Former British prime minister Boris Johnson has made no secret of his hopes for a dramatic political comeback. But the ongoing “partygate” scandal threatens, as new revelations emerge.
Denying later that any lockdown rules had been broken, Johnson allegedly joked at a boozy 10 Downing Street event in November 2020 that it was “the most unsocial party in Britain”.
Staff shredded documents while civil service and police investigations loomed, and some had sex at one of the riotous parties the night before Prince Philip’s funeral, according to aides interviewed for the ITV podcast.
“As the disgraced former prime minister plans a comeback, he reminds us all again why he is unfit for office,” said Angela Rayner, deputy leader of the opposition Labor Party.
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“When people can’t say goodbye to their loved ones or mourn with their families, they break their own rules recklessly and then lie to the British people.”
The ITV podcast came out this week just as the parliamentary committee opened an investigation that could see Johnson suspended or even kicked out of the House of Commons.
The “privileges” committee is investigating whether he lied to the Commons, starting in December 2021 after an alarming video emerged, in which he told MPs that “the rules were followed every time”.
“We all watched it live and we were just gobsmacked,” a Downing Street source who attended the party told ITV.
Also read: UK PM Boris Johnson apologizes to cleaners, keeps party going
“We were all shocked that he would deny it. He was there. We were there. We were all there.”
Johnson – along with his eventual successor Rishi Sunak – was fined by London police for another Downing Street event in June 2020 that broke the government’s own rules on social distancing.
A spokesman for Sunak said on Thursday: “At all times staff are given clear instructions to keep relevant information and cooperate with the investigation.”
‘The Last Nail’ –
After his fellow Conservative MPs grew tired of the non-stop scandals and forced him to resign, Johnson attempted a sensational return in October when Liz Truss was forced out of Number 10.
But after rushing back from a Caribbean vacation and a feverish weekend of campaigning, he bowed out of the race, allowing Sunak to take over.
One Tory MP called the ITV report the “final nail in his self-made coffin”, according to the Independent newspaper.
But Johnson and acolytes such as former minister Nadine Dorries are notoriously thick-skinned, and the ex-premier has been burnishing his legacy and continued relevance through a series of well-paid speeches.
Also read: Brexit to exit: The rise and fall of Boris Johnson
“Most sane people know they (Conservative MPs) are completely wrong. Nothing has been right for us since the day Boris Johnson was sacked,” Dorries told TalkTV on Tuesday.
Johnson gave an impassioned defense of the record at the Tory-oriented Carlton Club in London on Tuesday for the unveiling of a portrait of him – which shows a thinner, vigorous-looking figure.
The unveiling is intended to be the centerpiece of what the Sunday Times says is the start of a comeback campaign ahead of the UK local elections in May, which opinion polls predict will be bad for Sunak.
Another senior Johnson loyalist has founded a new group, called the Organization of Conservative Democrats, insisting that party members demand a say in Sunak’s leadership.
But the former minister told the Independent: “It will make the privilege committee inquiry more difficult for Boris – if this stands, he knows what’s going on.
Also read: Britain’s Rishi Sunak refuses to attack Boris Johnson in the leadership field
“I am concerned that some supporters do not understand the facts and may try to cause unnecessary disruption by forcing them.”
Johnson’s spokeswoman did not deny that he had said “the most socially distant party”.
But he stressed that the leader is “continually working” to ensure the government is doing everything it can to protect lives and jobs during the pandemic.
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