An upcoming report on Boris Johnson’s behavior as the Prime Minister caused him to resign from Parliament
A “political titan” during the COVID-19 “party gate” scandal: When former prime minister Sunak quit, the Conservatives lost a major victory
A political tradition for former prime ministers is to reward their aides and associates with knighthoods after they resign, but the tradition was protested by opponents of the ousted leader.
“Just a few years after winning the biggest majority in almost half a century, that majority is now clearly at risk,” Johnson said. The party needs to regain its sense of confidence in what this country can do.
He is free to run for Parliament again after quitting, because he avoided a suspension that could’ve seen him ousted from his Commons seat. He suggested in his resignation that he was considering that option. Sunak resigned as Treasury Chief in Johnson’s government after a series of resignations, which forced Johnson to leave.
Johnson could have been suspended from the House of Commons if the committee found that he lied deliberately.
He told the committee he “honestly believed” the five events he attended, including a send-off for a staffer and his own surprise birthday party, were “lawful work gatherings” intended to boost morale among overworked staff members coping with a deadly pandemic.
The scandal resulted in police issuing 126 fines over the late night soirees and booze parties and one to Johnson.
The House of Commons’ standards committee had launched an investigation into whether or not he had made misrepresentations to Parliament about gatherings in government buildings in 2020 and 2021.
Johnson, whose career has been a roller coaster of scandals and comebacks, led the Conservatives to a landslide victory in 2019 but was forced out by his own party less than three years later.
Johnson characterized the parliamentary committee tasked with examining whether he lied to fellow lawmakers about social gatherings inside government buildings that had violated his own COVID-19 social separation regulations as a “kangaroo court”.
Johnson quit after receiving the results of an investigation by lawmakers over misleading statements he made to Parliament about “partygate,” a series of rule-breaking government parties during the pandemic.
His allies describe him as a “political titan” whose treatment was “disgraceful,” and Johnson left out hope for supporters that he might one day return to frontline politics. He has bounced back from successive scandals before, and opponents know he is unlikely to disappear from Britain’s public life for long.
A year and two prime ministers later, the ongoing inquiry into Johnson was starting to overshadow U.K. politics, with the expected recall vote over Johnson’s parliamentary seat.
For months, eyewitness accounts, photographs and other evidence about parties piled up, infuriating a British citizenry wounded by more than 200,000 COVID-19 deaths and angered by the apparent hypocrisy of those in power.
Controversies centered around those in Downing Street — including Johnson — dominated Britain’s politics, frustrating his legislative agenda and further fragmenting the Conservatives.
But soon after, the pandemic upended his premiership, and his own personal behavior became problematic for much of the public, and many in Parliament too.
After helping oust Theresa May, he led his party to a huge victory in the general election, which allowed him to force through Britain’s exit from the European Union.
Boris Johnson apologizes to the media for his comments on the H1N1 swine flu epidemic and calls for a new prime minister
Criminal fines had previously been imposed on him and others for their behavior during the H1N1 swine flu outbreak. Johnson insisted that his incorrect and misleading accounts to Britain’s legislators didn’t amount to intentional lies.
Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will give up his parliamentary seat amid a long-running ethics investigation that is expected to produce a report into his behavior as prime minister next week.
