UK MPs fire warning shot at Johnson in Covid vote

LONDON: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday defended his record on tackling the coronavirus pandemic, after nearly 100 of his own MPs broke ranks and rebelled against new restrictions.

The rebellion was the second biggest by Conservative lawmakers since they voted against his predecessor Theresa May's Brexit deal in 2019.

Even though the measures to combat the spread of the Omicron variant passed, the scale of the resistance surprised many and gave a clear message about Johnson's leadership and authority.

In parliament, main opposition Labour leader Keir Starmer said Johnson was "the worst possible prime minister at the worst possible time" and "too weak to lead".

"His own MPs have had enough. They won't defend him. They won't turn up to support him. They won't vote for basic public health measures," he said.

Johnson, who has warned of a "tidal wave" of Omicron that could overwhelm health services, said he understood the "legitimate anxieties" of colleagues.

But he added: "I believe the approach we are taking is balanced and proportionate and right for this country."

Johnson will be well aware of the implications for such a haemorrhaging of support: Tory MPs forced an internal vote of no confidence in May and she had to quit.

Conservative lawmakers indicated that they were not yet at that stage.

But Mark Harper, May's former enforcer in parliament, told

Times Radio

it was "a very clear message that colleagues are not happy" with the government at the moment.

Conservative MP Geoffrey-Clifton-Brown said Johnson, who secured the Tories an 80-seat majority at the last general election, needed to listen.

If he failed to do so, he could face a leadership challenge in the new year, he added.

- Mounting scandals - The Tory rebellion could not have come at a worse time, with the party having taken a battering in recent weeks by a series of scandals.

But it could get worse if the they lose a by-election in the safe seat of North Shropshire, in central England, on Thursday.

Many people in the constituency said they would vote on Johnson's recent record, just two years after his thumping general election victory on a pledge to "Get Brexit Done".

"This man is not fit to be prime minister," voter Garry Churchill, 71, told AFP. "I can't imagine why people would vote for the Conservative candidate in this by-election."

The by-election was prompted by the resignation of Conservative MP Owen Paterson over breaches of parliamentary lobbying rules.

Johnson caused outrage by trying to change parliament's disciplinary procedure to spare Paterson a 30-day suspension and was forced into an embarrassing U-turn.

He is also facing claims of dodgy dealing after an electoral watchdog fined the Conservatives for failing to declare who paid for a lavish decoration of his official flat.

That compounded accusations of cronyism following reports that wealthy party donors were given plum seats in the upper

House of Lords

.

- 'Cry of pain' - Johnson's overall handling of the government's response to the coronavirus pandemic, however, has come under the most scrutiny, with 146,000 deaths and high infection rates.

Public health messaging and compliance have been undermined by claims government staff held parties last Christmas, despite telling the public to cancel theirs.

For many Tories, new measures against Omicron, particularly vaccine passes for nightclubs and sports venues, were an unacceptable assault on public freedoms.

Charles Walker of the powerful 1922 Committee of backbench Conservative MPs said his colleagues were "putting a marker down" by voting against the government.

"It was a cry of pain from the Conservative Party," he told the BBC.

Awkwardly for a government with such a large majority, Johnson had to rely on Labour support on Tuesday to get the votes passed.

Starmer said Labour had shown leadership but Johnson now had to consider whether he has "the trust and authority to lead".