Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson pictured inside 10 Downing Road in London, England, on June 6. (Alberto Pezzali/AFP/Getty Photographs)
With the destiny of his premiership within the arms of his Conservative associates and foes, Boris Johnson has begged Tory MPs to help him in Monday night’s confidence vote.
In a letter to his occasion members forward of the vote, he requested for the “golden likelihood to place this behind us” and to maneuver ahead as “one united occasion,” reflecting on the ruling occasion’s journey by Brexit, the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine warfare.
Johnson additionally outlined the plans he nonetheless intends to fulfil, resembling his “levelling up” agenda, which goals to extend financial prosperity throughout all areas of the UK.
Right here is the textual content of his letter in full:
Tonight we now have the prospect to finish weeks of media hypothesis and take this nation ahead, instantly, as one united occasion.
Tonight is the second to attract a line below the problems our opponents need us to speak about — and to focus as a substitute on what actually issues: the wants of the voters who despatched us to Westminster.
I’m asking you on your help tonight as a result of I understand how a lot we will obtain collectively.
Collectively, we received the largest mandate for the Conservative Get together in 40 years. As we promised, we resolved the lengthy Brexit disaster and created a brand new and pleasant relationship with the European Union.
When the UK was hit by the worst international pandemic for a century, we confirmed the drive and grip to ship the primary accredited vaccine wherever on the planet adopted by the quickest vaccine roll-out in Europe.
It was as a result of we took robust however accountable selections through the pandemic that we have been capable of reopen our economic system speedily — with the end result that we now have the bottom unemployment since 1974.
And we took the robust resolution to turn out to be the primary European nation to assist the Ukrainians to guard themselves in opposition to Russian aggression; and I’m happy with the management the UK has proven.
From tackling social care to hanging an financial and migration partnership with Rwanda, we now have proven repeatedly that we will be trusted to ship daring and progressive options to troublesome and longstanding issues.
I say all this not as a result of I need to take satisfaction in previous achievements, however as a result of now could be the time to pay attention each ounce of that very same power and drive on the priorities of the British individuals.
As the entire world struggles with the financial affect of (Vladimir) Putin’s aggression, we now have already taken decisive motion — simply as we took decisive motion throughout Covid — to defend the general public from the power worth spike.
We’re serving to eight million of essentially the most weak households with £1,200 of help, amid many different measures.
We will do that as a result of we now have the fiscal firepower to assist, due to the robust — and contested — selections we took throughout Covid. We’re discovering the money as a result of we’re compassionate Conservatives, and since it’s the proper factor to do.
However we additionally know that you just can’t simply spend your means out of inflation, and you can’t tax your means into progress.
Over the subsequent few weeks Rishi (Sunak) and I will likely be setting out all of the methods by which we will likely be utilizing Conservative rules to reap the benefits of our new freedoms, reduce prices, and drive progress.
We are going to reduce the prices of presidency. We are going to reduce the prices of enterprise. And we’ll reduce the prices of households up and down the nation.
From Transport to Childcare to Vitality to Housing — we’ll drive reform and discover methods of decreasing every main merchandise of family expenditure.
And we’ll in fact commit all our power to decreasing the largest single family outgoing of all — the tax invoice. It should come down, and it’ll, as a result of that’s one of the simplest ways to ship the expansion we want.
By throwing ourselves into this challenge we’ll ship above all on what we have been elected to do in 2019 — uniting and levelling up, with excessive wage excessive ability jobs throughout the entire nation.
Which means whoever you’re, wherever you reside, no matter your background, we offers you the chance to benefit from your abilities.
By levelling up, by unleashing the potential of each nook of the UK with our persevering with investments in infrastructure, expertise and know-how, we need to make the UK essentially the most affluent economic system in Europe.
That’s our imaginative and prescient: of a powerful and affluent United Kingdom, with our beloved Union protected and supported, projecting one of the best of British values world wide.
We will do it, however it’ll want all our collective resolve to assist our nation by what will likely be troublesome months forward.
I don’t imagine our voters will frivolously forgive us if — simply after they want us most to be specializing in them — we seem as soon as once more to be specializing in Westminster politics. I’m afraid the one beneficiaries will likely be our opponents.
I do know that over current months I’ve come below an excessive amount of hearth, and I do know that have has been painful for the entire occasion.
A few of that criticism has maybe been honest, some much less so. The place there have been legitimate factors, I’ve listened and discovered and made vital modifications.
And I’ll in fact proceed to pay attention and study from colleagues concerning the enhancements you want to see.
However I can’t stress an excessive amount of that we now have a golden likelihood to place this behind us now.
Along with your help, I imagine that tonight we now have an excellent prize inside our grasp. We will put an finish to the media’s favorite obsession. We will get on with the job with out the noises off.
And I’m completely assured that if we will unite within the days forward then in the end we’ll win once more, repay the belief of the 14 million who voted for us, and proceed to serve the nation we love.