Thread by @ConorGogarty

THREAD: Here's a handy list of Tory MPs who said Boris Johnson had to go in July and are now saying he should be PM. It's been quite the journey for some...

Lee Anderson said it was wrong for Johnson to appoint Chris Pincher despite a sexual misconduct complaint, and to claim he had forgotten about the allegations. "I cannot look myself in the mirror and accept this" said Mr Anderson, adding that "integrity should always come first".

Anderson has now said: "Boris Johnson just called me. We have had a long chat about everything past and present. My inbox is full of BBB. I am drawing a line under it. Boris has my support."

Dr Caroline Johnson stood down as Tory party vice chair and said that Johnson's “errors of judgement” had “squandered the goodwill” of the party, and that he would “only damage our party and therefore our country" if he stayed. She has now told Times Radio she is backing Johnson.

Jonathan Gullis resigned as a PPS and said: "I feel for too long we have been more focused on dealing with our reputational damage rather than delivering for the people of this country and spreading opportunity for all, which is why I came into politics."

Gullis now says that constituents have been telling him to “bring back Boris” and that Johnson “got the big calls on Covid-19 right".

Antony Higginbotham said he could not “in good conscience continue supporting the current leader of my party... We have, for many months now, given the benefit of the doubt to the Prime Minister. And privately I and others have been pushing for changes in policy and approach."

Higginbotham now says: "Over the last 24 hours my inbox has been inundated with messages. The majority view, and my view, is clear. It’s time to #BringBackBoris. He has the mandate to lead our country & our party."

Simon Clarke tweeted following Mr Johnson's resignation: “I am deeply saddened but this is the right decision."
He now says Teesside is "levelling up because of Boris Johnson" and "the comeback will be greater than the setback"

Another Johnson backer, Jill Mortimer, said in July: “I am deeply saddened by what is happening in my party, and in spite of his getting the big calls right over the past two years, I believe the PM was in an untenable position."

Calling for Johnson to go, Shaun Bailey said "the information which has come to light has left me no other alternative than to believe that a new leader is the only way in which we can win the election and stop the travesty that would be a Labour government".

Bailey now says: "It's a simple one for me. It's time to #BringBackBoris. The members want him, he won the support of my communities and for the constituents I speak to, they want him back."

Amanda Milling said: "Boris has had my support from the start, but resigning was the right thing to do as the damage to our party and country was getting too much."
She now says he is the only candidate with a "proven track record of delivery for the British people".

Johnson is also backed by Mark Eastwood, who said in July that "in footballing terms when you lose not only the dressing room but the coaching staff it makes your position untenable".

Karl McCartney said Johnson no longer had the confidence of "a growing number of his colleagues in the Conservative parliamentary party. Therefore, the time has come for the PM to take the decision to resign".
He now says: "Many of my constituents want him back. I do too."

Gareth Johnson said: "It had become clear that the PM’s position was no longer tenable and he had to resign."
He now says Boris Johnson is "the person who has the ability and the electoral mandate".

Another MP backing Johnson, Henry Smith, said in July: "After leading our country through one of the most challenging periods we have experienced in decades, the Prime Minister’s decision last week to resign was the correct one."

Ben Bradley said that "though it pains me as I have always supported him, this can't continue. Government can't just grind to a halt like this."
He now says: "To be honest, though clearly he made mistakes, I was never one of those who had wanted him to go in the first place."

Here's our report on the Tory MPs backing Johnson months after saying he had to go walesonline.co.uk/news/politics/…

Nadhim Zahawi, who said he was "heartbroken" by Johnson's refusal to "leave with dignity", joins the list.

https://twitter.com/_PeterHunt/status/1584134953641869316

My leader in today's Western Mail is about the reek of desperation and self-preservation from the Tory MPs who backed Johnson.