Coronavirus: Boris Johnson urged to hand over power temporarily unless he recovers quickly

Stricken prime minister told no-one is ‘indispensable’ – as Dominic Raab waits in the wings as ‘designated survivor’

Boris Johnson has been urged to hand over power temporarily if he does not recover quickly from coronavirus, as he remained in a London hospital.

A deputy – presumably Dominic Raab, the so-called ‘designated survivor’ – should take over at No 10 if necessary, because no-one is “indispensable”, the prime minister was told.

The calls came from two former heads of the civil service, Bob Kerslake and Lord O'Donnell, and Andy Street, the Conservative West Midlands mayor, as fears grew over Mr Johnson’s condition.

Downing Street has sought to play down the severity of his symptoms, insisting they have not deteriorated and that he did not need an ambulance – but it has been reported that he needed oxygen treatment.

The prime minister is expected to undergo blood tests, to judge the response of his immune response and to assess liver and kidney function. He will also undergo heart checks, doctors say.

Mr Kerslake said: “If he's not well enough, it would be sensible to step back and let others take on the role.

“I think in the end, if he's not well, he will have to reflect on this because the job's tough at the best of times and it's doubly tough now,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

Lord O’Donnell, another former cabinet secretary, said the government was “not really” set up to deal with this kind of absence of a prime minister.

He said prime ministers want to be involved in decisions where they would have to live with the consequences.

He told BBC Radio 4’s World At One: “If a prime minister becomes so ill that they can't be [involved in big decisions] or the medical advice is 'look you really need to rest, you need to stop looking at all of these dreaded red boxes you need to hand on' then I hope the prime minister ... is able to hand over.”

And Mr Street said: “We all have to learn in life, don't we, that we’re not indispensable and the team around you will step into your shoes if he is not able to do what I know he will be so, so desperate to carry on doing himself.”

A Foreign Office minister, James Dudderidge, echoed the calls, tweeting: “Take care boss. Get well. Come back fighting. But for now rest, look after yourself and let the others do the heavy lift.”

There are concerns that Mr Johnson has made it harder for himself to recover, by continuing to work around-the-clock to oversee the NHS’s response to the gathering crisis.

But Robert Jenrick, the communities secretary, insisted Mr Johnson remained in charge, saying: “I certainly expect he will be back at Number 10 shortly.”

Downing Street has already said that Mr Raab will be chairing this morning’s daily meeting of the Covid-19 committee of senior ministers, in the prime minister’s absence.

However, team Johnson is thought to be extremely reluctant to formally hand over the reins, even for a few days, with Mr Raab largely unknown to the wider public.

But Mr Jenrick said: “He's been working extremely hard leading the government and being constantly updated. That's going to continue.

“Obviously today he's in hospital having the tests but he will continue to be kept informed as to what's happening and to be in charge of the government.

“I'm sure this is very frustrating for him, for somebody like Boris who wants to be hands on running the government from the front, but nonetheless he's still very much in charge of the government.”