johnson said he had not fallen foul of ministerial rules because he had not broken Covid laws on purpose.

Downing Street has not denied reports that Lord Geidt threatened to quit over the prime minister's actions, which he said in a report had undermined his role as ethics adviser.

But No 10 sources said Lord Geidt did not intend to hand in his resignation over the row.

Labour's deputy leader Angela Rayner accused the prime minister of ignoring Lord Geidt's advice, and finding himself innocent of breaching ministerial rules in "his own courtroom".

Twelve Conservative MPs have so far called on Mr Johnson to resign since Sue Gray released her report on lockdown rule-breaking in Downing Street last week.

In total, 28 have gone public with calls for a no-confidence vote in the PM, but the total number may be higher.

Under party rules, Tory backbenchers can force a vote on the prime minister's leadership if 54 of them submit letters of no confidence in him. Only Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 Committee of backbench Tory MPs, who organises leadership contests, knows how many letters have been submitted.

Senior Tory MP Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown said the row over ministerial rules would "undoubtedly contribute" to questions over the PM's leadership.

But he told BBC Radio 4 that "at the moment" he believed the Conservative Party should "leave matters as they are" and "continue with the present PM".

"You've got to actually work out whether that new prime minister is actually going to be a positive asset to the country, compared to what you've got at the moment," he added.

"As to what he's actually committed, the crimes that he's actually committed, and work out whether we should have a change or not."

Asked on BBC Breakfast whether he believed Mr Johnson would lead the Conservatives into the next election, Mr Raab replied: "Yes".

Speaking on Sky News, he added that he did not know the number of no-confidence letters sent, but he doubted it was "that high".

He said questions about whether Mr Johnson broke the ministerial code "have been answered" by the PM.