Summary

  • Boris Johnson tells MPs "absolutely nothing and no-one" can stop him delivering his agenda, after surviving a confidence vote on Monday

  • He concedes he has “political opponents all over”, as he responds to attacks from Labour's Angela Eagle and the SNP's Ian Blackford

  • But he insists he plans to "unite and level up the country"

  • Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer criticises the government's handling of NHS backlogs

  • It's the first time Johnson has taken part in Prime Minister's Questions since 148 of his own MPs voted against him in a secret ballot

  • Many Conservatives want him to promise to cut taxes to help people cope with the cost of living

  • The vote on Johnson's leadership followed criticism over lockdown parties in Downing Street, with the PM himself receiving a fine

  1. Labour continues to criticise government on NHSpublished at 12:22 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    Starmer says raising taxes because you've failed to grow the economy isn't a plan for the NHS.

    He says the Tories have a "wanting and inadequate" record on the NHS.

    He says he spoke to a footballer who had to crowdfund an operation, after waiting for a procedure for two years.

    He says people deserve better than a government "unable to improve the NHS".

    Johnson says he has sympathy for the patient mentioned by Starmer, but insists that his government is "continually investing in the NHS".

    He says we can make those investments by stimulating economic growth.

    Johnson concludes his exchanges with Sir Keir, which focused on the NHS and jobs, by telling MPs: "As for jobs, I'm going to get on with mine and I hope he gets on with his."

  2. Frenetic atmosphere inside the Commonspublished at 12:19 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    People in the House of Commons are more energised than usual, and the speaker has had to intervene several times to ask parliamentarians to "calm down".

    At one point he suggests one group of rowdy MPs sit down and "have a nice cup of tea" together.

    Lindsay HoyleImage source, HoC
  3. 'We've raised standards in the NHS', Johnson respondspublished at 12:18 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    Boris JohnsonImage source, HoC

    Continuing his attack on the PM, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer says "pretending no rules were broken didn't work, pretending the economy is booming didn't work, and pretending to build 40 new hospitals won't work either".

    He says the Conservative Party "want him to change, but he can't". He says Johnson just "changes the rules and lowers the bar".

    Boris Johnson wants to change NHS rules to allow patients to wait for up to two years for surgery, rather than just one year under current guidance, Starmer says.

    He asks why the PM doesn't stop these plans from going through.

    Boris Johnson says "this line of attack is not working," and "we've not only raised the standards in the NHS... what we're doing more fundamentally" is doing "common sense" and "investing in more doctors and nurses".

    "We are on target to recruit 50,000 more nurses," he adds.

  4. Blaming pandemic for cancer waits 'just won't wash'published at 12:14 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    Starmer says the problem is that cancer waits have been going up for 10 years and they're even higher now.

    He says blaming the pandemic "just won't wash".

    Starmer goes on to say that the government has failed to fix NHS buildings, and this is putting patients at risk.

    In response, Johnson says this line of criticism is "satirical" coming from Labour, whose PFI hospital building scheme, he says, "bankrupted so many hospitals".

    He says the government is building 48 new hospitals - a claim that is disputed.

  5. Starmer quotes Tory MP's criticism of Johnsonpublished at 12:12 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    Sir Keir StarmerImage source, HoC

    Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer says Boris Johnson "talks big" but quotes from a letter to the PM from Jesse Norman, a Conservative backbencher, claiming that he has no major plans for the country.

    "For over a decade, waiting times for cancer diagnosis have been going up," he says, "135,000 extra people are now waiting for scans and tests" since the "diagnostic hubs" were set up under the health secretary.

    Boris Johnson says it is right that people are now coming forward to get cancer tests.

    "We are able to cut the times for cancer diagnosis, helping people to get their scans, their tests faster," he replies. He adds that the government is hiring more nurses and doctors.

  6. Starmer says health services are inadequatepublished at 12:11 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    On to his second question, Starmer says people were unhappy with the GP service they were getting before pandemic. The government promised more GPs but none were delivered.

    He asks: If health services were inadequate before the pandemic, what are they now?

    In reply, Johnson says Starmer is "wrong" and the NHS is responding well to the pressures it is facing.

