Dominic Cummings claims Boris Johnson has ‘clear plan’ to quit as PM

Boris Johnson has a ‘clear plan’ to quit Number 10 by 2026, his former chief aide Dominic Cummings claimed today as he again took aim at his old boss and questioned his suitability to be prime minister. 

Mr Cummings said Mr Johnson intends to ‘leave at the latest a couple of years after the next election’ which is expected to take place in 2024. 

The Vote Leave maverick suggested Mr Johnson would not serve a full term in Downing Street if he secures re-election because he wants to ‘make money and have fun’. 

Number 10 dismissed the claim, pointing to Mr Johnson’s previous response to a similar question when he said it was ‘utter nonsense’. 

Meanwhile, Mr Cummings criticised the way in which Mr Johnson runs meetings as he said summits chaired by Dominic Raab, the Foreign Secretary, were ‘much more productive’ because he can ‘chair meetings properly instead of telling rambling stories and jokes’. 

He said Mr Raab did a better job than Mr Johnson because he let ‘good officials actually question people’ unlike the PM who shouts ‘forward to victory’, gives a ‘thumbs up’ and is then seen ‘pegging it out of the room’ when things get ’embarrassing’. 

Boris Johnson, pictured leaving 10 Downing Street today, has a ‘clear plan’ to quit as prime minister before 2026, his former chief aide Dominic Cummings claimed today

Mr Cummings said Mr Johnson intends to ‘leave at the latest a couple of years after the next election’ which is expected to take place in 2024

Mr Cummings set out the PM’s alleged Number 10 exit strategy in a lengthy blogpost published this morning in which he renewed his attack on the Government over its handling of the coronavirus pandemic. 

He said a promised public inquiry into the crisis ‘cannot fix’ problems in Whitehall. 

He continued: ‘It will not start for years and it is designed to punt the tricky parts until after this PM has gone – unlike other PMs, this one has a clear plan to leave at the latest a couple of years after the next election, he wants to make money and have fun not “go on and on”. 

‘So we either live with chronic dysfunction for another ~5 years or some force intervenes.’ 

Mr Johnson has committed to the public inquiry getting underway in Spring 2022. 

Asked if Mr Johnson intends to quit as PM, his Press Secretary said at lunchtime: ‘The PM has actually been asked this before and has said himself it is utter nonsense, so that still stands.

‘The PM was elected in 2019 and continues to focus on delivering on the manifesto we were elected on and leading the country out of the pandemic.’

Mr Cummings told MPs when he gave evidence to them last month on the response to pandemic that he believes Mr Johnson is unfit to be premier. 

Mr Cummings said meetings chaired by Dominic Raab, the Foreign Secretary, were ‘much more productive’ than those chaired by Mr Johnson

In his latest salvo, he renewed his criticism of the PM as he claimed Mr Johnson is an ineffective chairman of formal meetings. 

He said meetings chaired by Mr Raab when he was in charge when Mr Johnson was recovering from coronavirus were ‘much more productive’. 

He said: ‘Under Raab, the meetings were less pleasant for everybody but much more productive because unlike the PM a) Raab can chair meetings properly instead of telling rambling stories and jokes, b) he let good officials actually question people so we started to get to the truth, unlike the PM who as soon as things get “a bit embarrassing” does the whole “let’s take it offline” shtick before shouting “forward to victory”, doing a thumbs-up and pegging it out of the room before anybody can disagree.’