Boris Johnson – latest: MPs back scathing Partygate report and sanctions in humiliation for ex-PM

Boris Johnson has been dealt a humiliating blow as MPs voted to back the findings and recommended sanctions of a damning report which found he lied to parliament over Partygate.

Several of the former prime minister’s staunch allies appeared to boycott the vote and “pious speeches” of the hours-long debate on Monday evening, as cross-party MPs lined up to condemn Mr Johnson and praise the privileges committee for their findings.

Ahead of the vote, which saw 354 MPs vote in favour of denying Mr Johnson a former member’s pass to parliament and just seven against, former prime minister Theresa May was among those scathing in her assessment of her successor in No 10, who she said had been “found wanting”.

The committee’s chair Harriet Harman warned that if left “unchecked”, the ex-PM’s “dishonesty” would have “contaminated the whole of government”, while her Labour colleague Dame Angela Eagle described his resignation last week as the “narcissistic howl of a man child who won’t see that he only has himself to blame”.

Key Points

• Humiliation for Boris Johnson as just seven MPs vote against privileges committee findings

• Theresa May says successor had been ‘found wanting’ in scathing speech

• Absent Johnson ‘hits out at committee' as MPs debate ‘damning’ report

• CCHQ ‘Jingle and Mingle’ party investigated by police

• Tories face outrage over Covid lockdown party video

• I won’t submit resignation honours list if PM – Starmer

Sunak was right to dodge vote on Partygate report - cabinet minister

08:30 , Matt Mathers

Rishi Sunak was right not to vote on the Partygate report that concluded Boris Johnson lied to parliament, a cabinet minister has said.

Mel Stride, the work and pensions secretary, said he hoped that the former prime minister and his senior colleages could “row together” now the investigation has finished.

He told Times Radio he backed the Privileges Committee’s findings that the former prime minister lied to MPs but said he felt "quite uneasy" with the 90-day suspension recommended so decided to abstain.

"I think the committee conducted itself with absolute integrity, I totally accept its findings in terms of wrongdoing," he said, praising its "diligence".

But he said that Rishi Sunak was right not to vote either way, adding that the Prime Minister had been "extremely busy" on Monday.

"I think he took the position before the vote, which I think is the right decision, which is to not put his oar into the water on this, for fear of being seen perhaps to pressurise people one way or another," Mr Stride said.

"I do know he was extremely busy yesterday, I know he saw the Swedish prime minister and other things, long-standing engagements and so on."

He acknowledged it had been a "difficult period", adding: "My hope is that Boris Johnson, the current Cabinet - they are very united incidentally behind those priorities - that we can all row together now and focus on what people really care about."

Give back your peerage, senior Tory tells Shaun Bailey

08:07 , Matt Mathers

A senior Conservative has called on former Tory London mayoral candidate Shaun Bailey to consider handing back the peerage given to him by Boris Johnson.

Amid anger over a mid-lockdown party at Tory headquarters attended by Mr Bailey, Tobias Ellwood told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme there are "big questions" around his peerage.

"Absolutely he needs to consider that, if I’m frank," Mr Ellwood added.

He said that Rishi Sunak should "grasp" the issue of peerages, adding: "You can’t simply have prime ministers stuffing the Lords with their friends."

Mr Ellwood added: "If there’s anything to come of this I really encourage Mr Sunak to now draw a line under Boris Johnson’s tenure and indeed influence over the parliamentary party.

"There’s an opportunity now for the Prime Minister to draw a line, to continue the progress that he’s already made, further stamp his personality by dealing and confronting things like this directly."

08:04 , Matt Mathers

Good morning and welcome to The Independent’s live politics coverage.

We’ll have all the reaction to MPs voting through the privileges committee’s report which concluded that Boris Johnson lied to parliament over Partygate.

Stay tuned for the latest updates on this story and others from Westminster and elsewhere.

Monday 19 June 2023 23:01 , Andy Gregory

We’re going pause updates on the blog for tonight, thanks for following here.

For those looking to catch up on how this evening’s historic humiliation for Boris Johnson unfolded, our political correspondent Adam Forrest and home affairs editor Lizzie Dearden have this comprehensive report on the vote and the preceding debate.

