- By Chris Mason
- Political editor, BBC News
Blimey. This is a report – in breadth and depth – that destroys Boris Johnson’s character and conduct.
Let’s be blunt: it says he lied.
The spinal column of the bio of Boris Johnson has his relationship with the fact running directly down it.
Just 40 weeks back, Mr Johnson was prime minister, the token of a federal government with a huge bulk.
Catapulted initially to the backbenches and now out of Parliament too, the demolition of Mr Johnson’s profession by his own peers has actually been extremely fast.
Remember, today isn’t about celebrations throughout Covid.
It has to do with the essential pillars upon which public life – and society at big – is built.
The sanctity of fact. The contempt for lies.
A committee of MPs, 4 Conservatives and 3 others, charged with providing their decision. Those committee members might never ever have actually pictured discovering themselves at the centre of a query of such gravity.
Many are not well-known names.
I do not state that to deprecate or belittle them for a 2nd, however to stress the power of Parliament.
A power Boris Johnson is feeling today like never ever in the past.
The core of Mr Johnson’s defence is this was cock up, not conspiracy.
That nevertheless forensic and diligent this committee, how could it crawl into the mind of Mr Johnson to comprehend his intent?
It attempted to do the previous and declares to have actually handled to have actually done the latter.
“The committee now says that I intentionally misinformed the House, and at the minute I spoke I was purposely hiding from the House my understanding of illegal occasions. This is rubbish. It is a lie,” he declares.
One previous cabinet minister I was talking with said – hoped – that “ex MPs ended up being extremely ex extremely rapidly”.
They included, from checking out the Tory MP WhatsApp groups and public declarations in recent days, that Boris Johnson has actually just a shrivelled rump of parliamentary assistance.
But others will question if this report – as punishingly harsh as it is – might encourage a martyrdom, might rally assistance.
One minister said to me: “Boris is the sort of chap who might drop a manhole head initially and still arrive on his feet.”
But this is one heck of a manhole.
