Boris Johnson at the Global Soft Power Summit in London, March 2, 2023. PETER NICHOLLS / REUTERS
Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will testify in two weeks before the Parliamentary Inquiry into the celebrations in Downing Street, in violation of anti-covid rules, which cast a dark cloud over his political future. Pushed to resign this summer by a succession of scandals, first and foremost the “partygate”, Boris Johnson is under investigation which, if it concludes that the former head of government misled Parliament, risks cost him his parliamentary seat.
The exact date of his hearing is to be announced soon, but the former Conservative leader, already fined by the police, agreed to testify in public the week of March 20, the commission announced on Friday. This must determine whether Boris Johnson lied to the House of Commons, in particular when he affirmed before the deputies in December 2021 that “the rules were always respected“.
Read alsoUnited Kingdom: the rise of Keir Starmer, the Labor Party who speaks like a conservative
SEE ALSO – Northern Ireland: Boris Johnson finds it “difficult” to support the new agreement with the European Union
Violations of “obvious” anti-covid rules
In a report detailing on Friday the explanations that the investigation will endeavor to obtain from the former prime minister, the commission underlines that the elements it has collected “strongly suggest“that violations of the anti-covid rules should be”obviousfor Boris Johnson. He responded in a statement that there is “no evidence in the report” that he has “informedmisled Parliament.
He further judged “surrealistto discover that the commissionproposes to rely on collected and orchestrated evidenceby senior civil servant Sue Gray, “who has just been appointed Chief of Staff to the leader of the Labor PartyKeir Starmer. A senior civil servant renowned for her impartiality, Sue Gray had suddenly risen to notoriety for her report on the “party gate“, which detailed, emails and photos in support, a series of very alcoholic pots with altercations, music, and departure by back doors in the early morning.
The announcement of his departure from the administration to join the Labor Party, which the polls promise power in the next general election, has seen accusations of conspiracy to bring down Boris Johnson flourish in the conservative press. The commission clarified that the report it published on Friday was “notnot based on Sue Gray’s report“. After Liz Truss’s lightning visit to Downing Street, Boris Johnson had finally given up on running for power again, leaving the way open to Rishi Sunak, whose agreement with the EU on Ireland he recently publicly criticized. North.