Most Suffolk politicians have welcomed Boris Johnson's decision to quit the House of Commons - although some Tories do fear its impact on the party.

And there remain a small number of fans of former Prime Minister who feel he was forced out of Downing Street and he has now fallen victim to a witchhunt.

Central Suffolk and North Ipswich MP Dr Dan Poulter was an early backer of Mr Johnson when he ran for the leadership of the party in 2019 - but felt his behaviour during and after the pandemic made his departure inevitable.

East Anglian Daily Times: Dr Dan Poulter brought Boris Johnson to Suffolk during his Conservative Party leadership campaign.Dr Dan Poulter brought Boris Johnson to Suffolk during his Conservative Party leadership campaign. (Image: Archant)

Dr Poulter said: "It (resigning as an MP) was the right thing to do. Clearly he saw what the standards committee had said and realised it was better to go like this than staying and almost certainly having to fight a by-election which he might well lose."

He said Mr Johnson had lost the trust of so many of his colleagues that it had been impossible for him to remain in Downing Street and once it sas clear that the committee did feel he had knowingly misled Parliament he had no alternative but to resign as MP.

Dr Poulter added: "To be honest it doesn't really affect the work I am doing here in Suffolk - the people I meet are more keen that the government should be concentrating on the economy, the war in Ukraine, and the NHS."

Dr Poulter also said that while by-elections could be difficult, they would not blow the government off-course.

Waveney MP Peter Aldous was one of the first MPs to call for Mr Johnson to resign as PM in February last year as the partygate revelations started to swirl.

This weekend he said: "Boris Johnson is a highly-skilled communicator and is very good at bringing people together.

"But what this all shows is the importance of probity in public life - you have to be honest and show that you are honest.

"On so many things he failed to do that. He was brought down by the three Ps - (Owen) Patterson, (Chris) Pincher and Partygate - and in the end people simply did not trust his judgement.

"If he'd fessed up and admitted his faults, even at the last, he might have been able to hang on - but his determination to try to bluff his way out let to this."

Mr Johnson does retain some supporters.

Former East of England MEP David Campbell Bannerman, who joined the Tories after originally being elected for UKIP, is now chairman of the pro-Boris Conservative Democracy Organisation. He called for the party to be rebuilt around Mr Johnson.

 

 

In a Tweet - and on BBC's Newsnight - he repeated Mr Johnson's claim that he had been sanctione by a "Kangaroo Court" of the House of Commons.

And Suffolk county councillor Nadia Cenci, a long-term backer of Mr Johnson, said the former PM had been the reason she and thousands of other Conservatives across the country had been elected in 2021.

 

 

The Conservative's political opponents were paying close attention to what was happening in the party.

Ipswich Labour candidate Jack Abbott said Mr Johnson's resignation had been a major issue on the doorsteps during Saturday morning's canvassing session.

He said: "Boris Johnson's political career is ending in disgrace.

"Good riddance to a man who has done so much damage to our country with his lies, incompetence, selfishness and fecklessness.

"But while the Conservative Party indulges in yet another civil war, the Labour Party will continue to work hard, focus on the issues affecting people everyday, and bring back stability to our county after years of chaos."