OAN’s Geraldyn Berry
4:12 PM – Friday, June 9, 2023
Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced his resignation as a member of Parliament on Friday.
This comes as a pre-publication copy of a Privileges Committee report examining whether he misled Parliament about events he hosted at Downing Street during the COVID-19 epidemic was obtained, to which the scandal that has earned the name “partygate.”
Johnson is accused of violating the pandemic lockdown regulations by hosting a number of events at government facilities in 2020 and 2021.
In response to the late-night gatherings, drunken parties, and “wine time Fridays,” police ultimately issued 126 penalties.
The former prime minister claims to have “honestly believed” that the five meetings he attended—including a send-off for a coworker and his unexpected birthday party—were “lawful work gatherings” meant to promote morale among busy employees dealing with a dangerous pandemic.
Johnson argued that the meetings were appropriate since they involved “essential” workplace activities and claimed that the report was “riddled with inaccuracies and reeks of prejudice.”
“They have still not produced a shred of evidence that I knowingly or recklessly misled the Commons,” Johnson said in a statement.
He called the committee a “kangaroo court,” claiming that his opponents were attempting to force him out in a statement.
According to Johnson, he had “received a letter from the Privileges Committee making it clear — much to my amazement — that they are determined to use the proceedings against me to drive me out of Parliament.”
“They know perfectly well that when I spoke in the Commons, I was saying what I believed sincerely to be true and what I had been briefed to say, like any other minister,” Johnson said.
“It is very sad to be leaving Parliament — at least for now — but above all I am bewildered and appalled that I can be forced out, anti-democratically,” Johnson said additionally.
According to Johnson, the committee probe was a front “to exact revenge for Brexit and ultimately to reverse the 2016 referendum result.”
If it turned out that Johnson had lied on purpose, he may have been expelled from the House of Commons when the committee’s findings was due to be released in the coming weeks. By resigning, he avoids a suspension that may have allowed his constituents to force him out of the Commons, freeing him to run for office again.
As a result of his departure, a special election will be held to fill his seat in the London suburbs.
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