A double by-election defeat: Voters have run out of patience with Boris Johnson

Editorial: The prime minister may not realise how devastating the damage is to him, but his party chairman does

The prime minister says he will listen but carry on (AFP/Getty)

If anyone were in any doubt about the prime minister’s capacity for arrogance, the few words he offered from Rwanda were evidence enough.

The prime minister says he will listen but carry on. Listen, in other words, but take no notice of the message from electors in Devon and Yorkshire. The message being that they do not have confidence in him.

The prime minister may not realise how devastating the damage is to him, but his party chairman does. Oliver Dowden has resigned rather than defend the indefensible any longer. The media round was no longer an option. In his letter to Mr Johnson, he omitted the usual pledge of personal loyalty, and the implications of that are perfectly plain for his colleagues. As he put it, the party cannot go on like this.