Boris Johnson shouldn't be caretaker leader, must be 'removed quickly': Ex-UK PM

United Kingdom's former Prime Minister John Major on Thursday strongly reacted against ousted leader Boris Johnson's continuation into premiership until a new candidate was sworn into his position. The decision to let Johnson continue is "unwise and maybe unsustainable," Major said in a letter to Sir Graham Brady, chair of the 1922 Committee, as seen by the British press.

Sitting UK Prime Minister who has tended his resignation must be asked to exit Number 10 immediately, the ex-UK leader who had succeeded Margaret Thatcher after she was ousted in 1990, asserted in the letter. He maintained that the three-month premiership in the capacity of a caretaker was unacceptable. “In such a circumstance, the prime minister maintains the power of patronage and, of even greater concern, the power to make decisions, which will affect the lives of those within all four nations of the United Kingdom and further afield," he wrote in the document. 

"Some will argue that his new Cabinet will restrain him. I merely note that his previous Cabinet could not – or would not – do so," former UK PM Major's letter read on July 7. 

Ex-UK PM suggest deputy PM Dominic Raab to be 'made in charge'

Sir Major suggested that the deputy prime minister Dominic Raab shall instead be made in charge of the “wellbeing of the country”. he continued that "in the unique and pressing circumstances of the moment, the 1922 Committee should arrange for the new leader of the party to be elected solely by MPs, with the winner being installed as Prime Minister, and then endorsed by Conservative MPs" as per the content of his letter to the committee. He expressed 'national security concerns, further adding: “Neither of these options is ideal, but the interests of the country must be given priority over all else and, with so many long-term and critical issues before us, an imaginative response – even at the risk of some bruised feelings within the party – is most definitely in the national interest." He also noted that he is releasing the letter to the media for transparency. 

He warned the Committee of backbench Conservative MPs that the "proposal for the Prime Minister to remain in office – for up to three months – having lost the support of his Cabinet, his Government and his parliamentary party is unsustainable." Several British MPs have echoed concerns of ex-UK PM, including the former education secretary Justine Greening who told Newsnight that Johnson must "stand down immediately." “I think for the party in particular, as well as the country, this is about moving on," she maintained in her statement to the broadcaster. Conservative MP Michael Heseltine also called for the ouster of Boris Johnson "immediately."