This unaltered story [1] was originally published on OpenDemocracy.org.
License [2]: Creative Commons 4.0 - Attributions/No Derivities/Int'l.
------------------------

Partygate: How Boris Johnson got away with breaking the rules

By:   []

Date: 2022-05 

After more than five months of waiting, Sue Gray’s ‘partygate’ report has been published. And the 60-page document (three of whose pages are, admittedly, blank) doesn’t pull its punches.

But throughout partygate, the prime minister has seemed quietly confident he can survive this. That may be because he has form in avoiding the consequences of his actions.

If you, too, are considering breaching a series of regulations that you personally set, this handy guide shows how you can weather the resultant political storm.

1) Avoid an independent investigation

It wasn’t meant to be like this. There had been calls for an independent inquiry into partygate, which Johnson managed to deflect, by keeping the investigation in-house. Instead of going for a judge-led inquiry – the normal route for an independent investigation – he commissioned Sue Gray, a career civil servant who ultimately works for him.

Get our free Daily Email Get one whole story, direct to your inbox every weekday. Sign up now

But any hopes Gray would offer up a ‘whitewash’ have been dashed: she ended up delivering a scathing report: “The senior leadership at the centre, both political and official, must bear responsibility.”

So the first stage of Johnson’s survival strategy has clearly backfired.

2) Brazen it out

Johnson has done this so many times before, it was little surprise he did it again, with a bullish performance in Parliament. Previous prime ministers might have resigned at the suggestion of lying to Parliament, but Johnson is no stranger to this.

He had already had to apologise to Parliament multiple times before partygate – most famously, for nine different breaches of parliamentary rules in a year. Johnson’s default is to mumble an apology, and then carry on as before, launching into a gung-ho attack on his opponents within minutes. And that is exactly what he did today, replacing humility with accusations against Keir Starmer over ‘beergate’.

There are signs that ministers had expected this strategy: last night, that was exactly what they were already tweeting.
[END]

[1] Url: https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/partygate-boris-johnson-breaking-rules-sue-gray/
[2] url: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/
    
OpenDemocracy via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds:
gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/opendemocracy/