'Partygate': British MPs launch inquiry into Boris Johnson

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson wants to highlight his involvement in the war in Ukraine or his official visit to India, to “forget” the partygate © JESSICA TAYLOR / AFP

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Stuck in the scandal of clandestine parties in Downing Street during the confinements, Boris Johnson is now the target of a parliamentary inquiry, launched this Thursday by deputies, to determine whether the British Prime Minister deceived them in this affair.

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It's another setback for Boris Johnson.

Far from turning the page on the crisis, the 57-year-old conservative leader finds himself with a third investigation, after others, administrative and police, in progress.

And this despite its large majority in the House of Commons, its initial desire to oppose the procedure, then a maneuver to push it back, abandoned at the last minute.

The decision of the deputies, taken by consensus without even a vote, thus opens a new front in this affair, likely in the long term to force

Boris Johnson to resign

, a sign of the persistent unease within his troops in the face of the scandal.

On many occasions before Parliament, he assured that all the rules had been respected, an assertion contradicted by the fine which was imposed on him a week ago.

A police investigation followed by a parliamentary inquiry

The ministerial code provides that a minister who has knowingly misled Parliament must resign.

The parliamentary inquiry will not begin until the police investigation is completed and senior civil servant Sue Gray, in charge of an internal investigation, has delivered her final report.

A pre-report, denouncing “ 

errors of leadership and judgement 

” has already given a glimpse of his appreciation of what was playing out behind the walls of Downing Street, contrasting with the sacrifices made by the British to fight against the pandemic.

To read also:

"Partygate": Boris Johnson renews his apologies to the British Parliament

The motion driving parliamentary procedure “ 

seeks to uphold the simple principle of honesty, integrity and telling the truth 

” in British political life, opposition Labor leader Keir Starmer told the origin of the text.

We know that the Prime Minister himself broke the law

 ," he added, stressing that the head of government is not immune to further fines for his participation in other festive events.

The case, which for a time took a back seat due to the war in Ukraine, was revived last week when Boris Johnson was fined for breaching anti-Covid restrictions by participating in a surprise drink for his 56th birthday in June 2020, becoming the first sitting UK head of government sanctioned for breaking the law.

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