At the beginning of 2022, the violations of the corona rules, known as “Partygate”, plunged the then Johnson government into a permanent crisis.
(Photo: AP)
London As British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson repeatedly violated the corona rules issued by his government at the time during the pandemic and deliberately lied to Parliament in Westminister about rule violations at the seat of government. That’s the finding of a 14-month investigation by the Privileges Committee, a committee on professional etiquette in Britain’s House of Commons.
Johnson misled the committee, attacked MPs and was “participant in the committee’s campaign of abuse and attempted intimidation,” the report said.
Parliamentarians recommend that the former prime minister not be given a pass, which would allow him as a former MP to enter parliament.
Johnson denies the allegations and last weekend resigned his mandate in the House of Commons in protest at the expected results of the parliamentary inquiry. In his letter of resignation, he spoke of a politically motivated “witch hunt” and described the committee as the “Kangaroo Court”, i.e. a “show court” that carried out a “political attack” on him.
The Tory politician and Brexit supporter, who won his party a landslide victory in 2019 and was forced to resign in 2022 amid a series of scandals, continued his attacks this week. He called on Conservative Committee member Bernard Jenkin to resign for allegedly attending a toast during the pandemic.
Committee: Johnson disrespects Parliament
The parliamentarians countered the criticism with harsh words: “This attack on a committee that carries out a mandate from the democratically elected parliament is tantamount to an attack on our democratic institutions,” they wrote. Johnson’s behavior was a “serious further disregard” of Parliament.
The seven committee members, four of whom are Conservative friends of Johnson, come to the conclusion that, contrary to his assurances, the ex-prime minister has not received assurances from his advisors and officials that the corona rules at 10 Downing Street have been observed at all times.
Parliamentarians would have stripped the former prime minister of the House of Commons for his misconduct for 90 days if Johnson had not anticipated this verdict by resigning.
The by-election in his Uxbridge and South Ruislip constituency is expected to take place on July 20. At the same time, new elections are expected in two other constituencies after Johnson, his confidants Nadine Dorries and Nigel Adams announced their withdrawal from the House of Commons.
Permanent crisis for Johnson after Partygate
At the beginning of 2022, the violations of the corona rules under the name “Partygate” plunged the then Johnson government into a permanent crisis and ultimately led to the resignation of the head of government. Photos from that time showed him at a garden party and a birthday party at 10 Downing Street, the seat of government. The London police had fined him for it.
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Before Parliament, however, Johnson repeatedly stated that his closest associates had assured him that all protective rules had been followed at the seat of government. However, both the head of cabinet, Simon Case, and Johnson’s communications director, Jack Doyle, contradicted this before the committee.
According to the report, his private secretary Marin Reynolds even warned Johnson that it was “unrealistic” to claim that all rules had always been followed.
The House of Commons is expected to vote next Monday on whether to accept the findings of the inquiry and follow the committee’s recommendations.
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