Johnson's Approval Ratings Sink Amid "Partygate," PM Faces Calls To Resign

The latest Opinium poll for the Observer shows a continued drop in the approval rating of UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson. His personal approval has fallen "below the worst figures ever recorded by Theresa May; and his party sinks to its worst vote share since the general election, 10 points behind Labour." The poll indicates that "majorities of practically every political and demographic group believe Johnson and his colleagues have broken the rules and lied about it, and say Johnson should resign."

• Headwinds for the Prime Minister and the ruling Conservative Party have been escalating over the recent weeks owing to the "partygate" scandal. A series of press reports pointing to parties being held at No. 10 in the midst of lockdowns have angered voters, undermining support for the Tories in their traditional strongholds and "Red Wall" Brexiteer constituencies alike.
• The Times reported the the Prime Minister believes he is not to blame for the scandal, with one member of his Cabinet noting that "heads have to roll." Sources told the newspaper that Boris Johnson is planning to blame his staff and make a series of populist policy announcements to lure voters back into backing the Tories. These efforts are reportedly being dubbed "Operation Save Big Dog" and "Operation Red Meat" respectively.
• Conservative Party Chairman Oliver Dowden told Sky News that he was "disgusted" by the "partygate" scandal but refused to withdraw support for the Prime Minister. Dowden noted that Johnson should address "the kind of culture in Downing Street that enabled something like that to happen" but there is no need for him to step down.
• There is growing appetite for ousting the Prime Minister among backbencher Tory MPs and six of them have publicly urged Boris Johnson to resign by the time this was published. The Times reported that around 35 Tory lawmakers have submitted letters of no confidence, dangerously close to the 54 threshold needed to trigger a leadership challenge. Separately, sources told the Observer that "Tory MPs will be ready in sufficient numbers to force Boris Johnson out of Downing Street within weeks if he tries to dodge responsibility for rule-breaking parties at No 10."
• Although major betting markets are now pricing a notably greater chance of Prime Minister Johnson's resignation this year, there has been little follow through in the financial markets. The sterling has shown little reaction to the escalating leadership crisis in the UK government. It has also shrugged off the latest developments unfolding over the weekend, with cable hovering near unchanged levels in early Monday trade.