What people in Merthyr Tydfil had to say...
THE people of Merthyr Tydfil have had their say on Boris Johnson after he resigned as the Prime Minister. On Thursday, Mr Johnson stood at a lectern on Downing Street and spoke of his disappointment at being forced from office.
Mr Johnson accused the Conservative politicians who forced him out of being caught up in “herd instinct”.
He listed achievements he said he was immensely proud of, including Brexit, helping Ukraine and helping the UK through the pandemic.
A snap poll from YouGov showed that the majority (36%) of Britons asked thought that Mr Johnson made a ‘terrible’ PM. 19% thought that he was ‘poor’, 18% believed he was ‘average’, 17% thought he was ‘good’ and only 5% said that he was ‘great’.
Mr Johnson announced that hustings for the party would take place throughout August, with a new leader appointed in September.
We spoke to the people of Merthyr Tydfil – a predominantly Labour-leaning town – to see what they thought of the Prime Minister’s resignation, his leadership and the legacy he will leave behind, as well as any advice they would give the politician moving forward.
Rosemary Griffiths said she was glad to see Mr Johnson go and that he was a “joke”.
When asked what advice she would give him following his departure, she said: “Come and live with the normal people and see how we live.
“Look after us. Well, he can’t now because he’s gone.”
Peter Jones, from Pontlottyn, believed that there were no words to say to the former Prime Minister.
“I don’t think you can give Boris any advice,” he said. “Boris is going to do what Boris is going to do. He is something of a loose cannon and he’s always been the same.
“You can’t change your personality. He was the same when he was the mayor of London, and he was the same when he was a journalist.”
Ian Atyeo had this to say: “If you’ve done something wrong and you know you’ve done something wrong, put your hands up and admit it. People everywhere across the country make mistakes. And if you make a mistake, put your hands up.
“And then, move forward if you possibly can. But if you lie and get caught out lying, this is what’s going to happen.”
In Jamiee Thiel’s eyes, Boris Johnson had been a “hypocrite” during his leadership. “Don’t say one thing and then do it,” she said.
“You know, we all were in the same boat. We all wanted to go out and meet our friends, especially our families.
“But he’s the one who’s put in the rules in and he should’ve been the one to stick to them the most.”
Ken Gould’s advice to Boris Johnson was: “Think more closely about where he is in the social life, because I think he has a too high opinion of himself and he needs to calm down, and perhaps he will do now because hopefully we’ll get a decent prime minister now and get somewhere to getting the economy right.”