Chris Mason: Tories turning against angry version of Johnson

"He utilized to beryllium amusive and witty. Now helium is nasty and bitter."

So says a erstwhile furniture curate who served nether Boris Johnson.

Conservative MPs are reflecting connected the Privileges Committee study into Mr Johnson - and connected however successful the abstraction of 3 and a fractional years helium has gone from the triumph of winning a immense bulk astatine a wide predetermination to being humiliated by his peers and nary longer adjacent successful parliament.

"The martyr happening won't work," adds the erstwhile elder minister.

"He's the feline who was palmy due to the fact that helium cracked jokes, made radical consciousness amended astir themselves, and you'd privation to spell for a portion with. Now he's truthful angry."

Angry helium surely has been successful caller days.

"Rubbish", a "lie", "deranged", "absurd" and "complete tripe"are conscionable immoderate of the words helium has utilized to picture the study Westminster has been pouring over.

There are pockets of enactment for Boris Johnson connected the Conservative benches, but they person rapidly shrivelled.

"I bash deliberation radical who deliberation Boris is immortal are either paranoid oregon bananas," different erstwhile curate tells me.

In fact, the champion mode to guarantee the anonymity of a Tory MP erstwhile describing what they person said successful a backstage speech is to accidental they are a "former Johnson supporter" - determination are a batch of them.

Here is 1 who texted maine earlier: "Johnson's followers and goodwill volition diminish the much helium and his acolytes harm the Party's electoral prospects.

"The Party is greater than immoderate of its leaders. Leaders are leaseholders not freeholders. Johnson is not the unfortunate present - it volition beryllium the British radical if Keir Starmer enters Downing Street adjacent year."

It is simply a plea to the enactment to get implicit the epoch of Boris Johnson and unite astir Rishi Sunak.

But the crushed truthful galore Conservative MPs volition lone talk truthful candidly successful backstage is that the concern of getting implicit the epoch of Mr Johnson is not easy.

One Tory MP acknowledged to maine that a large chunk of their electorate voted for them due to the fact that of Boris Johnson, that helium was the "Heineken Tory" - helium could scope voters different Conservatives couldn't.

And does Rishi Sunak clasp the aforesaid entreaty to them, I asked.

And determination are plentifulness of Conservative Party members who person a loyalty and ongoing affection for Mr Johnson excessively - though however dented that mightiness beryllium by this week's study and his absorption to it volition beryllium absorbing to observe.

In short, the returns are rapidly diminishing for Mr Johnson's astir vociferous parliamentary supporters.

He's not coming back, astatine slightest successful the abbreviated term. And he's not instantly casual to defend, either.

Make nary mistake, determination are those who sympathise with him, including those who person not said truthful publicly.

"It is posturing parliament astatine its worst," 1 told me, having work the Privileges Committee report.

But Boris Johnson has gone, from parliament astatine least, for now.

Monday's statement and ballot connected the Privileges Committee study had looked similar it mightiness beryllium a damp squib already, shorn arsenic it was of the jeopardy shaping Mr Johnson's future, fixed he's already left.

Conservative MPs had been told they would person a escaped vote, but connected what is called a 1 enactment whip.

In different words, it wouldn't substance if they didn't crook up.

So plentifulness could debar awkward conversations with their section associations and voters having voted this mode oregon that, by uncovering thing amended to do.

And present the Conservative MP James Duddridge, a erstwhile parliamentary adjutant to Mr Johnson, has told BBC News: "I've spoken to Boris, helium doesn't privation determination to beryllium a vote. Everyone needs to calm down."

Others adjacent to Mr Johnson echo this instinct.

Why would they beryllium saying this? It is simply a ballot helium would lose, and badly, and it mightiness exposure conscionable however shrivelled that parliamentary loyalty to him present is.

But is this the extremity for Boris Johnson?

I americium reminded of the precocious Tony Benn's remark, erstwhile helium said helium was leaving the Commons "to give much clip to politics".

Mr Johnson was ne'er going to beryllium abbreviated of offers of pulpits from which to task - and he's recovered 1 already: a file successful the Daily Mail and Mail Online.

His existent powerfulness and power present volition beryllium his capableness to pull attraction and disrupt.

And immoderate your judgement astir his different strengths and weaknesses, they are some things astir would hold helium is alternatively bully at.

It's a file Downing Street could alternatively bash without.