Thursday 7 July 2022 07:45 PM The rise and fall of Boris Johnson's popularity trends now
Boris Johnson has been forced out of office after a string of scandals that his critics say were primarily due to unforced errors and a lack of disciple which let incidents spiral out of control.
Political opponents were given ample ammunition to use against the PM with his rule-breaking, attempts to bluster through scrutiny and disdain for convention - allowing Keir Starmer's Labour to open up a poll lead.
In November last year, Labour and the Tories were neck-and-neck on 35 per cent support each - but Labour has maintained a consistent advantage in polling since the Partygate revelations.
Labour are currently polling at 39 per cent according to YouGov, while the Conservatives languish on 34 per cent.
After releasing the country from the first Covid lockdown, Boris's party enjoyed a massive 26-point lead - but now Labour have consistent daylight.
Johnson's popularity has taken hit after hit and has culminated in his unceremonious booting from Downing Street
Starmer has frequently used Prime Minister's Questions to brand Johnson a 'man without shame' and someone who is averse to scrutiny - coining the phrase 'one rule for them and one rule for us' to crystallise public anger at the PM and his party.
Johnson's personal ratings fare even worse, with only 23 per cent of voters approving of his premiership in its twilight - with a whopping 77 per cent saying they disapprove - despite his frantic claims of a 'personal mandate'.
These are the eight scandals and Johnson's response to them seriously dented his poll ratings less than three years after he won an 80-seat majority at the 2019 General Election...
Partygate
This is the big one for many who lost faith in Mr Johnson.
In November 30, 2021, the first story of what would become 'Partygate' broke, with reports that Downing Street staff had held three gatherings almost a year earlier, when London was under lockdown restrictions.
The story initially made few waves and the Conservatives comfortably won the Old Bexley and Sidcup by-election two days later.
Mr Johnson allegedly lied to the Commons when he insisted that rules were followed at all times in Downing Street during the pandemic in his response to the first stories.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson at a gathering in 10 Downing Street for the departure of a special adviser, which was released with the publication of Sue's Gray report into Downing Street parties in Whitehall during the coronavirus lockdown
In early 2022, Ms Gray published a censored version of her report into partygate that included several strong criticisms of Downing Street's culture
After the initial revelations, he repeated the line and also got ministers on broadcast rounds to do the same - a move that when the claim was proven false incensed his colleagues who felt they had been misled.
This perceived slight was one of the reasons listed by Sajid Javid in his resignation speech for his departure - which brought forth Johnson's demise.
Conservative attempts to seize the initiative with a series of law and order announcements dubbed 'crime week' ended with the party defending itself from allegations of law breaking.
First, a video of then-Downing Street press secretary Allegra Stratton joking about parties during a press conference rehearsal leaked. She resigned a day later and Mr Johnson apologised at Prime Minister's Questions, saying he was 'furious' about the video and appointed Cabinet Secretary Simon Case to investigate the allegations.
December 9 brought a £17,800 fine from the Electoral Commission, which found the Conservatives had improperly declared donations from Lord Brownlow towards the refurbishment of Mr Johnson's Downing Street flat.
Mr Johnson allegedly lied to the Commons when he insisted that rules were followed at all times in Downing Street during the pandemic
A video of then-Downing Street press secretary Allegra Stratton joking about parties during a press conference rehearsal leaked
Lord Geidt, the Prime Minister's adviser on standards, had previously cleared Mr Johnson of wrongdoing, but the Electoral Commission investigation uncovered WhatsApp messages that raised further questions about what the Prime Minister knew about the source of the donations.
From this point on, a steady drip of partygate stories provided a constant distraction for the Government, including photographs of Mr Johnson at a Christmas quiz and sitting in the garden of Number 10 while staff apparently drank wine and chatted.
But December 14 also brought the first concrete sign of the Prime Minister's waning authority as almost 100 of his backbenchers rebelled against new Covid-19 restrictions.
Two days later, the Liberal Democrats won the North Shropshire by-election, overturning Mr Paterson's majority of 23,000 and securing a 6,000 majority of their own.
By the end of the week, Lord Frost had resigned and Simon Case had recused himself from the partygate investigation after claims his staff had had their own Christmas party emerged.
The drip of Partygate stories including photographs of Mr Johnson at a Christmas quiz
A gathering of No.10 workers in the Downing Street gardens also incensed the public
Sue Gray took over.
The new year brought little respite for the Government.
Partygate continued with the leak of an email from Mr Johnson's private secretary Martin Reynolds inviting 100 people to a party in Downing Street while the country was still in lockdown and claims Mr Johnson had attended the gathering himself.
Those claims were confirmed at Prime Minister's Questions when Mr Johnson once again apologised and admitted attending the party, which he said he believed was a 'work event'.
More Conservative MPs called for his resignation, pushing the party's internal divisions further into the open.
Cracks within the party widened as Bury South MP Christian Wakeford defected to Labour on January 19. David Davis became the most senior Tory MP to publicly call for the Prime Minister to resign.
