Boris Johnson’s prime ministership appeared to be on the brink of collapse. Rishi Sunak, his chancellor, and Sajid Javid, his health secretary, had resigned the night before and Johnson was having a torrid day in the Commons answering questions from MPs. With each passing hour, the prime minister’s grip on No 10 seemed to loosen. The other potential candidates to succeed Johnson had stolen a march. In the morning, Javid delivered a resignation speech to MPs in which he challenged his remaining cabinet colleagues to act now or risk being overtaken by events. Sunak had assembled
