Tory MP Peter Aldous says Johnson situation will not go away

Peter Aldous said now was not the time for Boris Johnson to say Monday night's vote was a "resounding victory"

A Tory MP said he did not believe questions around Boris Johnson's leadership would "go away" despite him winning a no confidence vote.

Peter Aldous, who represents Waveney in Suffolk, did not back the PM on Monday, when 211 MPs voted they had confidence in him and 148 voted against.

He said it was not a "decisive victory" and Mr Johnson should "step aside".

However, he admitted Mr Johnson had "remarkable gifts", adding "he may be able to pull this out of the fire".

On BBC Radio Suffolk, Mr Aldous said: "I don't think it was a decisive victory if you compare it to previous such votes, whether that was with Margaret Thatcher or Theresa May, it wasn't.

"Over 40% of Conservative MPs voted to indicate they did not have confidence in the prime minister.

"One of my worries all along has been that this is a matter that will keep on coming back and back and it was for that reason, that I felt for some time that it was in the best interest that the prime minister should step aside."

In February, Mr Aldous submitted a letter to his party's committee of backbench MPs saying he had no confidence in Mr Johnson.

'Remarkable gifts'

With two by-elections coming up in Wakefield and Tiverton and Honiton, Mr Aldous said "I don't think it [leadership row] is going to go away and that is sad", adding he "bitterly regrets the situation we are in today".

On the other hand, he said Mr Johnson had "remarkable gifts, he may be able to pull this out of the fire".

He said Mr Johnson had to reach out to Tory MPs who did not vote for him and realise it was not a "resounding victory".

"We have a very divided nation and his first task is to try to pull that nation together to move on and I don't think he has yet done that."

Speaking about the vote, Mr Johnson said it was a "very good", "convincing" result and "an opportunity to put behind us all the stuff that the media goes on about".

Addressing his cabinet, he said it was time to "draw a line" under the leadership row.