Boris survives as PM: Watch Andrew Marr and Iain Dale's instant response

6 June 2022, 21:20 | Updated: 6 June 2022, 21:29

Immediate reaction of Iain Dale and Andrew Marr to Boris Johnson winning confidence vote

This is the moment Andrew Marr and Iain Dale learned Boris Johnson had survived a confidence vote in the wake of the Partygate scandal.

When the result came in at 9pm, Andrew Marr said on air in a special Battle for Downing Street show on LBC: “It’s a heck of a lot of MPs voting against their own Prime Minister. He is living through a wilderness of pain and there’s more to come ahead.”

“If you are a member of the government who has voted against a prime minister [who survives,] you should go,” said Iain Dale.

“I don’t think this is a very bad result but it’s certainly not a good result,” said Iain.

Read more: Boris Johnson survives bruising confidence vote after Partygate scandal

“Let’s all sit on that same rickety fence,” Andrew added. “He is safe tonight but he is not safe in the medium term.”

The Prime Minister's victory in Monday's confidence vote does not mean the end of Boris Johnson's problems.

While Conservative Party rules mean he is safe from a confidence vote for another year, Mr Johnson still faces a daunting list of challenges demanding his attention.

First on the list will be mending his own divided party. A confidence vote is never a good thing for a leader and the 148 votes against him means he now faces an internal opposition that is difficult to ignore.

While it is possible this might translate to more backbench rebellions, the biggest problem is that Mr Johnson's authority is now seriously dented and he may struggle to push through parts of his agenda should he encounter cabinet opposition.

The suggestion that Mr Johnson could carry out a reshuffle could present further problems. It may be difficult for the Prime Minister to promote those who supported him on Monday without making more enemies by sacking those already in Government.

Away from Mr Johnson's internal party problems, the cost-of-living crisis continues to present the chief policy challenge facing the Prime Minister.