LONDON (Parliament Politics Magazine) – As he concluded his final Prime Minister’s Questions, Boris Johnson stated, “Mission largely accomplished, for now.”
The Prime Minister also took jabs at the Treasury and Twitter during his last round of questions.
Had they always listened to the Treasury, he claimed, neither the M25 nor the Channel Tunnel would have been built.
His parting words were “hasta la vista baby,” which is Spanish for “see you later” and is a line from the Terminator movie.
He was greeted by cheers and a standing ovation from his own MPs as he departed the House of Commons chamber.
However, Sir Keir Starmer of Labour focused his criticism of the candidates hoping to succeed Mr. Johnson as leader during the 45-minute session, saying that they had gotten them in that chaos and they didn’t know how to get them out of it.
What message is sent when the candidates for prime minister can’t find a single positive thing to say about him, about each other, or their record in administration, he claimed, adding that they had “trashed every part of their record in government.”
In order to criticise the government on social media, Labour has cited statements made by Liz Truss, Rishi Sunak, Penny Mordaunt, and Kemi Badenoch during the leadership debates.
Sir Keir responded by calling Mr. Johnson a “pointless human bollard” and claiming that he had opposed government policies like the health and social care tax, which was intended to raise money for the social safety net and the NHS.
During his 93rd and last round of Prime Minister’s Questions, the prime minister also provided some guidance to his successor also requesting tax cuts and deregulation wherever they could.
He continued, saying he liked the Treasury, but contended that they had a history of stymieing significant initiatives.
His remarks follow months of conflict between No. 10 and the Treasury; the former wanted to borrow more money while the latter claimed taxes should not be reduced if plans weren’t adequately supported by taxation.
In his letter of resignation, Mr. Sunak, who is now vying to succeed Mr. Johnson, claimed that his strategy was “fundamentally too different” from the prime minister’s.
The following prime minister should concentrate on the road ahead, but constantly keep in mind to check the rear-view mirror and remember over everything it isn’t Twitter that matters, it’s the people who sent them there, said Mr. Johnson.
His final words were “hasta la vista baby,” which may raise concerns about his post-prime ministerial aspirations considering that another well-known Terminator quotation is “I’ll be back.” He thanked the House of Commons employees, friends, and colleagues before ending.
Cherilyn Mackrory, one of the Conservative MPs who commended Mr. Johnson for his service, lauded “his enthusiasm for levelling up.”
Sir Edward Leigh said “on behalf of the 17.4m people who voted Brexit, may I thank him for restoring people’s belief in democracy”.
The leader of the SNP in Westminster, Ian Blackford, claimed he would be regarded by the people of Scotland as “shameful” and “disgraceful.” Opposition MPs, on the other hand, were less forgiving.
Claire Hanna of the SDLP charged that Mr. Johnson was the very definition of excess and vice and had “systematically destroyed” trust.
PMQs came to a close, and Conservatives immediately started voting for the two people who could succeed him.
Along with Mr. Sunak, Ms. Mordaunt, the trade minister, and Ms. Truss, the foreign secretary, are still in the running. However, when the results are made public at 16:00 BST, one of them will be eliminated.
Party members will vote on the final two candidates, with the results due on September 5. Prime Minister Boris Johnson will continue in office until the new PM is elected.
