A former Tory MP and attorney general says public opinion in the UK is now very much turning against "serial liar" Boris Johnson.
Dominic Grieve says a decision on the prime minister's future now lies with Conservative MPs - who face the risk of things getting worse if they don't take action now.
Mr Johnson is expected to face tough questions later in the House of Commons about whether or not he attended a bring-your-own-booze lockdown-breaking gathering at Downing Street.
A leaked email, initially published by ITV News, shows 100 members of staff were invited to the event in its garden in May 2020, and around 30 people ultimately attended.
It has been widely reported in British media that Boris Johnson attended the party along with his wife.
The prime minister has so far declined to say whether he attended, instead just noting an internal investigation into several alleged lockdown gatherings at Downing Street is ongoing.
The Labour Party says Mr Johnson's position is 'untenable' if he misled MPs about the issue.
A poll by the Telegraph, meanwhile, shows two-thirds of the public now believe Mr Johnson should quit.
Since the Conservative Party enjoys a large majority in parliament, it will ultimately be down to the party itself to decide on their party leader's fate.
Former Tory MP and UK attorney general Dominic Grieve told Newstalk Breakfast this does appear to be a turning point in the prime minister's tenure.
He said: “It seems to be me public opinion is turning against him very forcefully in the UK, because he’s seen as being unreliable, dishonest and indeed a serial liar on so many occasions. It appears also he believes the rules don’t apply to him.
“But it’s ultimately a matter for the Conservative members of parliament to decide what they want to do.
"My personal opinion is the prime minister has shown himself to be a disaster over the two years he’s been in office - this is not an isolated episode."
While some Tory MPs have indicated that a full and sincere apology could see Mr Johnson weather this storm, Mr Grieve said such an apology would come "against a background of having behaved badly so often".
The former MP said it's now difficult to predict what’s going to happen - noting the risk to Tory MPs is things will get worse if they don't take action.
His impression is a lot of those MPs have had enough, but that now needs to translate into them actively deciding to get rid of their leader.
A no-confidence motion and leadership election could cause months of uncertainty - something Tory MPs will be reluctant to do.
However, Mr Grieve noted if they leave things for longer things could get much worse.
He added: “One possibility is that the prime minister decides his position is untenable and resigns - I think that’s rather unlikely given the prime minister’s character.”
