Dominic Cummings’ departure marks the “beginning of the end” for Boris Johnson, an ally of the prime minister has warned.
According to the Mail on Sunday, supporters of Johnson now fear that the former senior aide will lead to a “guerilla operation” from Cummings causing Brexiteers to destabilise the prime minister to make the way for Rishi Sunak’s promotion.
One said: “It’s the beginning of the end. Boris has lost the room”.
Another backer of Vote Leave claimed: “You can smell it. It’s the end of days. It’s a story as old as time. The Mad Queen destroys the court.”
Another Tory MP claimed that Johnson could end up doing a “Harold Wilson”, who privately admitted he had lost enthusiasm for the role, and said he was physically and mentally exhausted.
They said: “Rishi can’t afford to be a long-term chancellor. He can’t go to the Foreign Office, he would just be forgotten.
“He is agitating like fury, Gove sees he’s got one last throw of the dice… Johnson will either go because the party will get spooked or he will do a Harold Wilson and announce he is stepping down.”
Johnson has privately claimed that he is planning to resign next year because he cannot live on the £150,000 salary given to him for the job.
Over the weekend Sunak insisted he “definitely” doesn’t want to be the next prime minister.