By Yasin Ebrahim

Investing.com — The pound was unchanged Monday after U.K. Prime Minister survived a vote of confidence in his leadership of the Conservative Party by 211 to 148.

The price was up 0.3% to $1.2529

Johnson won 59%, which means he is secure against another leadership challenge. Johnson’s narrow victory shows that many in the Conservative ranks are aiming for Johnson’s departure, which would be a major blow to Johnson’s authority.

The prime minister now finds herself in a precarious position. Johnson’s predecessor, Theresa May had survived a confidence vote in December 2018, by a larger margin of about 63%, but was soon forced out after a few months as Conservative, or ‘Tory,’ lawmakers threatened to launch a new vote.

At least 54 Tory lawmakers had submitted letters requesting that the prime minister launch an emergency vote against confidence.

Johnson has come under intense scrutiny after becoming the first British prime minister in history to have broken the law while in office. Earlier this year, Johnson was found guilty of breaking his own Covid-19 lockdown rules.

Recent local elections saw Johnson’s Conservative give up political ground to Labour. There are fears that the ruling Conservative government will face further setbacks in the coming local elections amid spiraling food and energy costs.