BSS :
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson suffered four staff defections on Thursday as pressure intensified on the embattled leader over lockdown parties and his loose-lipped style of politics.
One of the departures was linked to an inflammatory remark made by Johnson, attacking opposition Labour leader Keir Starmer over a notorious paedophile.
“Being honest, I wouldn’t have said it and I’m glad the prime minister clarified it,” finance minister Rishi Sunak said in an extraordinary rebuke of his boss during a televised news conference.
Sunak is tipped as a leading contender to replace Johnson, if a brewing Conservative revolt against the prime minister develops further.
Downing Street confirmed that chief of staff Dan Rosenfield was leaving, just over a year after he took on the role with a brief to professionalise Johnson’s chaotic operation.
His resignation comes after a top civil servant, in a long-awaited inquiry, this week condemned “failures of leadership” in Downing Street over a series of parties held in violation of Covid restrictions.
Also going is Johnson’s “principal private secretary”, Martin Reynolds, who sent a now-notorious email in May 2020 urging Downing Street staff to “bring your own booze” to one lockdown gathering.
Johnson “thanked them both for their significant contribution to government and No 10, including work on the pandemic response and economic recovery”, a spokesperson said.
