British MPs banned Boris Johnson from parliament, confirming a damning report on Monday evening that the former prime minister lied to parliament over the “participate” affair, compromising his political future.
On what would have been Boris Johnson’s 59th birthday, elected members of the House of Commons endorsed the decisions of a parliamentary committee on privileges and immunities recommended against the former head of government.
The report was overwhelmingly approved by the House of Commons, which has a total of 650 elected officials, with 354 votes in favor and 7 against. But many, including Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, did not vote.
Boris Johnson, who was forced to resign from Downing Street last summer after a series of scandals, finds himself losing the badge of access to the Parliamentary premises that former prime ministers usually hold.
The 106-page report, published on Thursday, recommended a 90-day suspension from parliament – which would lead to a snap election in his constituency – but the former leader surrendered his mandate as MP shortly after receiving the document’s results. .
This suggestion by the representatives was no less convincing, but it represented an insult to the attractive and controversial conservatives. He called the report a “witch hunt” and “political assassination” when it was published.
In a divisive report within the majority, the commission concluded that he had “misled the House on a matter of great importance to the House and the public” and “on several occasions”.
– “Restore the Faith” –
According to British news, the former prime minister called on his supporters to refrain from protesting the statement.
Conservative and opposition MPs took turns in the House of Commons for more than 5 hours to express their views on the report, but beyond the former leader and “partygate”, these parties have been in open lockdown during Covid-19.
Parliamentary Relations Minister Benny Mordant said at the start of the session that he would vote in favor of the report, but without imposing any voting procedures: “All members should make up their own mind and others should leave them alone on this. Respect”.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, whose rivalry with Boris Johnson is greater than ever, did not attend the debate, saying he did not want to “influence” the vote, but this earned him accusations of “weakness”. labor
Former Conservative Prime Minister Theresa May called on all MPs to vote in support of the report’s findings to ‘help restore confidence in our parliamentary democracy’.
Labour’s Angela Eagle denounced Boris Johnson as “running away from the duty to account for his lies (…) and not apologising, not accepting an ounce of responsibility”.
For Jacob Rees-Mock, one of Boris Johnson’s closest allies, the group “deliberately sought to adopt (…) a very unfavorable interpretation of Mr Johnson’s activities”.
– Teacher –
The former leader, who is soon to be a father for the eighth time, is popular in his party for implementing Brexit. In 2019, he came to power after a landslide electoral victory.
But according to a poll, 69% of Britons and 51% of Tory voters think he actually lied to Parliament.
Boris Johnson, a former journalist, has already found a new activity: he has been hired as a columnist by the conservative tabloid Daily Mail.
On Sunday, a new video published in The Mirror newspaper showed members of the Conservative Party dancing at a party during the pandemic, breaking social distancing rules and sparking outrage.
This epic adventure around “Particate” comes at a time when the Conservative government is under more pressure than ever to fight inflation and rising interest rates.
Labour’s lowest in the polls against the opposition, the party in power for 13 years will face four regional elections at worst in the coming months.
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