    The PM claims the only reason the NHS is recovering is because of the strong economy he's overseen.

  7. Why did Nadine Dorries say the Conservatives had left the UK unprepared for a pandemic?published at 12:09 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    Sir Keir StarmerImage source, HoC
    Image caption,

    Sir Keir Starmer looked as though he was enjoying himself...

    Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer says he isn't sure if the noise that greeted Boris Johnson as he walked in for prime minister's questions was "cheers or boos".

    He jokes that he isn't sure if the noise was directed at him or the PM.

    He asks why Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries said "successive Conservative governments" had left the UK unprepared for a pandemic.

    "Nobody knew how to test for it, nobody knew what the right quarantine rules would be," replies Boris Johnson.

    He says "our amazing NHS" approved "the first vaccine" and were "the first to get it into anybody's arms".

    He says that wouldn't have been possible under Starmer's leadership.

    Nadine DorriesImage source, HoC
    Image caption,

    ...but so did Nadine Dorries

  8. Nothing can stop us delivering, says PMpublished at 12:05 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    Boris JohnsonImage source, HoC

    This government has done some "very big" and "remarkable" things, Boris Johnson responds.

    Absolutely nothing and no one - least of all her - can stop the Conservatives delivering, the PM says.

  9. Why should the country trust you, prime minister?published at 12:02 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    Labour MP Angela Eagle stands up to ask Boris Johnson the first question.

    She says the PM is "loathed" in his own party.

    Why should the country trust him, she asks?

  10. PMQs beginspublished at 12:01 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    The start of Prime Minister’s Questions is announced by the Speaker of the House of Commons, Sir Lindsay Hoyle.

    Cheers erupt as Boris Johnson stands to address MPs.

    Here we go. We’ll bring you all the updates.

  11. Analysis

    PM to attempt to move agenda onpublished at 11:57 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    David Wallace Lockhart
    BBC political correspondent

    Boris Johnson leaving Downing Street for PMQsImage source, Reuters
    Image caption,

    Boris Johnson leaving Downing Street for PMQs a few minutes ago

    Boris Johnson is about to take part in his first Prime Minister's Questions since he survived a confidence vote this week.

    His supporters will try to give him a warm reception, but there’s no hiding from the fact that many of his own MPs, who will sit behind him this afternoon, voted that they had no confidence in him just two days ago.

    The PM is likely to try and move the agenda on.

    Expect him to talk about his future plans for government.

    He’ll face difficult question from opposition politicians, and he could face difficult questions from his own backbenchers.

    One to look out for: Former Conservative chief whip Andrew Mitchell is down to ask a question. He’s been an open critic of the prime minister for some time now.

  12. More people believe Boris Johnson is doing badlypublished at 11:52 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    In the most recent YouGov poll on 5 May, 68% of respondents said they felt Boris Johnson was doing badly, compared to 26% who said he was doing well.

    Views about him on this metric briefly upturned after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, but still did not recover to previous heights.

    The last time Johnson had a consistent lead in this area was summer 2020.

    Boris Johnson approval rating graph
  13. PM's last chance, senior Tory warnspublished at 11:41 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    Boris Johnson's victory in Monday's confidence vote "provides his last chance to get his act together", former Brexit Secretary David Davis says.

    Writing in the Times, external, Davis argues the prime minister "has let things slide" since his landslide election victory in 2019.

    Davis, who called on the prime minister to resign in January, says he did not submit a letter of no confidence in Johnson's leadership.

    He says many Tory MPs who voted against Johnson in the ballot "did so partly because of concerns with his policy approach as well as worries about the lockdown parties scandal and associated issues".

    He says he hopes Johnson will avoid "populist policies" to shore up his leadership.

    But other Tory MPs and cabinet ministers have been more supportive, including Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng

    Kwarteng says people have "written off" the PM for 20 years, but "I think ultimately he is a winner".

  14. How is Boris Johnson's wider popularity?published at 11:38 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    There's been plenty of discussion over how Boris Johnson's continued leadership of the party may affect the Tories in upcoming by-elections in Tiverton and Honiton and Wakefield.

