Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson unexpectedly announced on Friday evening that he was stepping down as an MP with immediate effect. This came after he received a report on whether he had lied to MPs about Downing Street parties during the pandemic.
In a statement, Johnson said the MPs’ Privileges Committee report made it clear that they “are determined to use the proceedings against me to remove me from Parliament.”
I have written to my association (the Conservative Party) in Uxbridge and South Ruislip to say I am stepping down immediately, which triggers a by-election immediately. I am very sorry to leave my wonderful constituency. It has been a great honor to serve them as both mayor and MP
Johnson wrote.
The cross-party Privileges Committee, led by Labor MP Harriet Harman, is assessing whether Johnson misled Parliament with his statements, claiming that during meetings held in Downing Street while Covid-19 restrictions were in place, all rules and guidelines were followed.
In the event that MPs recommended suspending him from MP for 10 days or more for misleading Parliament, Johnson also faced a by-election for his constituency if voters decided they wanted him removed.
They know very well that when I spoke in the House of Commons, I spoke what I honestly believed to be the truth and what I had to say, like any other minister.
Johnson wrote.
The purpose of the commission
He argues that the commission’s aim “from the beginning was to find me guilty, regardless of the facts” and that a “witch hunt is underway to avenge Brexit and ultimately reverse the result of the 2016 referendum”.
I am now being forced out of Parliament by a small handful of people, without evidence to back up their claims and without the consent of even members of the Conservative Party, let alone the wider electorate
he stressed.
Johnson also used the statement to launch a sharp attack on Rishi Sunak’s government.
When I left office last year, the government was only a few points behind in the polls. Now that difference has widened significantly. Just a few years after winning the largest majority in nearly half a century, that majority is now clearly in jeopardy. Our party urgently needs to regain a sense of momentum and faith in what this country can do
he pointed out.
Boris Johnson was the MP for Henley in Southern England from 2001 to 2008 and Uxbridge and South Ruislip from 2015.
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