Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson denied on Tuesday that he deliberately lied to parliament about holding parties at the official residence during the Covid-19 pandemic, in a document submitted to the ongoing parliamentary inquiry.
“I have not cheated the House of Commons [câmara baixa do parlamento] intentionally or unintentionally on December 1, 2021, December 8, 2021 or any other date. I would never think of doing that,” said Boris Johnson, quoted in the document known today.
In the testimony, Johnson admits that the chamber may have been misled by his statements, however, making sure the rules and guidelines were fully followed. and that his statements were made “in good faith”.
The 52-page document is a written defense statement to the Privileges Commission, which will personally question the former prime minister on Wednesday.
It concerns several “parties” held between 2020 and 2021 at 10 Downing Street, the official residence and office building of the British Prime Minister, who violated the restrictions imposed at the time due to the covid-19 pandemic, a scandal that became known as ‘Party Gate’.
British police fined a total of 126 for breaching Covid-19 pandemic restrictions in government buildings, including Johnson, his wife Carrie and successor Rishi Sunak, then Chancellor of the Exchequer.
In his speech, Johnson complains about the “highly biased” tone of one of the parliamentary committee’s reports, saying it is clear in the material released so far that “there is no evidence to support an allegation” that he misled “intentionally or unintentionally” the House of Commons.
“The only exception is the claims made by the discredited Dominic Cummings, which are not supported by any documentation,” said Boris Johnson, referring to his former adviser, who claims to have a “grievance” against the former boss.
The Parliamentary Privileges Committee wrote in the document that “the evidence strongly suggests that rule violations would have been apparent to Johnson at the time these illegal gatherings took place.”
In the testimony, Johnson claims that it is “important to understand the context in which people worked on the 10th [de Downing Street] during the pandemic”, with long and intense working days.
In the statement of defense he also states that he still does not understand why he was fined by the police for participating in an event celebrating the anniversary.
“Meeting at a social distance, to boost staff morale and teamwork,” justifies Boris Johnson
“I was never given a reason by the police, in particular how it is that some of the persons present were not fined,” he added.
Regarding a garden party where alcohol and food were consumed, the former British prime minister argued that “it was a socially distanced outdoor gathering, to boost staff morale and teamwork after a very difficult period”.
“In my opinion, an opportunity to thank the staff and boost morale was essential for work purposes,” he stressed.
The parliamentary inquiry into whether the former prime minister lied in parliament could lead to suspension and loss of office.
The Privileges Committee is made up of seven MPs, most of them from the Conservative Party (Johnson’s party force), although it is chaired by Labor MP Harriet Harman.
The former prime minister will be questioned on Wednesday from 2 p.m. and will take a maximum of four hours.
If the committee finds Boris Johnson guilty, it could ask for parliament to be suspended, a measure to be voted on by the House of Commons.
If a 10-day plenary adjournment is passed, the legislation opens the possibility for the MP to be impeached through a petition to force resignation signed by 10% of registered voters in the Uxbridge constituency.
The inquiry has been subject to repeated attempts to dismiss it by Johnson allies, with former Economy Secretary Jacob Rees-Mog calling it a “pseudo-court”. [‘Kangaroo court’] and Lord Stephen Greenhalgh called the trial a “witch hunt”.
Source: DN
