Will there be a general election if Boris Johnson loses no confidence vote? What happens next, could PM resign

Graham Brady has announced that Prime Minister Boris Johnson will face a vote of no confidence.

In a statement the chair of the 1922 Committee confirmed the threshold of 15% of Tory MPs had been met and that the vote had been triggered.

The PM has been met with rising discontent after the Sue Gray report found the government had breached rules during the Covid-19 pandemic.

There was speculation that a no confidence vote would be triggered, with Conservative MP Paul Scully telling the Andrew Neil show on Channel 4: “We may well have a vote of confidence. If it does happen, the prime minister, I know, will face it down.”

Here’s everything you need to know about what might happen if Boris Johnson loses his no confidence vote.

What is a no confidence vote?

A no confidence vote is triggered when 15% of Tory MPs write letters to the chair of the 1922 Committee saying that they no longer support the party leader.

Brady, who is the current chair, announced he had received the relevant letters today (6 June).

For the PM to be removed from his post, a majority must vote in favour of it.

Currently for the no confidence vote to pass, 180 Tory MPs would need to vote against Boris Johnson’s leadership.

If he survives the vote of no confidence, he is safe in his position and another vote cannot be called for a year.

When will no confidence vote take place?

The no confidence vote will take place tonight (6 June) in secret between 6-8pm.

Ballots will be counted straight away, with the results said to be announced “shortly” afterwards.

In a statement Brady reflected on discussing the vote with the PM.

He said: "We agreed the timetable for the confidence vote to take place and he shared my view - which is also in line with the rules that we have in place - that that vote should happen as soon as could reasonably take place and that would be today.”

What happens if Boris Johnson loses no confidence vote?

If Johnson loses the no confidence vote then he will have to either resign or call a general election.

Either way this would trigger a Tory leadership contest to replace him.

The same thing happened with former Prime Minister Theresa May.

On Monday morning (6 June), the PM wrote a letter to all Tory MPs telling them this is the “golden chance” to move on from the partygate scandal.

Johnson said: “Some of that criticism has perhaps been fair, some less so. Where there have been valid points, I have listened and learned and made significant changes.

“And I will of course continue to listen and learn from colleagues about the improvements you wish to see.”

He added: “But I cannot stress too much that we have a golden chance to put this behind us now. With your support, I believe that tonight we have a great prize within our grasp. We can put an end to the media’s favourite obsession. We can get on with the job without the noises off.”

Well known MPs have come out to say they will vote against their leader with former Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt tweeting in a statement that he will be “voting for change.”

Will there be a general election?

If Johnson loses the vote there is a likelihood that there could be a general election.

The next general election is not due to take place until 2024.

However, whether one is called will depend on how the Tory leadership contest pans out.