FOUR Tory MPs demanded Boris Johnson’s resignation today following the publication of Sue Gray’s report into the “partygate” scandal.

Tory MPs Stephen Hammond, David Simmonds and John Baron today urged the Prime Minister to resign, adding their names to the growing discontent towards the party leader on the Tory back benches.

Backbencher Julian Sturdy began the trickle of fresh voices demanding Mr Johnson’s resignation by tweeting on Wednesday he was “now unable to give the Prime Minister the benefit of the doubt and feel it is now in the public interest for him to resign.”

The 60-page Gray report detailed gatherings at which officials drank so much they were sick, sang karaoke, fought with each other and abused security and cleaning staff while the rest of the country abided by strict lockdown conditions imposed by the government to beat the coronavirus pandemic.

Mr Hammond tweeted: “All I can do as a backbencher is speak out and submit a letter.”

And Mr Simmonds, said that, having reflected on what the Prime Minister had said, he believed “it is time for him to step down so that new leadership can take forward the important work of the government in ensuring that our people and country prosper.”

Mr Baron accused Mr Johnson of misleading Parliament, and said the Prime Minister “no longer enjoyed his support.”

He added: “Given the scale of rule-breaking in No 10, I cannot accept that the Prime Minister was unaware.”

Shadow levelling up, housing and communities secretary Lisa Nandy told Times Radio that the Gray report shows “part of a culture in which nobody takes responsibility.”

She said: “The Prime Minister has allowed junior civil servants, and mostly women actually, to take the rap for what has been happening on his watch.

“He’s supposed to be the leader of our country. He can’t just wander around saying ‘It wasn’t me.’

“He’s supposed to be in charge of the country and he’s supposed to take responsibility for what happened.”

Under Conservative Party rules, there must be a vote on the Prime Minister’s future if 54 MPs write to the chairman of the back-bench 1922 committee, Sir Graham Brady, saying they have lost confidence in their leader.

Although the actual number who have submitted letters is a closely guarded secret, a total of 20 Tory MPs have so far publicly called for the resignation of the Prime Minister.