A proposal submitted by opposition parties was adopted without a vote on Thursday, after the British prime minister and his government whips gave their conservative members of parliament the opportunity not to vote on the proposal, meaning it was adopted without opposition.
Johnson himself was fined by the London Metropolitan Police for attending a rally on June 19, 2020, and a number of fines were issued for a number of events that took place during national restrictions. The purpose of Johnson’s defense is that he was unaware of the violation of the law when he made the statement to parliament; therefore, he could not deliberately mislead legislators. The UK’s ministerial code says that if government ministers deliberately deceive parliament, they are expected to resign.
Opposition parties’ proposal to refer Johnson to a parliamentary committee on Thursday was approved after the government rejected its amendment to postpone the vote and allowed Conservative lawmakers to vote freely.
This is seen as a major reversal and a sign of how much support Johnson has fallen among his ranks, allowing Conservative MPs to simply not vote instead of having to oppose the whip and save Johnson from the humiliation of rebellion.
However, Johnson was not spared complete humiliation: Steve Baker, one of his most loyal supporters, who campaigned for Johnson to become the Conservative leader in 2019, on Thursday called for the resignation of the prime minister. Baker told parliament he would vote on the proposal, but added that “indeed, the prime minister should know that the concert is ready”.
Baker is an influential figure among conservative lawmakers, especially among the Brexiteer wing that has supported Johnson in the past.
The parliamentary inquiry will not take place until the police investigation into Downing Street parties is completed and the full report written by senior government official Sue Gray on the so-called Partygate scandal is published.
The commission that will conduct the investigation will be able to write recommendations, including removing Johnson from parliament, which will then be put to a parliamentary vote. It is not clear how realistic this result is, given that the commission conducting the investigation consists mainly of conservative MPs and Johnson still has a relatively large majority in parliament.
However, if this is the case, then it is possible that Gray’s report will reveal additional degrading information or Johnson may receive additional fines from the police. In that case, Conservative MPs will decide whether they want to impose a vote of confidence in his leadership.
Johnson will lead the Conservative Party in local elections next month, and the outcome of those elections could also affect decisions on whether or not he should be removed from his own party. The Partygate scandal severely damaged the Conservatives’ poll rating and undermined Johnson’s own popularity.
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