Adams in campaign to prop up Johnson

The most significant snippet of information to come out yet about Sue Gray’s investigation into 'partygate' is that Martin Reynolds, Johnson’s principal private secretary, has apparently given “candid” evidence and isn’t prepared to become a scapegoat for the prime minister. This is according to a report in The Times last night from political editor Steve Swinsford and two others, so I assume it’s well sourced. Johnson is starting to look isolated.

This is from the report:

"Martin Reynolds, the prime minister’s principal private secretary, is said to have given 'candid' evidence to Gray, which could prove pivotal to Johnson’s future. 'Reynolds is not willing to be the fall guy in all of this,' one government source said."

I think it’s convincing because it confirms what a lot of other people have said about Johnson over the years. The nearer you get to him the less you like him. Nobody in Downing is closer to the PM than his PPS. 

And if I were Mr Reynolds I certainly wouldn’t have my reputation trashed for a man generally regarded as not fit to hold any kind of high public office. 

If it emerges that Johnson knew about or even instigated the party or was warned by more than one person that it went against the rules and yet told MPs in the House that there were no parties, no rules were broken and nobody warned in advance, we may get a vote of confidence as early as February. The utterly deluded occupant of No 10 is determined to battle on through it.

In a sign of how the mood is changing, Downing Street now expects Gray’s report to be much more damaging than they did a few days ago and have started to prepare for the inevitable vote of confidence.

Just how desperate things have got can be seen in the news that Nigel Adams has been drafted in to shore up the prime minister’s position: 

"The campaign to save Johnson is being led by three former whips — Chris Pincher, Chris Heaton Harris and Nigel Adams — who have always been loyal to Johnson. They have been joined by Conor Burns, who was Johnson’s parliamentary private secretary when he was foreign secretary. The operation is understood to be separate from the government whips’ office that has been carrying out its own survey of MPs, though it meets frequently in the office of Mark Spencer, the chief whip."

I'm not surprised Adams is in the forefront. He wouldn't stand a chance of a job in any other government.

And in other damaging news, we learn William Wragg, Tory chair of the commons public administration and constitutional affairs committee, is to meet Metropolitan police officers next week about claims that Tory whips 'blackmailed' MPs into voting with the government by threatening to withhold funds for their constituencies of release embarrassing stories about them to the press.

This may give Adams, Pincher and Heaton-Harris pause for thought about using strongarm tactics on members who think Johnson must go.

A spreadsheet of all 359 Tory MPs shows Johnson can count on the support of just 300 at the moment - assuming all the 300 are being honest about their intentions.  This is comfortably enough to save him losing a vote of no confidence but he would be seriously wounded as was Theresa May. Tory MPs may think it better to jettison him now rather than risk another twelve months of scandals emerging.