Apologies, but no resignation: Boris Johnson showed himself determined on Tuesday April 12, 2022 to remain in power after having received a tiny fine for a birthday party organized by his wife Carrie, in breach of anti-Covid rules; a symbolic and unprecedented sanction for a British Prime Minister in office. From his country residence in Checkers, the Tory leader and father of a very large family apologized but made it clear he was not planning to leave on his own.
The scandal sent ‘BoJo’s popularity plummeting, triumphing at the polls in 2019 with the promise of delivering Brexit. According to the YouGov institute, 57% of Britons think he should leave because of his fine. However, after the exasperation with the incessant revelations about the parties organized in Downing Street by those who imposed strict confinements on the British, the sling of the beginning of the year in the ranks of the Conservative Party, between calls for resignation, defection and conspiracy , fell back. For his closest allies, it would be futile to fire the Conservative leader for a surprise birthday drink of less than ten minutes between two meetings, a rally held on June 19, 2020 for which Boris Johnson has received a fine of several tens of euros. According to The Sunthere wasn’t even cake and the beers were lukewarm.
Even for the most fired up, it’s not not the moment in the middle of the war in Ukraine to start a race to replace him in Downing Street. Boris Johnson rode to the frontline of the Western response to the Russian invasion and was the first major power leader to visit kyiv, delivering arms promises to Volodymyr Zelensky last weekend.
The punishment, even symbolic, is however unprecedented for a head of government in office, not to mention that he assured Parliament that he had not broken the rules. The Labor opposition, which is asking for his departure, cannot do much: the next legislative elections are scheduled for 2024. However, Under-Secretary of Justice David Wolfson announced his resignation of the government because ofthe scope, context and nature“offenses committed within the framework of “partygate”.
The fine announced Tuesday for Boris Johnson, as well as his wife Carrie and his finance minister Rishi Sunak, does not put an end to the “partygate”. The police, who have already issued more than 50 fines, continues its investigations. According to the press, the Prime Minister was present at five gatherings in addition to his surprise birthday: leaving drinks, an evening in his official apartment and a garden party on a sunny spring evening.
Once Scotland Yard’s investigation is complete, senior civil servant Sue Gray must submit a long-awaited internal report. A first version, lightened so as not to interfere with police procedures, pinpointed “leadership and judgment errors” in this case, pointing the finger at unjustified gatherings and the consumption of alcohol at work.