Sunak insists Boris is 'responsible for his own downfall' denying he 'wielded the dagger'
10 August 2022, 02:06 | Updated: 10 August 2022, 02:53
Boris Johnson is "responsible for his own downfall", Rishi Sunak has claimed while denying he "wielded the dagger".
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Mr Sunak came face-to-face with Tory voters on Tuesday at the latest of the leadership hustings.
He was challenged on his decision to quit his role as Chancellor minutes after former Health Secretary Sajid Javid did last month, which sparked a mass exodus of Mr Johnson's government.
One activist was met with boos during the Q&A session at the event in Darlington after he said: "I don't know if it was Shakespeare or Heseltine who said he who wields the dagger will never inherit the crown.”
Mr Sunak responded saying: "I was sad I had to resign actually. I was sad I resigned.
"Actually you are totally, and respectfully, you are simply wrong to say I wielded the dagger because it wasn’t just me that felt enough was enough."
He added: "The government was on the wrong side of yet another ethical decision. It was 60 other members of parliament that also thought enough was enough."
Asked whether Mr Johnson's downfall was his own fault or someone else's, Mr Sunak bluntly replied: "His own."
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His Tory leadership rival, Liz Truss, was also later asked the same question, to which she avoided directly replying.
She instead said that she was a "loyal cabinet minister", adding that "what is done is done and we are where we are".
She had earlier blamed the media for his downfall when a member of the audience presented the answer to her.
"Sounds like you’re being blamed Tom [Newton Dunn] and, you know, who am I to disagree with this excellent audience?" Ms Truss said.
The Foreign Secretary has remained loyal to the outgoing PM throughout the leadership race, also receiving backing from Johnson loyalists such as Nadine Dorries and Jacob Rees-Mogg.
Ms Dorries last month received a backlash from colleagues for sharing a "dangerous" edited image on Twitter, showing Mr Sunak about to stab Mr Johnson in the back.
