Led By Donkeys Twitter video: watch Boris Johnson’s ‘life and lies’ released hours before no confidence vote

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been criticised through a video from activist group Led By Donkeys before the no-confidence that took place on 6 June 2022.

At least 54 Tory MPs handed in letters of no confidence to senior backbencher Sir Graham Brady, and the entire parliamentary party voted in a secret ballot on whether Mr Johnson should stay in power.

Mr Johnson survived the vote after his party voted 211 to 148 in suppport.

Hours before the meeting, the activist group released a video with the caption: ‘Message to Tory MPs. This is who you’re voting on.’

What was in the video?

At just over eight minutes long, the video on the group’s Twitter account, begins with the words: "The life and Lies of Boris Johnson" and immediately jumps in with Mr Johnson’s birth in 1964 before moving onto his childhood, noting exposing school reports from Eton College, his time at the University of Oxford, and his stint as part of the infamous Bullingdon Club.

It then unveils his jobs with The Times, The Telegraph and the Spectator, as well as his personal life, and the instances of Mr Johnson going back on his word. The video said: "In 2001, breaking his promise to the owner of the spectator, Johnson stands to be an MP.

“He now promises voters in Henley that if they vote for him he will step down as editor of the Spectator. That June, he becomes MP for Henley.

“He does not step down as editor of the Spectator."

The video also recaps on his political career, from being fired as the Tory vice-chairman and his two drafts of Brexit: one pro-leave and the other pro-remain.

During his role as foreign secretary, the video mentions his "dangerous gaffes" over the legal case of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and his descriptions of Muslim women who wear burquas as “letterboxes”.

Led By Donkeys concludes with: “Everything in this film was known before the Tory Party made him prime minister. His tenure has been an administrative and a moral failure.

″The question now is, what will Conservative MPs do now about it?”

Who is Led By Donkeys?

Led By Donkeys is a British political campaign group, first established in December 2018 as an anti-Brexit group, but has also criticised other actions under Mr Johnson’s reign.

Its main campaign takes the form of billboards containing past tweets by pro-Brexit politicians or quotes presented as tweets.

Initially, the campaign was run as a guerilla operation, where Led By Donkeys posters were plastered over existing adverts, but after being expanded by crowd funders, it legitimately purchased advertising space across the UK.

The group’s stunts progressed into real-life actions, with projections of messages falling on iconic monuments such as the Houses of Parliament and the White Cliffs of Dover.

The name Led By Donkeys comes from the phrase "Lions led by donkeys", referring to the belief that British soldiers in the First World War were led to their deaths by incompetent and indifferent leaders.

What is a vote of no confidence? 

A no-confidence vote is a motion questioning if a person in a position of responsibility, in this case, the Prime Minister, is fit to hold the position.

For Mr Johnson to win the vote, he had to secure at least 50%, plus one vote support from the parliamentary party.

Tory MPs voted in support of Mr Johnson, and only secured 59% of the votes. Every Tory MP voted, with no spoiled ballots.

A leader who wins a confidence vote is safe from another challenge for 12 months.

NationalWorld has put together a series on the no-confidence vote, including the result, which can be read here.