    No-one can be sure, but it does appear his popularity with the wider public has taken a hit in recent months.

    Boris Johnson popularity graph
  15. Analysis

    Pressure on the PMpublished at 11:34 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    Nick Eardley
    Political correspondent

    It's interesting that we've seen cabinet ministers including Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng - and this morning the Health Secretary Sajid Javid - going public and saying they want to see tax cuts.

    So there does seem to be pressure on the prime minister - some MPs think he's a bit wounded and they might be able to strong-arm him into doing things.

    There are Tory MPs who are still really unhappy and who are not going to let this go. Will any of them choose to put pressure on the prime minister this lunchtime?

  16. PMQs coming up soonpublished at 11:30 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    Boris JohnsonImage source, Reuters

    The House of Commons is starting to fill up ahead of Prime Minister’s Questions, which will start in about 30 minutes at 12:00 BST.

    MPs and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer will grill Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who will answer their questions at the dispatch box.

    It will be the first time Johnson has faced his own MPs in the Commons since he won a vote of confidence in his leadership on Monday.

    Watch out for how Tory MPs respond to his presence and what Labour has to say about the internal strife within the Conservative Party.

    Stay tuned for what could be a pretty raucous affair.

  17. How does the vote against Boris Johnson compare?published at 11:19 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    There's been much discussion over how the outcome of Boris Johnson's vote of confidence by his MPs compared to those faced by other Conservative leaders. He's definitely performed worse than both Theresa May and John Major.

    A direct comparison with Margaret Thatcher's leadership crisis in 1990 is slightly more difficult, as there were abstentions on her vote.

    Only Iain Duncan Smith, who wasn't prime minister, definitely performed worse than him.

    Graphic showing comparative votes of confidence with other Conservative leaders
  18. The agenda in Westminster todaypublished at 11:11 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    Here’s what’s coming up in Parliament today:

    11:30: Proceedings in the House of Commons get under way with women and equalities questions

    12:00: PMQs starts, with Boris Johnson taking questions from Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and other MPs

    About 12:30: Health Secretary Sajid Javid is due to make a statement on a review of health and social care leadership

    This afternoon: A debate on the Levelling-Up and Regeneration Bill will be led by cabinet minister Michael Gove

    15:10: DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson will appear in front of a Lords committee to discuss the deal governing post-Brexit trade arrangements in Northern Ireland (the protocol)

  19. PM faces calls for tax cuts after revoltpublished at 10:59 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    Boris JohnsonImage source, PA Media

    Under pressure following the revolt over his leadership, Boris Johnson has been urged to cut taxes, with cabinet ministers backing the demand.

    Health Secretary Sajid Javid is the latest senior Conservative to say he would like to see the government “do more on tax cuts”.

    “I know that it’s something that the chancellor will look at,” he tells the BBC.

    Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng says he expects the government will adopt “a radical tax-cutting agenda" before the next election.

    And former Brexit minister Lord Frost, who resigned last year, says “all tax rises that we brought in and the corporation tax ones that are due to come in soon ought to be reversed”.

    In a speech to Tory MPs ahead of the confidence vote, Johnson hinted at reductions to the tax burden.

    Allies of the prime minister believe cutting taxes will help rally Tory MPs behind his leadership and ease the burden of rising living costs.

  20. Welcome to our live coveragepublished at 10:51 British Summer Time 8 June 2022

    Hello and good morning as we launch our live coverage of politics and today's Prime Minister's Questions.

    Held on Wednesdays at 12:00, PMQs is a routine fixture of the parliamentary schedule. But today's PMQs marks the first time Boris Johnson has faced the Commons since winning a confidence vote on his leadership amid a significant rebellion by his own MPs.

    In the vote on Monday, triggered by the Partygate controversy, Johnson was backed by 211 Conservative MPs, but 148 voted to remove him.

    The prime minister has urged his party to "draw a line" under the matter, but some Tory MPs remain unconvinced he’s the right man for the top job.

    Johnson’s appearance today is likely to see both a show of support for him as well as testing moments as MPs from the opposition parties and his own Conservatives continue to have their say on his leadership.

    Follow our updates as we keep you posted on all the latest developments from Westminster and across the UK.