The MP for Morecambe and Lunesdale took the opportunity during Boris Johnson’s Commons apology over ‘partygate’ to publicly express his support for the prime minister.
MPs have returned from the Easter break and today got their first chance to quiz Boris Johnson since he was fined for attending a Downing Street party in 2020.
The prime minister made a statement in which he apologised for attending the gathering, for which he received a fixed penalty notice for breaking lockdown rules.
Addressing a packed chamber, David Morris praised Mr Johnson for his handling of Brexit, the pandemic, and the Ukraine situation, and pledged his support.
‘’I’ve heard the prime minister apologise countless times today, and I’m man enough to accept that,’’ said Mr Morris.
‘’But this is a matter of trust.
‘’I trusted him to see us through Brexit. He did.
‘’I trusted him to see us through the covid pandemic, and remember he almost died himself. And he did.
‘’This prime minister is leading the world against Putin’s aggression in Ukraine. The G7 leaders respect him for that, and more to the point, so does President Biden.
‘’So I want to say to the prime minister, will you please carry on leading this country?
In response, Mr Johnson said: ‘’The answer to that is yes I will, but that in no way means I wish to mitigate the offence I’ve been found guilty of, or in any way to undermine the importance of my apology.’’
Earlier, Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer branded Boris Johnson "dishonest" and "a joke".
He also branded the PM's apology as "half-hearted".
Reiterating his call for the prime minister to resign, the Labour leader urged Conservative MPs to speak out against the actions of their leader and "bring decency, honesty and integrity back into our politics and stop the denigration of everything that this country stands for".
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