former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson returned to center stage in a day of high-stakes developments that could shape the future of UK politics, saying he did not mislead parliament about rule-breaking parties during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Johnson, who was ousted by his own ruling Conservative party in 2022 Amid scandals over money, ethics and judgment, he has mounted a bullish defense in front of a committee of fellow lawmakers whose findings could see him lose his seat if convicted of lying.
At stake are the chances of Johnson’s return at a time when current Prime Minister and Tory leader Rishi Sunak faces significant opposition from right-wing elements in his own party and polls show the opposition Labor Party is on the rise.
But while Johnson tried during his testimony to draw Sunak into the Partygate saga.The prime minister cleared another hurdle by winning parliament’s backing for a key element of a reworked post-Brexit deal on Northern Ireland, despite opposition from some of his MPs.
Why did Johnson make the headlines again? On Wednesday?
A UK parliamentary committee is investigating whether Johnson intentionally or recklessly misled fellow MPs in a series of statements about meetings at 10 Downing Street during 2020 and 2021, when much of the rest of Britain was forced to stay put. at home.
Johnson was previously fined by police for attending an event celebrating his birthday in Downing Street in June 2020, making him the first prime minister to break the law while in office.
“I am here to tell you, from my heart, that I did not lie to the camera,” said Johnson, who accused the committee, which contains MPs from his own party but is chaired by a Labor MP, of bias. .
Before hours of testimony in which Johnson’s patience ran thin, even during cross-examination by his peers conservativesthe committee released 110 pages of evidence, showing that some Downing Street officials said that Johnson must have known that parties had taken place despite his denials.
There was also new evidence from a senior official who said he had never given Johnson assurances that Covid rules had been followed at Downing Street.
Why does that matter?
Any censure of Johnson could be terminal to what is believed to be his hopes of returning to replace Sunak, who managed Britain’s economy as Johnson’s chancellor but has never been forgiven by Johnson supporters for being among the first to wield the knife during his tenure. dismissal.
The repetition of the meaning and wording of the blocking rules comes as Sunak has faced a mini-rebellion within his own ranks over a deal he reached with the EU to end years of dispute in a key area of contention that pursued the aftermath of Britain. exit from the block.
In a crucial vote on Wednesday, Sunak won parliament’s backing for his deal, which was aimed at giving devolved lawmakers in Northern Ireland a sort of veto when it comes to applying new EU laws to part of the UK where a politically sensitive A balancing act around local power sharing has had to be made due to a divided political history.
Sunak won the vote 515 to 29, managing to contain the size of the rebellion but with a substantial number of conservatives abstaining. However, there was opposition from those he most wanted to win: some Eurosceptics hardliners in his own party and members of Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), who still refuse to re-enter power by sharing there. with other parties.
Notably, others who voted against Sunak were his two immediate predecessors as prime minister and Conservative leader: Liz Truss and Johnson.
What happens next?
Johnson’s efforts to rebuild his power base in the Conservative Party and chart a path back to Downing Street could suffer a serious setback if the parliamentary committee he faced on Wednesday decides he misled parliament, with additional grounds to determine whether your action was intentional or not. reckless.
Sanctions range from a written apology to being suspended from the House of Commons for a specified period, opening up the possibility for voters in their own constituency to start a by-election.
However, any termination of Johnson’s political career would only give Sunak a respite from a whole catalog of challenges he faces, most important of all in the economy. On Wednesday morning, data showed that the UK inflation rate it had jumped unexpectedly in the past month, with the cost of living rising faster than in most other advanced economies.
During his testimony, Johnson also tried to draw Sunak deeper into the Partygate scandal by suggesting that if Covid rules had been broken in Downing Street then it should have been “obvious” to the current Prime Minister too, who was also fined. for attending an event there during the pandemic.
