Original title: British Prime Minister apologizes for attending the “closed city party”, more than 60% of British people interviewed think he should resign
Author | Ren Yunuo
“Boris Johnson, if you respect the British people, please tell us if you attended the (Downing Street) No. 10 party.” After the media broke the “lockdown party” scandal at the Prime Minister’s residence that violated epidemic prevention regulations, the British “Guardian” ” used such a title. Johnson did not respond on the 11th, and on the 12th, he could no longer avoid it-in the House of Commons, he admitted to attending the relevant party and apologized for it. But how much the move will ease the crisis he faces is hard to say. Similar turmoil has occurred more than once. In the eyes of many people, as the maker of the epidemic prevention rules, Johnson and the people around him are too “double standards”, which is why the British people are so angry. The latest poll shows that more than 60% of Britons polled believe that Johnson should resign. Johnson has even sparked a backlash within his Conservative Party, which is already lagging the opposition in the polls due to a flurry of local elections in a few months’ time.
▲Johnson data map
British PM admits to attending party
According to British Sky News and other media reports, when Johnson was questioned by members of the House of Commons on the 12th, he admitted to having attended the relevant party and expressed “heartfelt apology”, but refused to resign.
During the Prime Minister’s questioning time that day, Johnson said he stopped for about 25 minutes at the event in the gardens of the Prime Minister’s residence to thank staff for their hard work. At the time he “thought it was a work event”. In hindsight, he should have brought everyone back to the office and should have found other ways to thank them. Johnson said he recognized the “pain” caused by the coronavirus restrictions and public anger over the “garden party” incident. He argues that even if the activity could technically be considered compliant, millions of people would not. “There are things we simply didn’t do right, and I have to take responsibility for that,” he admitted.
The matter stemmed from an email from Johnson’s chief private secretary Reynolds on the 10th that was exposed. In the email, he invited more than 100 colleagues to a party event on May 20, 2020, encouraging them to “bring your own alcohol”, and eventually about 40 people attended. On the 11th, Johnson sent an official to replace him in parliament to answer related questions. “He (Johnson) can run, but he can’t escape,” Labour deputy leader Rainer said at the time.
For Johnson’s “answer” on the 12th, Labour leader Starmer said that the prime minister has been deceiving the public for months and must now resign because of his “pathetic” excuses and “ridiculous” lies. “His defense … he said he didn’t realise he was partying was ridiculous and offensive to the British public,” Starmer said. “He was finally forced to admit what everyone knew, when He threw booze parties in Downing Street when the whole country was in lockdown. Will he do a decent thing to resign now?” Shadow Health Secretary Stretting said: “This is not an apology, this is the most memorable Prime Minister’s speech in the House of Commons. Shameful performance.”
Some media described that in this heated question and answer, opposition MPs lined up to ask Johnson to resign, or to ask Conservative MPs to force him to “out”. AFP reports that even newspapers that typically support Johnson and the Conservative Party are condemning him. The British “Daily Mail” wrote: “Is the Prime Minister’s party over?” The Daily Telegraph headline: “Johnson loses Tory support.” The Sun mocked: “This is mine Party, if I want to, I’ll keep a low profile.”
Most respondents think he should resign
Two quick-running polls released on Tuesday showed a majority of respondents believed Johnson should resign. According to a survey by pollster YouGov, 56% of the respondents believed that Johnson should resign, including 82% of Labour voters and 33% of Conservative voters. Twenty-seven percent and 17 percent said Johnson should stay in office and 17 percent, respectively. A poll by another agency, Savanta ComRes, found 66 percent of respondents believed Johnson should resign as prime minister, with 42 percent of those who voted for the Conservative Party in the 2019 general election.
“Daily Mail” said that people across the UK are making sacrifices for the greater good, but in Downing Street, it is party time. Those who set the rules flagrantly flout the rules, and the result is a nation full of anger.
