Opposition elated as UK PM Johnson quits: 'I'm sad to give up the best job in the world'

MOMENTS after the news broke on Thursday (7) of British prime minister Boris Johnson's decision to step down as the Conservative Party leader and therefore as the premier after days of high political drama, the overwhelming reaction from different quarters was that of relief.

In his departing statement at 10 Downing Street, Johnson said, "I want you to know how sad I am to be giving up the best job in the world, the prime minister says. But them's the breaks."

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He also said, "Above all, I want to thank you, the British public, for the immense privilege you have given me." He added that he would serve till a new leader is elected.

"I've agreed with Sir Graham Brady, the chairman of our backbench MPs, that the process of chosing that new leader should begin now and the timetable will be announced next week. And I've today appointed a Cabinet to serve, as I will, until a new leader is in place," he said, the BBC reported.

Good news for country: Labour Party

The opposition Labour Party led the jubilant reaction to the imminent end of the Johnson-led Tory government, declaring it “good news for the country”.

The party pointed to recent scandals of Covid law-breaking parties in Downing Street and mis-steps over MP misconduct cases that ended in a wave of resignations from within the British cabinet, which ultimately made Johnson's position as the prime minister untenable.

“It is good news for the country that Boris Johnson has resigned as Prime Minister. But it should have happened long ago. He was always unfit for office,” said Labour Leader Keir Starmer.

“He has been responsible for lies, scandal and fraud on an industrial scale. And all those who have been complicit should be utterly ashamed. The Tory Party have inflicted chaos upon the country during the worst cost of living crisis in decades and they cannot now pretend they are the ones to sort it out. They have been in power for 12 years. The damage they have done is profound. Enough is enough,” he said.

Scotland's first minister Nicola Sturgeon tweeted there would be "a widespread sense of relief" that the "chaos" was coming to an end.

"[The] notion of Boris Johnson staying on as PM until autumn seems far from ideal, and surely not sustainable," she added, with reference to Johnson's proposed exit plan to stay in power until the Conservative Party conference scheduled for October.

Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper said Johnson would "go down in history as a lying law-breaking Prime Minister, who abused the trust and patience of the British people."

"He will leave a stain on the Conservative Party that can't be removed," she added.

But it wasn't just the opposition benches that expressed their relief at the latest developments, which had threatened to spill over into a serious constitutional crisis for the country if Johnson refused to step aside voluntarily.

Former science minister George Freeman, who quit his role earlier in protest against Johnson's leadership, is among a group of Tory MPs who believe a caretaker PM should be put in place rather than letting Johnson continue to lead the party until a new leader is elected.

“Boris Johnson needs to hand in the seals of office, apologise to Her Majesty and advise her to call for a Caretaker Prime Minister to take over today, so that ministers can get back to work and we can choose a new Conservative Leader to try and repair the damage and rebuild trust,” he tweeted.

Conservative MP Robert Buckland said "the views of colleagues" will have pushed Johnson to resign, adding "he has bowed to the inevitable".

"I am glad he recognised the damage that was being done not just to the party brand but also our international stock," said another Tory backbencher Tobias Ellwood.

UK business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng called the situation a "depressing state of affairs", saying: "So much needless damage [has been] caused."

[With agency inputs]