64% of voters believe that Boris Johnson should resign as Prime Minister even before the conclusion of the police investigation into lockdown parties held in Downing Street – according to exclusive polling we undertook on behalf of Byline Times.
Respondents were asked whether they would rather see the Prime Minister resign now or stay in his position until the publication of the results of the police investigation. A clear majority called for Johnson’s resignation.
The age bracket under 65 said they thought that Johnson should resign before the police report is published, with 72% of 25 to 34-year-olds believe that he should go immediately. Even 39% of those who voted for the Conservatives at the 2019 General Election said that they believe Johnson should resign now.
These views hardened even further, when Omnisis asked whether Johnson should resign if any laws were broken in the course of these Downing Street soirees.
When presented with this scenario, 84% of those surveyed said that Johnson should step down, including a majority in every age group, social classification and nation/region. If laws had been broken during these parties, even 70% of 2019 Conservative voters said that they would call for the Prime Minister’s resignation.
The Metropolitan Police announced earlier this week that it had now launched a formal investigation into several lockdown-breaking parties held in Downing Street and across Whitehall during the Coronavirus pandemic. This investigation was triggered by evidence provided by Sue Gray, who has been drafting a separate Cabinet Office inquiry into the events, who believes that a potential criminal offence, or offences, may have been committed.
There have been reports of the Prime Minister and his staff taking part in several gatherings on the Downing Street estate while the nation was forced to follow tough lockdown restrictions.
This includes two gatherings that reportedly took place in Downing Street on 16 April 2021 – the night before the Queen was forced to sit alone, due to COVID restrictions, at the funeral of her husband of 73 years, Prince Philip.
Read the full results
The online poll was conducted for Byline Times by Omnisis on 26th - 27th January 2022.
Image Credit: UK Prime Minister, OGL 3 <http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3>, via Wikimedia Commons