Prime Minister Boris Johnson took the floor before the first question in Wednesday’s Question Time and said “sorry”. It was not enough to calm the critics.
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– Imagine if someone filmed us with a drone, the guests joked.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s senior official invited 100 staff to an informal gathering in the Prime Minister’s Garden. Guests were encouraged to bring their own drinks. May 20, 2020 thanked between 30 and 40 yes.
Someone went to the supermarket to buy a cheap wine. Someone brought a couple of beers. Others posed with gin.
It was these people who ruled the country where the citizens had been told to stay indoors as much as possible. If they were to meet others, it was a question of one person outside their own household.
According to The Times regretted the official Martin Reynolds as soon as he had sent the e-mail. But he did not cancel.
Sorry, but …
On Wednesday, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson had to answer for himself in Parliament. He was offensive and apologized. At the same time, he said that he had not understood that there was a party going on in the garden. When he went out to greet, he thought it was people who were doing their job.
He also made it clear that all allegations of illegal parties are being investigated, and that it is too early to draw conclusions.
The Labor leader had his first day on the job after recovering from covid. Party leader Keir Starmer had a good day.
“The party is over, Prime Minister,” he said.
Starmer and his party colleagues read aloud from voters’ letters. There were stories of loved ones who died without the family present. Many were not allowed to go to funerals for relatives and friends. Time and time again, Boris Johnson was urged to resign.
And time and time again, Johnson repeated that he was sorry for these stories, and that he apologized for the mistakes made at the parties. Almost every post ended with a call to wait for the investigation and a warning against drawing too quick conclusions.
Dawning revolt in the party
Labor member Toby Perkins reminded Johnson that he has been fired from two jobs in the past, following allegations of lies. He wondered if the demands for honesty were higher in these jobs than Johnson is now.
For the opposition, the problem is that all the demands for Johnson’s resignation are not enough. The Prime Minister has a solid majority in Parliament.
Still, Johnson’s position is uncertain. Several newspapers report that many of his party colleagues are starting to lose confidence in him.
BBC quotes several conservatives who give the impression that they find it difficult to trust their own prime minister.
“If the Prime Minister knows he was at a party, I can not believe he will survive,” said Nigel Mills.
Others said they are starting to get tired of all the clutter.
In addition to the parties, there is great frustration that the conflict with the EU over Brexit is still unresolved.
If 54 party members announce that they want a change of leadership, the possibility opens for Johnson’s rivals. It is currently unclear how many will support a new leadership battle. In Wednesday’s Question Time, not a single critical question came from Johnson’s own. Johnson is also in bad weather after renovating the prime minister’s residence. An ongoing investigation is looking into whether he has received money from supporters in violation of the law and ethical regulations.
–The counselor’s revenge
One of the sources for the journalists who reveal all the parties is Dominic Cummings. Until the autumn of 2020, he was Johnson’s closest adviser. In the spring of 2020, Cummings was in bad weather. He broke the infection control rules in many ways. Cummings was himself infected, but took the family home to the north of England. There he was on several excursions.
At that time, he downplayed the breaches. And he got full support from his boss.
Now he willingly shows up when the media has questions about all the festivities. No later than Friday he told about the party Johnson had to answer for in question time on Wednesday.
On the blog his he constantly comes with new drips about breaking the rules. And he portrays his former boss as quite incompetent. On Friday, he called him a “shopping cart” that does not have complete control of the wheels.
“If the shopping cart crashes for another two years, it can not only lead to the Tories losing the election, but that they will be left without honor for the next ten years,” he wrote.
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