Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson offered a “full apology” on Tuesday after being fined for violating Covid-19 lockdown laws in the so-called “Partygate” scandal but appeared to be deferring calls for his resignation. Crisis Finance Minister Rishi Sunak and Johnson’s wife Carrie will also be fined, as a political storm threatens to engulf Johnson once again after revelations of lockdown-busting parties in and around Downing Street.
“I immediately state that I have paid the fine and I once again fully apologize,” Johnson said during televised remarks.
Johnson’s office said his fine was for attending a surprise birthday gathering in his honor in the Cabinet Room at No. 10 on the afternoon of June 19, 2020. The prime minister said the event lasted about 10 minutes, and denied that he had lied. Deliberately breaking the law, saying: “At the time, I didn’t realize it could be a violation of the rules.
“But of course the police have found otherwise and I fully respect the outcome of their investigation,” he said.
Opposition Labor Party leader Keir Starmer swiftly called for the two most senior members of the government to resign.
“Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak have broken the law and repeatedly lied to the British public,” Starmer tweeted.
“They should both resign,” he said. Conservatives are completely unfit to rule. Britain deserves better.”
However, Johnson said he now wants to “fulfill the mandate I have”, and there were early indications that his MPs are currently with him.
‘Government in crisis’
Johnson was left fighting for his political survival earlier this year after several lawmakers in his ruling Conservative Party withdrew support for his leadership on the matter. An undisclosed number of Conservative lawmakers submitted letters calling for a no-confidence vote under Johnson’s leadership.
If the Conservative Party’s 1922 committee receives such letters from 54 of Johnson’s 360 lawmakers, it would prompt a vote of confidence. The Liberal Democrats’ leader of the opposition, Ed Davey, called on Parliament to withdraw from its Easter recess for a trust vote.
“This is a government neglecting a country in crisis,” Dewey tweeted.
But Russia’s invasion of Ukraine had eased political pressure on Johnson, as lawmakers were reluctant to step up to the leadership amid the international crisis. Conservative MP Roger Gale, who had previously been calling for Johnson to head, said on Tuesday that now is not the time to “evict” the prime minister, as it would strengthen President Vladimir Putin.
“It’s definitely serious,” Gayle said.
“But… I am not ready to give Vladimir Putin the rest of the time to think that we are about to oust the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and destabilize the coalition against Putin.
“So any response on this will have to wait until we deal with the main crisis which are Ukraine and Donbass,” he said, referring to the eastern Ukrainian region, where Moscow is now focusing its attack. Used to be.
Johnson ‘brokens the law’
London’s Metropolitan Police previously announced that they had issued over 50 fines to parties, without disclosing the number or identity of those fined.
The bereaved families of the victims of the Covid pandemic also called on Johnson to resign. Lobby Akinola, a spokesman for justice for Covid-19 bereaved families, said Johnson and Sunak “broke the law” and “took us all for mugs.
“There is no way to continue as prime minister or chancellor… their dishonesty has caused untold hurt to the bereaved,” he said.
“They have lost all credibility with the wider public, which could cost lives if new forms mean restrictions are needed in the future.”
London police are still investigating claims that Johnson and government officials organized and attended at least a dozen boozy events in 2020 and 2021 that violated Britain’s then-strict virus restrictions. Johnson has already apologized for the parties, which included Christmas celebrations and a drink-fueled gathering the evening before Prince Philip’s funeral.
The prime minister initially denied any rule-breaking incidents on the premises where he lives and works, and he consistently dismissed any suggestion of personal wrongdoing. But his opponents accused him of misleading Parliament by calling the Downing Street incidents work-related and within rules.
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