Melksham MP, Michelle Donelan, has given Melksham News an exclusive interview about what happened behind the scenes when she tried to get the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, to resign earlier this month.
In a turbulent few days in politics, Michelle had been appointed Education Secretary following the promotion to Chancellor of Nadhim Zahawi, her former boss at the Education Department. This had followed Rishi Sunak’s resignation as Chancellor. However, she was in the role for only 35 hours before also resigning, as the Prime Minister refused to quit.
Michelle was amongst Ministers in key roles to speak at individual face-to-face meetings with Boris Johnson, at Downing Street – the day before announcing her resignation over a Zoom call. She explained that the PM had agreed to the talks and hoped to sway members to his way of thinking.
She said, “We were there for several hours waiting, I spoke with the PM face-to-face, I said the Party was at stake and he needed to resign. I was concerned there were so many resignations from Ministers in key roles and went to tell the PM the game was up.
“He wanted to sleep on It that night and wanted to stay, I said it was not in the best interest of the country.
“His plan was to carry on and try to convince people over the coming days.
“I told him it was better for his legacy to leave, rather than be ripped out of office – it was game over.
“I was concerned we would end up a bit of a laughing stock as a nation and leave us vulnerable without a key ministerial team.
“I said if he didn’t go, I would have to go, it wasn’t in the best interest of the country at that stage.”
When asked if she thought Boris Johnson was honest, Michelle answered, “Boris has faced challenges over the past two years that no other PM has faced, sometimes he has come up with the goods.
“He has been an incredible PM in many ways, and it is wrong for people to try and rewrite history. I didn’t want it to end like it’s ended up.
Asked if Boris Johnson should step down and allow for a caretaker PM, she answered, “I think it’s fine as it is, things would be different if we were in a different point of the calendar year.”
The MP confirmed she has not received any severance payment for leaving her position as Education Minister, saying, “I didn’t know you we were eligible, it was news to me, I have been a minister for 5 years and entitled to severance pay, however I am the only one to say I don’t want any of it.”
She is now backing Penny Mordaunt for leadership, since her former boss Nadhim Zahawi was knocked out of the race.
She explained, “I carried out a poll amongst 800 constituents, and Penny was a clear winner.
“Penny is a lovely person with no hidden agenda; she would work as part of a team and really wants to progress our country.”
Nursing an injured foot, while sat in small part of a corridor for the online interview with us, Michelle explained, “Last night I was watching the leadership election debate on my phone and tripped over and broke my foot.
“I still had three media appearances to go to afterwards.”
Michelle says she hopes the next Conservative leader is able to bring unity to the country.
She said, “We are facing difficult challenges ahead with the economy. This is not just the most vulnerable in society – everyone will be vulnerable.”
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