Boris Johnson will face a parliamentary probe after members of Parliament voted in the House of Commons on Thursday in favour of an investigation into whether the British prime minister broke coronavirus restrictions by attending illegal gatherings, the scandal referred to as partygate. While Johnson was miles away in India on a two-day bilateral visit, MPs shouted aye for the Parliament's Committee of Privileges to investigate whether the UK prime minister knowingly misled Parliament.
The vote, tabled by the Opposition Labour Party, passed without the need of a formal vote as the Conservative Party benches were sparsely attended after the ruling party abandoned a planned amendment to delay the motion. Under parliamentary rules, UK government ministers are expected to resign for knowingly misleading MPs and correct the record as soon as possible if they inadvertently tell Parliament something false.
Speaking in Ahmedabad, Johnson said "if the Opposition want to focus on this and talk about it a lot more that's fine" but he "wanted to focus on what matters for the future of the country", including boosting trade ties with India.
Defending Johnson in the Commons during the debate, UK Cabinet Office Minister Michael Ellis said the UK PM did not mislead the Commons, but made comments about partygate revelations "in good faith". He added that the prime minister "has always been clear that he is happy to face whatever inquiries Parliament sees fit".
"He has responded to the event for which he has received a fixed-penalty notice," Ellis said. The fixed-penalty notice refers to a fine, believed to be worth GBP 50, that was issued to Johnson by Scotland Yard last week after he was found in breach of lockdown rules on his birthday in June 2020.
His wife Carrie Johnson, who had brought a cake into the Cabinet Room of Downing Street on the day, and UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak who said he was there for a meeting were also fined by the Metropolitan Police. All three immediately paid up their fines and apologised in the wake of the notices. Labour Leader Keir Starmer accused Conservative MPs of failing to stand up for the values of "honesty and integrity" and said "Britain deserves better" than Johnson.
Labour's deputy leader Angela Rayner reiterated her party's call for the PM to resign, telling MPs that "the prime minister is leading the Conservative Party into the sewer". Urging MPs to support an investigation, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said: "The public won't stomach another Conservative stitch-up that drags our democracy through the mud just to protect one of their own."
Scottish National Party (SNP) leader Ian Blackford said Johnson had "lied to avoid getting caught, and once he got caught, he lied again". After over five hours of debate, MPs were asked if they supported launching an investigation into Johnson and as no one opposed the proposal, the motion was approved without a formal vote.
The clash stems from Johnson's initial statement to the Commons that insisted COVID lockdown rules had been followed at No. 10 Downing Street in the wake of the first partygate allegations. His Tory party colleagues have stood by him, with only a handful voicing their criticism within the Conservative Party. Therefore, a parliamentary vote on the issue was expected to go in Johnson's favour but marks yet another dent to his leadership ahead of local council and mayoral elections scheduled for May 5.
