BORIS Johnson is an “attention seeker” who should “p*** off and do something else” when he leaves Downing Street, Anas Sarwar has said.

The Scottish Labour leader said the Prime Minister was so publicity hungry he would find it impossible to leave the limelight, but that people should try to ignore him.

“Let’s get politics back to a decent place,” he told an audience at the Edinburgh Fringe. 

Mr Sarwar also said the rolling chaos of Mr Johnson’s premiership was a deliberate tactic to distract and exhaust the public, adding: “It’s a survival technique.” 

The Glasgow MSP made the comments in Ayesha Hazarika’s comedy talkshow State of the Nation at the Gilded Balloon Teviot.

Discussing Mr Johnson’s options after Number 10, he said: “I don't think he''l come back as leader - and if there was any potential for him coming back, it would mean the Conservatives are in a really, really bad place. 

“He's an attention seeker. Similar to [President] Trump…  the big mistake that people made with Trump was they thought he had an ideology. 

“Actually, Trump doesn't believe in anything, and neither does Boris Johnson. 

“The only thing they've ever believed in is in themselves. And they view it as reality TV.  

“They don't care if you like the show. They don't care if you hate the show. They just want to make sure you're watching the show. 

“And that's the way that we should view these politicians. 

“Don't give them the attention they crave. 

“Let them get on with what they're going to do with their lives. They can piss off and do something else. And actually, let's get politics back to a decent place where it becomes about the people, not about the politicians.”

Asked how he thought British political life had come to such a low ebb in recent years, with Partygate and other scandals, Mr Sarwar said: “It's a deliberate tactic of the Conservative Party. It’s a replication, actually, of what Donald Trump does in the US -  rely on constant chaos, meaning another tragedy comes along, another crisis comes along, another controversy comes along, the circus moves on, and you then get away with it.

“And that's all it was - buying time. Buy time for the next crisis, get to that one. Buy time for the next crisis, get to that one. Buy time for the next crisis. 

“And it is a deliberate tactic, which helps feed the machine, feeds their right wing press in terms of the Telegraph or other places, and the social media bubble and so on.

“Because the media doesn't have the same level of capacity and resource it did 10 years ago, 15 years ago now, and therefore they move with the story.

“And it’s all a survival technique.

“And the people who pay the price are the people who voted for these governments to win power, when all they're doing is being used to keep politicians in power, own the economy, own democracy, and our country doesn't change, it actually gets worse in the process.”

Also appearing on the panel, Labour-supporting comedian and podcast host Matt Forde caused audience groans when he predicted Mr Johnson could be a constant public presence in  public life after he ceases to be Prime Minister.

He said: “I think he would just continue to write bad books, do terrible speeches. I think we'll actually see more of him within a couple years. I think he's someone who's addicted to the sugar rush of attention. 

“I don’t think he's interested about changing the world or society. He just wants cameras and lights on him. He’ll probably be up here [on stage]  in a couple of years.” 

Former SNP leader Alex Salmond and former Scottish Socialist party leader Tommy Sheridan both did shows on the Fringe after their time at the helm.