Ex-UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson "deliberately" lied to the British Parliament on multiple occasions during the "Partygate" scandal, a parliamentary committee of enquiry concluded on Thursday.
Johnson is the first Prime Minister to have been found guilty of lying to both the British Parliament and the Privileges Committee, as well as for "undermining confidence in the democratic process of the House [of Parliament]."
Having been informed of the findings of the committee last week, the former British Prime Minister resigned as a Member of Parliament last Friday.
Had he not resigned, Johnson would have faced a 90-day suspension for his actions, as per the enquiry committee's findings, "for repeated contempts and for seeking to undermine the parliamentary process."
One for the history books
"The contempt was all the more serious because it was committed by the Prime Minister, the most senior member of the government. There is no precedent for a Prime Minister having been found to have deliberately misled the House," the inquiry report noted.
Credit: Belga
Johnson has called the report a "charade" and "rubbish", adding that it is "the final knife-thrust in a protracted political assassination."
The ex-premier attempted to defend himself by calling into question the competencies of the enquiry committee. For their part, the committee noted that Johnson was "complicit in the campaign of abuse and attempted intimidation of the Committee." It deemed Johnson's attacks as "completely unacceptable" and stressed that the body was simply "carrying out its remit from the democratically-elected House."
'Highly unlikely'
The inquiry followed the numerous parties and gathering organised at Number 10 Downing Street – the Prime Minister's official residence – during the Covid-19 lockdowns. Whilst the Prime Minister was telling Britons to stay at home, he was hosting alcohol-fuelled gatherings with his staff in breach of his own rules.
"We think it highly unlikely on the balance of probabilities that Mr Johnson, in the light of his cumulative direct personal experience of these events... could have genuinely believed at the time of his statements to the House that the Rules or Guidance were being complied with," the report concluded.
The inquiry committee has also recommended that Johnson "should not be entitled to a former Member's pass" to access to the Houses of Parliament. Centrist party the Liberal Democrats are calling for Johnson to lose his the £115,000 annual allowance paid to all ex-British Prime Ministers.