In early 2022, Ms Gray published a censored version of her report into partygate that included several strong criticisms of Downing Street's culture.
The damning report compounded thoughts that the PM was wholly self-centred after Ms Stratton and other junior members of staff were ousted despite his assertions that he was taking responsibility.
His meagre changes to the No.10 operation proved little respite to the braying critics.
Partygate continued with the leak of an email from Mr Johnson's private secretary Martin Reynolds inviting 100 people to a party in Downing Street
In June 2022, Mr Johnson endured but survived a no-confidence vote triggered by the Sue Gray report - but a historic 148 of his MPs voted to remove him from Downing Street
The hollow victory provided a brief respite for Mr Johnson who was not able to be challenged to another confidence vote for 12 months under the rules of the Conservative Party
In June 2022, Mr Johnson endured but survived a no-confidence vote triggered by the Sue Gray report - but a historic 148 of his MPs voted to remove him from Downing Street.
The vote was triggered after the Gray Report on Partygate resulted in suggestions that the Prime Minister had broken the Ministerial Code - what is usually a resigning issue.
This came after months of him putting off addressing the Partygate scandal due to the ongoing investigation.
This delay built hype for the much lauded report and meant that when it dropped, the calls for Mr Johnson to resign became an unwavering chorus of discord.
He won the support of just 211 MPs in one of the worst verdicts on a sitting prime minister by their own party in recent times.
The hollow victory provided a brief respite for Mr Johnson who was not able to be challenged to another confidence vote for 12 months under the rules of the Conservative Party.
The proportion of MPs voting against him was greater than those against his predecessor, Theresa May, in 2018, and against Margaret Thatcher in 1990.
Owen Paterson sleaze row
After Wallpapergate, Mr Johnson's contempt for Parliament's accountability bodies reached its zenith the following November.
On November 4, an inquiry found Conservative MP for North Shropshire Owen Paterson guilty of an 'egregious' breach of lobbying rules on behalf of two firms which had paid him £500,000.
Instead of allowing the Commons to impose a 30-day suspension on Mr Paterson, Mr Johnson attempted to change the rules on standards in public life to help his colleague in a display which confirmed Mr Johnson as a rule-breaker in the eyes of many.
Instead of allowing the Commons to impose a 30-day suspension on Mr Paterson, Mr Johnson attempted to change the rules on standards in public life to help his colleague
Paterson resigned as an MP and the Conservatives suffered a very bruising defeat in the subsequent North Shropshire by-election to the Liberal Democrats
The effort to reverse-ferret was derailed and descended into farce when veteran Tory Christopher Chope shouted 'object'
The Tories voted from to protect the former minister from his suspension.
Mr Johnson's attempt to change the rule kicked off a sleaze row which mired his Government in controversy before he backed down - and directing the Tories to reinstate Paterson's suspension.
The effort to reverse-ferret was derailed and descended into farce when veteran Tory Christopher Chope shouted 'object', forcing the government to bring a debate and vote.
Paterson resigned as an MP and the Conservatives suffered a very bruising defeat in the subsequent North Shropshire by-election to the Liberal Democrats who completed a 37 per cent - compounding fears of a 'Blue Wall' collapse amongst Tories.
Wallpapergate
The high of the vaccine rollout and the sizable poll lead that it brought Mr Johnson did not last as another scandal broke shortly after.
After a refurbishment of Johnson's Downing Street flat - led by a celebrity designer and including gold wallpaper - the Electoral Commission fined the Conservatives £17,800 for failing to accurately report a donation to pay for it.
Johnson's ethics adviser later criticised the prime minister for failing to disclose some messages exchanged with the donor. However, he concluded that Johnson had not intentionally lied about the messages.
Pictured: A design by Lulu Lytle, who is believed to have carried out the refurbishment
May 29, 2021: Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his wife Carrie Johnson in the garden of 10 Downing Street, London
In April 2021 Johnson clashed bitterly with Keir Starmer after the elections watchdog launched a formal probe into whether 'offences' have been committed in a Downing Street flat row.
A clearly incensed PM insisted he 'paid for the refurbishment myself' and had abided by the ministerial code despite the Electoral Commission saying there were 'reasonable grounds to suspect' the law might have been broken over the controversial No11 refurbishment.
Despite the scandal, the Conservatives gained Hartlepool in a by-election which continued Labour's collapse in the north on May 6.
But as Sir Keir demanded he 'answer the question' he repeatedly dodged saying whether £58,000 of Tory funds had originally been used for the works, before he repaid the money.
'I paid for it,' he said. 'I have covered the costs.'
Despite the scandal, the Conservatives gained Hartlepool in a by-election which continued Labour's collapse in the north on May 6
After the scandal had reached fever pitch, the Conservatives lost the Chesham and Amersham by-election on June 17 to the Liberal Democrats after a by-election triggered by the death of Dame Cheryl Gillan
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