Boris Johnson: The 4+1 scandals that lit “fires” in Downing Street

Its time Boris Johnson in Britain’s leadership just ended, as announced his resignationwith the Downing Street to look for the replacement of the British prime minister, who has been busy in recent years for a number of scandals.

Partying in the midst of a harsh lockdown, cover-up in brutal sex crimes and a lavish life in the midst of a harsh crisis, it was enough for him to lose all his friends and allies.

Indicative of the situation prevailing in British political life, it is that leading ministers – even those he appointed a few hours after the resignations of their predecessors -, asked him to resign, posing the dilemma “us” or “you”.

Here are the scandals of the former British prime minister that shocked Britain, as recorded by the Reuters agency and relayed by the Athens News Agency:

Christopher Pincher case

Mass resignations from the administration this week followed allegations by a former senior secretary that Johnson’s office gave false information about past allegations of sexual harassment by the lawmaker Christopher Pincher.

In February, Johnson appointed Pincher as deputy in charge of party discipline. Last week Pincher was kicked out of the party after he admitted punching two men while drunk during a night out.

Along the way it became known that Pincher had also been accused of other sexual harassment cases.

The prime minister’s office initially said Johnson was unaware of specific past allegations against Pincher. However, on Monday the Foreign Office’s 2019 secretary-general, Simon MacDonald, wrote a letter saying he had investigated the allegations in 2019 and had verified them.

Partygate

The term ‘Partygate’ was coined in reference to a scandal involving parties held in government premises, including the Prime Minister’s office in Downing Street itself, which were found to have breached strict anti-Covid-19 regulations.

To Johnson himself fined by police for attending a birthday party and forced to apologize to Queen Elizabeth when it became known that Downing Street staff had been partying in the grounds of the Prime Minister’s residence on the eve of the funeral of Prince Philip, Elizabeth’s husband, in April 2021.

The queen sat alone during the ceremony inside the church because gatherings were prohibited.

A report by a senior secretary into a series of illegal parties amid the lockdown spoke of binge drinking and vomiting by Downing Street staff.

Parliament still investigates whether Johnson repeatedly misled MPs when he denied knowledge of illegal parties.

Johnson maintains that he honestly believed at the time that the rallies did not violate the law, but now admits he was wrong.

Sexual scandals

Johnson’s Conservatives have also been hit by other scandals involving prominent MPs accused of sexual misconduct, including two cases that led to the resignations of MPs. In both cases the Tories lost by-elections last month.

Conservative MP Imran Ahmed Khan has resigned after being found guilty of sexually abusing a 15-year-old boy. Neil Parris, another Conservative MP, resigned after admitting to watching pornography on his cellphone twice inside the chamber of the House of Commons, in “a moment of madness”.

Another conservative MP was arrested on suspicion of rape, sexual assault and other offences. The MP was released on bail in May and has not been identified by the media to protect the identity of the alleged victim.

The case of Owen Patterson

Last year, a parliamentary committee recommended the Conservative MP and former minister be suspended. Owen Patterson for 30 days after it was found that he had engaged in an “unbelievable case of paid lobbying” lobbying on behalf of companies that paid him.

The Conservatives initially voted in parliament to end Paterson’s suspension and overhaul the investigation process. After headlines, Patterson resigned and the government abandoned proposed changes to cover up the affair. The Conservatives lost the local elections held to elect Paterson’s replacement in parliament.

Abundant life

Following a refurbishment of the Downing Street flat where Boris Johnson still lives – undertaken by a celebrity designer and including £200,000 worth of gold wallpaper – Britain’s Electoral Commission fined the Conservatives £17,800 because they did not accurately report a donation to pay for that particular renovation.

Johnson’s ethics adviser later criticized the prime minister for not disclosing some messages exchanged with the donor. However, he concluded that Johnson had not deliberately lied about the messages.