Partygate: Rishi Sunak refuses to say if he will approve damning report
Allies of Boris Johnson are set to be named in a new special report into Partygate on Thursday, it is claimed.
The report is expected to highlight issues the cross-party Privileges Committee faced in carrying out a 14-month inquiry into Mr Johnson, highlighting potential contempts of parliament.
Nadine Dorries and Jacob Rees-Mogg are among those believed to be named in the report after comments they made about the probe, according to The Guardian.
Ms Dorries, a former culture secretary, previously called the Partygate inquiry a “witch hunt” and Mr Rees-Mogg, the former business secretary said it was a “kangaroo court”.
The committee earlier this month concluded in a daming report that Mr Johnson lied to parliament over Partygate and recommended a 90-day suspension for misleading the House.
But he evaded that punishment by quiting as an MP after being told in advance of its findings. Shortly after quitting he accepted a new role as a columnist at the Daily Mail.
The new report will come as another blow for Rishi Sunak who has been desperately trying to draw a line under the Johnson-era.
Rees-Mogg among original report critics
Bassetlaw MP Brendan Clarke-Smith called the MPs’ conclusions “spiteful, vindictive and overreaching”.
Former cabinet minister Sir Simon Clarke – who was knighted in Mr Johnson’s resignation honours – said the punishment dealt out by the committee was “absolutely extraordinary to the point of sheer vindictiveness”.
Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg, another honoured by Mr Johnson, suggested the committee’s “fundamental judgment” was “wrong”.
Former Tory leader labelled the investigation a “kangaroo court” that was akin to a “witch hunt”.
After the publication of the partygate conclusion, which recommended that Mr Johnson should have faced a 90-day suspension if he had not quit Parliament, the former prime minister and his allies stepped up their attacks.
Mr Johnson, who quit as an MP in protest after learning of the inquiry’s intention to hand him a lengthy enough punishment to potentially trigger a by-election in his seat, said the committee had reached a “deranged conclusion”.
In his resignation statement, the former Tory leader labelled the investigation a “kangaroo court” that was akin to a “witch hunt”.
Former culture secretary Nadine Dorries, one of Mr Johnson’s most vocal supporters, urged voters to turf out Tory MPs who backed the committee’s report.
“Any Conservative MP who would vote for this report is fundamentally not a Conservative and will be held to account by members and the public. Deselections may follow,” she said on the day of the report’s publication.
That did not deter MPs from voting overwhelmingly to back the report, with only seven voting against the committee’s findings and 354 voting in favour.
Report comes after Privileges Committee raised concerns about ‘attempts to undermine’
The special report will raise issues encountered by the committee during its initial inquiry, including whether statements by Mr Johnson’s supporters could be considered a contempt of Parliament in their own right, according to sources cited by The Guardian.
In its partygate report published on June 15, the Privileges Committee said: “From the outset of this inquiry there has been a sustained attempt, seemingly co-ordinated, to undermine the committee’s credibility and, more worryingly, that of those members serving on it.
“The committee is concerned that if these behaviours go unchallenged, it will be impossible for the House to establish such a committee to conduct sensitive and important inquiries in the future.
“The House must have a committee to defend its rights and privileges, and it must protect members of the House doing that duty from formal or informal attack or undermining designed to deter and prevent them from doing that duty.
“We will be making a special report separately to the House dealing with these matters.”
Boris Johnson was accused of breaching ministerial rules with his Daily Mail appointment (Victoria Jones/PA)
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Boris Johnson was accused of breaching ministerial rules with his Daily Mail appointment (Victoria Jones/PA)
Partygate follow up report due Thursday
MPs who ruled that Boris Johnson lied to Parliament with his partygate assurances are expected to publish a follow-up report detailing attempts to interfere with the inquiry.
The Privileges Committee published its report into the former prime minister earlier this month, concluding he committed “repeated contempts” of Parliament by deliberately misleading MPs with his partygate denials before being complicit in a campaign of abuse and intimidation
The seven-person panel, which was chaired by veteran Labour MP Harriet Harman but had a Conservative majority, used its 106-page report to warn Mr Johnson’s most vocal defenders that they would face scrutiny themselves through a special update into attempts to undermine its work.
