By January of this year Britain had become the first country in Europe to pass 150,000 deaths from Covid — per capita one of the worst death rates in the world. And, as you’re no doubt tired of reading, as people died, Conservatives partied. The revelation that 10 Downing Street, the prime minister’s official residence, held boozy parties as the rest of the country was in strict lockdown could hardly have been a starker sign of Mr. Johnson’s entitled indifference. But scapegoats were found, made to resign, and the government carried on.
Then came this year’s soaring inflation, which hit 9 percent in May, and an attendant cost-of-living crisis that has put basics like food, energy and fuel out of reach for many. Some families turning to food banks — the number or people that do has skyrocketed in the past decade — are reportedly now turning down potatoes. They can’t afford the gas to boil them.
Mr. Johnson had no answers to these problems, but whenever concrete policy failed, he could always distract with a culture war, taking aim at just about anything or anyone — the publicly funded BBC, the European Convention on Human Rights, trans people and refugees.
Somehow, after defending him through all of it, the Tory faithful have decided that now enough is enough. In his resignation letter Mr. Javid — who is now running to replace Mr. Johnson — criticized “the tone” the prime minister had set in recent months, saying he could no longer “in good conscience” remain in his post. Mr. Javid’s “conscience” was unmoved, however, when the government started deporting asylum seekers. Mr. Sunak wrote that he had always been “loyal” to Mr. Johnson but had “come to the conclusion we cannot continue like this.” Of course, Mr. Sunak — who is now a favorite to be the next prime minister — remained “loyal” when Mr. Johnson was fined for attending parties during lockdown, because he was partying, too. Mr. Sunak is also running to…