Housing ministers line up to back beleaguered PM Johnson

Housing ministers have lined up in recent days to support beleaguered Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

Housing minister Chris Pincher, upon hearing of new appointments to the ‘back office’ at 10 Downing Street, tweeted: “Great appointment of Steve - he knows MPs and he knows how to organise the Govt machine. With Steve, and with Guto Harri running comms, the PM is delivering on his commitments.”

Eddie Hughes, another housing minister, tweeted: “The PM makes the right call on the big decisions, so it's great to see him in Ukraine after the British government sent the HMS Defender to the Crimean shores and provided anti-tank missiles to Kyiv when other countries rejected the supply of weapons.”

Meanwhile the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and the Communities - Michael Gove - has repeatedly sworn allegiance to Johnson on TV and in print.

In multiple interviews Gove has described Johnson in recent days as “the right man for the job” and someone who “works hard behind the scenes” while “making all the right calls.”

Gove himself - in last week’s debate on his department’s Levelling Up White Paper - ruled out a future leadership challenge of his own. He said he has been “knocked back” twice and would not be trying again.

Former Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick - at one time at the centre of a scandal himself, over planning consent for a large scale development proposal from a Tory party donor - also backed Johnson over the weekend.

However he gave more nuanced support, telling the Lincolnshire Live news website: "There's a big job to be done by all of us in politics to regain public trust. People's confidence has been seriously tested in recent weeks, especially in light of what's happened in Number 10."

He continued: “There isn't a leadership contest. The prime minister continues in post. I want him to succeed.”