It is expected that the follow-up document will be published on Thursday.
Allies of Boris Johnson set to be named in fresh Partygate report
Allies of Boris Johnson are set to be named in a fresh report into the Partygate scandal on Thursday, according to reports.
The report is expected to highlight issues the cross-party Privileges Committee faced in carrying out a 14-month inquiry into Mr Johnson, highlighting potential contempts of parliament.
Nadine Dorries and Jacob Rees-Mogg are among those believed to be named in the report after comments they made about the probe, according to The Guardian.
Ms Dorries, a former culture secretary, previously called the Partygate inquiry a “witch hunt” and Mr Rees-Mogg, the former business secretary said it was a “kangaroo court”.
After the publication of the Partygate conclusion, which recommended that Mr Johnson should have faced a 90-day suspension if he had not quit Parliament, the former prime minister and his allies stepped up their attacks.
Mr Johnson, who quit as an MP in protest after learning of the inquiry’s intention to hand him a lengthy enough punishment to potentially trigger a by-election in his seat, said the committee had reached a “deranged conclusion”.
In his resignation statement, the former Tory leader labelled the investigation a “kangaroo court” that was akin to a “witch hunt”.
Rishi Sunak finally gives his verdict on Boris Johnson’s Partygate lies
Rishi Sunak has finally given his verdict on Boris Johnson’s Partygate lies, saying it is right the disgraced former prime ministerhas been held to account.
In a final humiliation on Monday MPs backed a damning report which found Mr Johnson had lied to Parliament over and over again – stripping him of his Westminster pass.
He faced accusations he was “too weak” to stand up to his predecessor and his “sycophants” within their fractious party.
Key moments from Boris Johnson’s Partygate ‘dossier’
ICYMI: Shaun Bailey: Senior Tory at centre of new Partygate row to become peer within weeks despite police probe
A failed Tory London mayoral candidate is set to become a peer within weeks despite a new police probe into a Covid-era party organised by his campaign.
Shaun Bailey is under pressure to hand back his honour, received in Boris Johnson’s controversial resignation honours list, after an explosive video of the Partygate event emerged.
It showed members of Mr Bailey’s campaign team dancing at a Christmas party in December 2020, when indoor socialising was banned under strict tier 2 conditions.
Allies of Boris Johnson set to be named in fresh Partygate report
Allies of Boris Johnson are set to be named in a fresh report into the Partygate scandal on Thursday, according to reports.
The report is expected to highlight issues the cross-party Privileges Committee faced in carrying out a 14-month inquiry into Mr Johnson, highlighting potential contempts of parliament.
Nadine Dorries and Jacob Rees-Mogg are among those believed to be named in the report after comments they made about the probe, according to The Guardian.
Ms Dorries, a former culture secretary, previously called the Partygate inquiry a “witch hunt” and Mr Rees-Mogg, the former business secretary said it was a “kangaroo court”.
After the publication of the Partygate conclusion, which recommended that Mr Johnson should have faced a 90-day suspension if he had not quit Parliament, the former prime minister and his allies stepped up their attacks.
Mr Johnson, who quit as an MP in protest after learning of the inquiry’s intention to hand him a lengthy enough punishment to potentially trigger a by-election in his seat, said the committee had reached a “deranged conclusion”.
In his resignation statement, the former Tory leader labelled the investigation a “kangaroo court” that was akin to a “witch hunt”.
Written statements due in Commons today
Here are the written ministerial statements due to be made in the Commons on Tuesday:
- Secretary of State for Business and Trade: India Trade Negotiations: Update.
- Secretary of State for Defence: Defence Infrastructure Update.
- Secretary of State for Health and Social Care: Update on volume price promotion restrictions.
- Secretary of State for the Home Department: HMICFRS Inspection Report: An inspection of the National Crime Agency’s effectiveness at dealing with corruption.
