Michael Gove: I’m a sinner and I shouldn’t have stood against Boris Johnson Michael Gove has said he should not have run in the Conservative leadership election where he scuppered his former ally Boris […]

Michael Gove has said he should not have run in the Conservative leadership election where he scuppered his former ally Boris Johnson’s chances.

In a wide-ranging interview on his political career and his Christian faith, he admitted to being a “sinner” and said that, in retrospect, Theresa May becoming Prime Minister was “the right result for the country”.

“With the benefit of hindsight, I should have not been so quick to say that I was going to support Boris in the first place and probably should never have run myself,” he told Christian Today, a religious website.

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Shaken confidence

He recounted how he entered a huddle with friends on the night before nominations and ultimately decided that he would not support Mr Johnson, as widely expected.

“A number of things had happened which had shaken my confidence in Boris’s candidacy – not fundamentally altered my view of him as a good person – but had shaken my confidence that he was the right person to be prime minister at that time,” he said.

“And then having decided that I didn’t think he was the right person I then thought well, if we’re going to have someone who had advocated to leave then I’ll put myself forward.”

‘I am a sinner’

The former cabinet minister told the Christian website that he was flawed in how he has lived, saying “I am a sinner and I know it profoundly”, but nonetheless maintains his faith, attending church regularly.

Mr Gove also gave his opinion on Donald Trump’s chances of hanging on to power despite the chaos surrounding his administration, and addressed the claim that The Times proprietor Rupert Murdoch was present for his interview with the President.

‘I haven’t said anything about who was and wasn’t in – um,’ – he trails off. ‘The best thing to say I think, in fairness is, um [long pause] in securing the interview, I think the fact that it was the Times newspaper and the fact that we had the – what’s the word…I think [pause] it’s probably better for me not to go into how the interview arose or how it came about but I think it’s entirely fair for people to make a set of conclusions or assumptions about that. I won’t comment on them if you don’t mind…I haven’t said anything about it at this stage.’ Christian Today interview with Michael Gove

The prominent Leave campaigner also stressed that he empathised with the “disoriented to devastated” Remainers who were watching Brexit unfold with trepidation.

“I think overall however, that the PM’s handling it well,” he said. “I think the outlook is broadly reassuring and optimistic.”