How Boris Johnson’s failure to tackle sleaze among MPs could prove costly
The lessons of the latest parliamentary debacle in Britain
SOME POLITICAL dramas flare up briefly; others redraw the political landscape. The debacle in the House of Commons on November 3rd and 4th, when Boris Johnson tried to tear up the system of parliamentary oversight to prevent the suspension of Owen Paterson, a friend and MP, only to reverse course, looks like the second type. As furious Conservative MPs complained about being treated as cannon fodder, it strained their faith in the prime minister’s judgment and undermined the whips’ authority. It also gave fresh juice to other inquiries into Tory conduct, including Mr Johnson’s recent holiday at a Spanish villa, payment for seats in the House of Lords and the extra-parliamentary legal career of Sir Geoffrey Cox, a former attorney-general who earned £900,000 ($1.2m) in the past year. A YouGov poll after the fateful vote on November 3rd found that a Tory lead of 6% had narrowed to 1%.
This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “Learning from Paterson”
Britain November 13th 2021
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- How Boris Johnson’s failure to tackle sleaze among MPs could prove costly
From the November 13th 2021 edition
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