UK parliament endorses report on former prime minister's malfeasance
Britain's parliament has endorsed a report that has found former prime minister, Boris Johnson, culpable of lying about his lockdown-breaking parties during the COVID-19 pandemic.
On Monday, the legislative body backed the report, which was prepared by a parliamentary committee, marking the end of a year-long investigation against Johnson.
The House of Commons' Privileges Committee released its findings last week, concluding that Johnson had deliberately lied to his colleagues when he assured them that all COVID-19 rules had been followed at all times in government buildings.
An advance copy of the report had been issued earlier this month, prompting him to resign in order to avoid further embarrassment.
The report recommended that Johnson be denied a pass giving him automatic access to the parliament and would have recommended suspending him from the House for 90 days if he had not resigned already.
The House members voted 354 to 7 to uphold the committee's report after a five-hour debate. The decision does not stop Johnson from standing again to be a member of the House of Commons, but it is considered an embarrassing punishment for a politician who was prime minister a year ago.
Johnson was Britain's prime minister from the middle of 2019 until September 2022.
Johnson has described the committee as a "kangaroo court," claiming that the report was "intended to be the final knife-thrust in a protracted political assassination."
Most politicians, who spoke at the parliament on Monday, criticized Johnson's behavior, while a handful of his supporters questioned the impartiality of the committee.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who has promised to restore integrity to the government, said the committee's bipartisan members had "done their work thoroughly."
Former premier, Theresa May, warned Johnson's supporters not to vote against the report, saying doing so would erode the public's faith in democracy.
Jacob Rees-Mogg, a minister in Johnson's government, however, said the committee had made a "deliberate attempt to take the most unfavorable interpretation... of Mr Johnson's activities," adding that it was "perfectly reasonable" to challenge its views.
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