Agence France-Presse said the British media and social networks were flooded with memories of people saying they followed the rules, even when family members, friends fell ill or were about to die from the new coronavirus. They were outraged by the double standard displayed by the “lockdown party”. Evans, head of the UK Public Living Standards Committee, which advises officials on ethics, said the government had been repeatedly criticised for its high death rate from Covid-19, but it had failed to lead by example.
According to the British “Mirror” report, many families who lost loved ones during the new crown pandemic said they were “stabbed in the heart” and asked Johnson to accept the police investigation and resign. Whitehall law enforcement officer Gray is currently investigating at least six activities, four of which involved the Prime Minister, and the report is expected to be released next week. As public pressure mounts, London’s Metropolitan Police said it had contacted the Cabinet Office, although a formal investigation has not yet been launched.
For Conservative MPs, the ongoing outrage has become increasingly unbearable. “How do you defend someone who can’t stand? You can’t!” Conservative MP Wakeford wrote on Twitter on the 12th. Another Conservative MP, Mills, publicly stated earlier that if the prime minister insisted on attending the party knowing that it was a party, “then he would definitely ‘can’t live'”.
“The British Parliament has ushered in a new year, but what happened seems familiar.” The BBC said on the 12th that due to the recent “Christmas party” scandal, the Johnson government had hoped that people’s anger would fade with the holiday, but what happened in the past 48 hours Things make this impossible. A number of Conservative MPs agree with Mills, although they are not ready to speak publicly. Some critics say it is now a question of when Johnson will step down, not whether. Some vented their anger in unpublished language, the report said.
Will there be many people in the Conservative Party who “mutate”?
“Johnson and his government are again accused of violating their own blockade rules, which damages their credibility and affects their focus on other matters.” The New York Times said that if Johnson hopes to put a series of dangerous His political and moral blunders were left behind, then his hopes were shattered on the 11th. For him, it was the latest and perhaps most dangerous revelation, reviving doubts about his honesty and fuelling accusations that he and his aides were not abiding by the rules they had imposed on the public.
As well as “fun-seeking”, Johnson has faced a string of scandals, including the expensive interior renovations of his Downing Street flat, and defending a Conservative MP who has been morally challenged, the paper said. Nearly 100 Conservative MPs opposed Johnson’s new coronavirus restrictions in December, but the crisis subsided after the Christmas holiday. Analysts believe Johnson has bought himself breathing space ahead of local elections in May. But if police investigate, the party incident is likely to remain at the center of public opinion for weeks or more. The cost of living for Britons has been greatly pushed up by inflation and tax increases, and Johnson’s government is already feeling the pressure.
The Australian Associated Press said on the 12th that in recent months, Johnson’s leadership qualifications have been severely damaged by controversy and mistakes. He has been challenged at least 14 times since October 26 last year. Some analysts said that opinion polls showed that the disclosure of the party scandal greatly affected the public’s support for the Conservative Party, causing it to lose its leading position. If it continues, pressure from Johnson’s backbenchers for a no-confidence vote could increase.
The British “Financial Times” believes that Johnson is facing an intensifying “betrayal” within the party against him, and there is a “smell of hell” within the Conservative Party. Even his former supporters say a “tipping point” has been reached. “We can’t go on like this,” said a member of Johnson’s government.
Some Conservative MPs said the letter of no confidence had been handed to Brady, chairman of the Conservative Party Ordinary MPs Committee (also known as the “1922 Committee”). A vote of no-confidence will be triggered if there are 54 letters of no confidence, or 15 per cent of Conservative MPs. Most MPs want to wait until local elections in May to give their views on Johnson’s future, but some think the reckoning will come sooner. John Caldwell, the Conservative party’s main funder, said: “Johnson can either fix this or step aside and let someone else do it so the Conservatives don’t go out in the next election.”
The “Daily Mail” said that cases caused by Omicron have been reduced by half every week, and experts believe that the United Kingdom is closer than any other Western country to emerge from the epidemic. Instead of capitalizing on this extraordinary success, however, Johnson has fallen into the worst straits of his prime ministership. “Party Door” has turned into a violent storm that could even threaten his tenure.
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