A widower who could not hold the hand of his dying wife due to Covid’s restrictions said Boris Johnson’s presence at a Downing Street party had betrayed people following the blocking rules, and called the prime minister’s personal apology to him insincere.
John Robinson, 80, whose wife Pat died at the age of 73 from a coronavirus in the first wave in 2020, called on Johnson to resign over breaches of his rules and called on lawmakers to support Labor’s proposal to launch a parliamentary inquiry into Johnson’s misrepresentation. Parliament.
Johnson was fined for violating restrictions on blocking following a police investigation believed to be the first case of a criminally sanctioned incumbent prime minister.
Robinson’s case was raised in the House of Commons on Tuesday by Labor leader Keir Starmer after Johnson apologized “unreservedly” for attending his 56th birthday party. But Johnson continued to insist that it did not occur to him then or later that he was breaking the rules.
PMQs: Boris Johnson answers questions in parliament – watch live
As a sign that public anger is not showing signs of appeasement as Tory supporters weigh in on continued support for the prime minister, Robinson said Wednesday that the explanation was “nonsense” and Johnson was “keeping two fingers on the rest of us”.
Robinson, a former head teacher who has two daughters and three grandchildren, wrote to the Guardian last week, explaining that only six mourners attended his wife’s funeral, according to the rules.
“Our son-in-law had to stay home, as he would be the forbidden seventh mourner,” he wrote, while Johnson ignored his own laws and rules … Anger doesn’t even touch the sides of how I feel about this pathetic excuse for a man. ”
The Downing Street party on June 19, 2020 reportedly included a cake, singing and about 30 guests, including interior designer Lulu Little and the prime minister’s wife, Carrie Johnson. At the time, gatherings were allowed for up to six people outdoors, but were not allowed indoors.
Robinson’s anger at Johnson is not isolated among the bereaved. The Covid-19 Grieving Families Justice Group called his apology “the words of someone who regrets being caught, not someone who regrets the damage he caused.” It called on the Tory detainees to remove the prime minister from office.
Safia Nga, a spokeswoman for the group, whose father, Dr Zahari Ngah, died in Kovid in January 2021, said: “[Johnson’s] The claim that he did not realize that the rules are being broken is just ridiculous and shows that he still considers us idiots. “
“He’s either stupid and doesn’t understand his own laws, or he’s lying,” Robinson said, adding that the inability to have a full funeral or any kind of awakening had denied his family an important part of the grief process.
Pat Robinson, a former high school teacher, died of Covid on April 11, 2020, after contracting the virus at a nursing home in Sutton Coldfield, where he lived with dementia.
Challenged by the experience of the Robinson family, Johnson told lawmakers: “I apologize once again, abundantly, to John Robinson, to all those who lost loved ones, and especially to those who suffered during the pandemic.
Robinson said Wednesday: “I didn’t feel any sincerity at all. The way he behaved just took us for granted.
“It simply came to our notice then. There is a principle where, if you are a leader, there comes a time when you have to say, “I was wrong, it’s time to go.” It is a matter of trust. I think he betrayed us, the people who followed the rules and sacrificed a lot. “
Mark Harper responded to Boris Johnson in the House of Commons and called on the prime minister to resign. Photo: Parliament of the United Kingdom / Jessica Taylor / PA
On Tuesday, Tory MP Mark Harper became the last back band to call on Johnson to leave, saying: “I no longer think he is worthy of the great position he holds.”
Robinson said he agreed: “I thought he was very brave to stand up and say that. He contrasts this with the position of his own MP, Michael Fabrikant, who claims that teachers and nurses drink in staff rooms after work during a blockade.
“Its possible [Conservative MPs] to look at their consciences and decide whether they want to behave decently or justify his betrayal of the British public, “he said. “We have a lot of trust in the big government services, and when someone destroys those services and what they are, I don’t think that’s forgivable.”
Add Comment