Boris Johnson “must have left a long time ago,” a senior Tory judge said during a key parliamentary debate on the party.
Just two days ago, Steve Baker offered his support to the prime minister after he apologized to the municipality after his fine for violating the blocking rules.
Mr Baker revealed his change of opinion as lawmakers debated whether to order an investigation into whether the prime minister misled them through the party.
Live Politics: Boris Johnson says he has nothing to hide from partygate
Shortly before the debate, the government withdrew its proposal to postpone the vote – which was presented by Labor and backed by other opposition parties.
Mr Baker said he believed “Mr Johnson’s remarkable remorse … lasted only as long as it took him to leave the director’s office”.
“I have to admit that if the prime minister held another high-ranking post … he would be long gone,” he said.
“The prime minister has long since left. The prime minister just needs to know that the concert is done.”
Last in this story – MPs supported the investigation into whether the Prime Minister misled the municipalities about the party
Labor has proposed that Mr Johnson be referred to the Privileges Committee because of his initial allegations that blocking rules had not been violated.
Earlier, Conservative MPs were told to support an amendment that postponed the vote on such a proposal until after separate investigations by police and civil servant Sue Gray.
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0:55 The “proper procedure” of the party – Zahawi – must be followed
Speaking to Sky News, Education Minister Nadhim Zahawi predicted that Tory colleagues would support the move, describing it as “the right thing to do”.
But Conservative members were later told they would have a free vote – and the amendment was dropped.
A spokeswoman for the prime minister said Mr Johnson was involved in the decision, adding: “We are now pleased that any parliamentary process will take place after the Met inquiry and after the publication of Sue Gray’s report.”
But Labor said it was “humiliating” for the Conservatives.
Earlier, the Prime Minister, speaking during a visit to India, called on MPs to wait until they understand the “full facts” and investigators “to do their job and then knock this thing on the head.”
He also vowed to run in the next election as Tory leader.
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0:42 “Most people believe the Prime Minister lied” – Streeting
The Prime Minister “covered his atrocities” – Starmer
Sir Keir Starmer, proposing to order a parliamentary inquiry, said Mr Johnson “stood by the box and simply denied that there had been a breach of the rules – when it happened”.
“When he did, he hoped to gain additional protection from our good faith that no prime minister would ever deceive this chamber,” Sir Cair added.
“He uses our faith, our conventions, to cover up his atrocities.
“After months of refusals, of absurd allegations that all the rules have been followed, of feigned indignation at his staff discussing breaking the rules, we now know that the law has been broken.
“We know that the prime minister has broken the law, and we know that he is facing the possibility of being found to have broken it over and over and over again.
“The Prime Minister is a liar”
William Ragg, a Conservative MP who previously described the prime minister’s position as untenable, told the Commons: “No matter how hard I try, I can’t accept the continued leadership of our prime minister and the Conservative Party.”
He said it was “completely depressing to keep being asked to defend the defenseless.”
SNP leader Ian Blackford said: “The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom is a liar. I really don’t say it lightly and I don’t say it freely.”
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Pressure on Mr Johnson against the partisan has resumed after he was fined last week for attending a reunion on his birthday in June 2020 – in violation of blocking laws.
He is also believed to have attended some of the other 12 events on Downing Street and Whitehall in 2020 and 2021, investigated by Sofia police.
In a recent update to the investigation, Met said he had recommended more than 50 fixed sentences.
Scotland Yard said Thursday it would not provide further updates on the investigation until after the May 5 local elections.
The government has shifted the partygate’s priority – and that’s important
Sam Coates
Deputy Political Editor
@SamCoatesSky
What has just happened in the House of Commons matters – even if it is not immediately obvious. The government has changed its priority.
By 11:15 a.m., priority number 10 was to avoid a new investigation by Boris Johnson. The government has proposed voting on a proposal that will delay a decision on whether to investigate whether the prime minister lied weeks before the end of police work and Sue Gray’s report. It was a plan to kick the box on the way. But this required Tory MPs to actively support him in the voting lobbies.
At 11:15 a.m., government tactics changed. They decided that their priority was to avoid any kind of vote at all. Instead, they will allow the investigation to continue, supported by all sides “with a nod” – which means that MPs will not be asked to go through the division’s lobbies.
This is probably due to the fact that the priority is to avoid any kind of voting, which could reveal the scale of the Tory MP’s discomfort. Perhaps this suggests that Tory MPs’ support for the prime minister is lower than they would like to make public. Instead, Tory whips are likely to try to put pressure on the four Tories in the committee, who outnumber opposition lawmakers by more than two to one, to make sure
The bottom line is that the Tory Parliamentary Party supports Mr Johnson less than they want to show publicly. The Prime Minister, of course, cannot say because he is in India. But this is not something you can hide for long.
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