Boris Johnson comes from “to put its political future in the hands of an arbitrary tribunal of parliamentarians”, summarizes the Telegraph. Stuck in the scandal of clandestine parties in Downing Street during the confinements, the British Prime Minister is now the target of a parliamentary inquiry, launched on Thursday by the deputies, to determine whether the Conservative leader deceived them in this affair.
The government initially introduced an amendment aimed at delaying the opening of an investigation, but was forced to “backtracking after facing opposition from Tory MPs in his own camp”notice the BBC. “During stormy scenes in the House of Commons”two new Tory MPs have called on Boris Johnson to step down, including influential Brexiter Steve Baker, reports the Guardian.
Johnson could be forced to resign
Taken by consensus without even a vote, the decision “unprecedented” of British parliamentarians to open an inquiry into the Prime Minister is likely to eventually force Boris Johnson to resign, notes The Independent.
On many occasions before Parliament, Boris Johnson assured that all the rules had been respected, an assertion contradicted by the fine imposed on him by the police a week ago for violations of health rules. It is a violation of the Ministerial Code to deliberately mislead Parliament and, by convention, Ministers who do so are expected to resign. If he admitted having made an error of judgment, Boris Johnson however affirmed not to have knowingly misled the Parliament. On Tuesday, he asked the deputies for forgiveness. “If the Inquiry Committee ends up ruling that these errors were accidental, the charges against Boris Johnson could implode and he could remain Prime Minister”concludes The Independent.
Two other administrative and police investigations are currently underway. The parliamentary investigation targeting Boris Johnson will not begin until the Scotland Yard investigation is completed, recalls The Evening Standard. Senior civil servant Sue Gray, in charge of an internal investigation, has yet to submit her final report. A preliminary report, denouncing “errors of leadership and judgment” had already given an outline of his opinion on the “Partygate” affair.