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Boris Johnson has already resigned as MP and will therefore not serve out the ban nor face the by-election that the ban would have triggered.
London CNN –
Britain’s Parliament has voted to maintain a finding that Boris Johnson knowingly misled lawmakers when he said the Covid lockdown rules at Downing Street had always been respected during his tenure as Prime Minister.
The report of the House of Commons Privileges Committee, released last week, found that Johnson “seriously disregarded” Parliament when he told lawmakers the rules were being respected despite the uncovering of illegal parties at Downing Street during the nationwide lockdown . Many people who worked at Downing Street, including Johnson and current Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, have been fined by police.
The committee not only reported that Johnson knowingly misled Parliament, but also said that by testifying at their inquiry he himself continued to mislead the committee when testifying in his defence.
The vote passed the House of Commons by a vote of 354 to 7. The vote was expected to pass as a number of Johnson’s Conservative countrymen were absent and abstained.
Johnson’s most vocal supporters, who have consistently defended him and heavily criticized the committee, were reportedly encouraged by Johnson not to vote so as not to lend credibility to the decision.
Johnson would have been sentenced to a lengthy ban from Parliament and denied entry to the building, a right vested in former MPs. However, since Johnson has already resigned as MP, he will not serve the ban nor face the by-elections that the ban would have triggered.
Sunak and the rest of the Conservative Party are now hoping that the Johnson issue and the scandals that brought down his government can be a thing of the past in the future. However, Sunak and his party are currently lagging behind in the polls.
Sunak came to power after Johnson’s immediate successor, Liz Truss, made controversial spending and budget cuts that led to an economic collapse.
Sunak’s suggestion was that he would bring calm to the hitherto chaotic political scene. He’s managed to do that somewhat, but his poll ratings have improved only slightly, making his own MPs nervous.