So it isn't even this that sunk him with his own MPs, though, it was appointing Chris Pincher as a whip. Which to a lot of us at the time probably seemed kind of odd, as far as straws that break camel backs go. Why was that the breaking point?Hopefully Tory MPs who are on the fence will remember how unpopular he’d become and the Downing Street parties were a huge part of that but there was his attempt to protect Patterson Twaterson from appropriate sanctions which played a significant role in undermining his support prior to Partygate. It would be poetic justice if those MPs who were uncomfortable with him playing fast and loose with Paterson’s indiscretions are the ones to stick a knife in his back. Maybe they’ll be seeing a glimmer of hope that the relative stable government now in place will prevent a complete wipe out of the Tories at the next election and they don’t want Johnson around muddying the waters.
Well, a couple of months ago I [Glasgo-voice] met a guy who regularly plays poker with some Tory spads, [/Glasgo-voice] and he told me why Pincher was so radioactive. Way, way worse than getting handsy in Strangers' Bar. I'd be specific but don't want to open up the forum to any kind of libel proceedings, but fair to say that rewarding him with any kind of power was about as provocative and insulting an act he could have done when it came to his own party.
If there's a free vote I don't anticipate much of that fury having dissipated.