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The focus of the inquiry was Johnson’s conduct during the Covid-19 pandemic, when he was prime minister and was found by police to have broken his own rules.
London CNN –
Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson deliberately deceived legislature for their own violations A parliamentary committee has established the Covid-19 lockdown rules in a devastating and unprecedented report, in which it criticizes Johnson’s behavior and recommends he be denied entry to Parliament buildings.
The committee’s report found that Johnson “seriously disregarded” Parliament when Johnson told Parliament that it obeys the rules at all times, following the so-called “Partygate” scandal, which brought to light illegal gatherings at Downing Street would.
The results come as a historic exhortation from a former prime minister who won a landslide victory less than four years ago but whose political career collapsed following a series of scandals.
“The disregard was all the more serious as it was committed by the prime minister, the most senior member of government,” the Privileges Committee wrote in its report released on Thursday. “There is no precedent for a prime minister willingly misleading the House of Representatives.”
“He has misled the House of Representatives on a matter of the utmost importance to the House and the public, and has done so repeatedly,” members wrote, adding that Johnson also misled the committee when presenting evidence to his submitted a defence.
Johnson furiously resigned as MP on Friday, days before the report was released, defeating the committee’s recommendation that he be suspended long enough to force a by-election in his constituency.
But the report added another damning recommendation in the face of his resignation: that Johnson be denied a former MP’s permission to enter Parliament, a longstanding convention for ex-MPs.
British Cabinet Office
Johnson raises a glass during a gathering at Downing Street, in a picture released during a separate investigation into his conduct.
It marks the end of a lengthy investigation by the committee – majority representing Johnson’s Conservative Party – which has attacked Johnson and some of his allies as a “kangaroo court”.
But the Partygate saga might not end there. MPs must now vote to accept the report’s findings, a potentially embarrassing affair that is sure to expose divisions between Johnson’s supporters in parliament and current Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who has attempted to break away from Johnson in recent days distance.
The focus of the inquiry was Johnson’s conduct during the Covid-19 pandemic, when he was prime minister and was found by police to have broken his own rules.
Unlike a police inquiry and a separate parliamentary inquiry into the parties themselves, this inquiry examined whether Johnson knowingly misled MPs in the House of Commons by assuring them that he did not know the parties.
The results were unanimous and clear. “We find it highly unlikely, given the likelihood, that Mr Johnson … could have been reasonably satisfied at the time of his testimony before the House of Representatives that the rule or guidance was being followed,” the report reads.
The report also censured Johnson for his attacks on the committee’s impartiality, noting that he had repeatedly acted in contempt of Parliament in testifying and resigning as an MP.
British Cabinet Office
The committee rejected Johnson’s argument that he was unaware that he had broken his lockdown rules during the events.
“This attack on a committee that performs its duties from within the democratically elected House of Representatives is tantamount to an attack on our democratic institutions,” the committee wrote in its report, calling Johnson’s language “scathing” and “completely unacceptable.”
Had Johnson stayed in Parliament, the committee would have recommended a 90-day suspension from the House of Commons – a ban nine times the threshold that would force an incumbent MP to hold a by-election to win back his seat.
Johnson, in his own response to the report, called its release a “terrible day for democracy.”
“This report is a farce. It was wrong to believe in the committee or its welfare. Believe. The horrible truth is that I didn’t twist the truth for my purposes,” he said.
But Johnson’s reputation is anchored even deeper in shame after the release. Not only was he the first prime minister to be fined by police during his tenure, his entire tenure as prime minister was marred by scandals ranging from financial irregularities to allegations of sexual misconduct against members of his team.
Johnson’s popularity plummeted towards the end of his tenure – both among the British public and among his own MPs. His attempt to come back after his successor, Liz Truss, was forced to resign fell through as it emerged that a majority of Conservative MPs would block him.
Johnson engaged in an argument with Sunak, his former Chancellor (Treasury Secretary) and eventual successor.
Over the weekend, he and two of his allies declared they would step down as MPs immediately, forcing three difficult by-elections for a government that is lagging behind in opinion polls.
The former PM’s departure from the House of Commons is not necessarily good news for Sunak, who Johnson criticized in his resignation statement.
Johnson and his allies still largely blame Sunak for his predecessor’s political downfall. Johnson has always been an influential figure among Conservative voters, whether inside or outside Parliament.
The prospect of Johnson writing columns and delivering speeches outside of Parliament aimed at the voters Sunak needs to win the next election will no doubt raise even more concern in Downing Street.