If you’d like to read back on how the day’s as we reported them, you can keep scrolling to read our updates below.

Which Tory MPs abstained?

Monday 19 June 2023 22:42 , Andy Gregory

While 118 Tory MPs voted in favour of the report, there were 225 who did not cast a vote.

Among them were Boris Johnson’s former Cabinet ministers such as Nadine Dorries, Michelle Donelan, Oliver Dowden, Michael Gove and George Eustice.

Others for whom no vote was recorded included Lee Anderson, Sir Iain Duncan Smith, Victoria Atkins, Steve Barclay, Jake Berry and Liz Truss.

How did the evening unfold?

Monday 19 June 2023 22:33 , Andy Gregory

In a further humiliation for Boris Johnson, MPs have voted overwhelmingly to strip him of his former member’s pass to parliament, as they upheld the privileges committee’s findings that he repeatedly lied to parliament.

While a large number of Conservatives abstained, there were some 118 Tory MPs among the 354 who voted to uphold the committee’s “damning” report – versus just seven who voted against it.

With his successor Rishi Sunak accused of “running scared” with his absence during the debate, Commons leader Penny Mordaunt kicked off proceedings at 4:30pm by stating her intention to endorse the report, describing parliamentary rules as “obligations we have to one another, to this place and to those that sent us here”.

Former PM Theresa May was among other senior Tories to do the same, as she accused her successor of being “found wanting” in a scathing speech to MPs, who she called on to back the report to help “restore faith in our parliamentary democracy”.

Of the few to speak in defence of the PM, loyalist Jacob Rees-Mogg compared the privileges committee to “communist China”, and said the move to strip Mr Johnson of his parliamentary pass was going “from the vindictive to the ridiculous”.

His attempt to cast doubt over committee chair Harriet Harman’s impartiality drew what one MP could be heard describing as a “mic drop” moment in response, as the Mother of the House replied that the government had told her it had confidence in her leadership, saying: “I was assured that I should continue the work … and so I did just that.”

While Mr Johnson himself was not among those spotted in the viewing gallery – in contrast with Lord of the Rings actor Sir Ian McKellen, who was spotted on its benches – the ex-PM was reported to hit out at the “biased and wilfully ignorant” committee in a simultaneous speech to the International Democratic Union, and to claim that there’s “always another innings”.

Those celebrating the results of the vote, however, which came after some five hours of debate, appeared to believe otherwise, with Labour MP Sir Chris Bryant telling The Independent: “It feels like justice takes a long time to turn the bend – finally, chickens are coming home to roost.”

Vote was triggered by Labour

Monday 19 June 2023 22:18 , Andy Gregory

The shouts of “no, no, no” just before Commons speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle ordered a vote earlier came from Labour chief whip Alan Campbell, according to the BBC.

The whip reportedly positioned himself right next to Sir Lindsay to object when the speaker whether MPs supported the report, thus triggering the vote.

The Tory MPs who voted in Johnson’s favour

Monday 19 June 2023 22:15 , Andy Gregory

The division list showed Conservative MPs who opposed the Privileges Committee report were: Sir Bill Cash (Stone), Nick Fletcher (Don Valley), Adam Holloway (Gravesham), Karl McCartney (Lincoln), Joy Morrissey (Beaconsfield) and Heather Wheeler (South Derbyshire).

The division list released immediately after the vote contained six names in the noes rather than seven announced in the chamber.

There have been ongoing issues with names being recorded on the division lists, with other votes seeing the Commons authorities issuing updates later on.

Commentators react: ‘Hard to imagine’ greater humiliation for Johnson

Monday 19 June 2023 22:01 , Andy Gregory

Here is some of the reaction to the vote to censure Boris Johnson tonight.

The FT’s Jim Pickard said it was “hard to imagine” a more humiliating result.

ITV’s Robert Peston suggests that no former PM “has ever suffered quite such an indignity”.

Piers Morgan also highlights the low levels of support for Johnson.

Alicia Fitzgerald, of Politics.co.uk, notes that the vote is “extremely significant” despite the number of abstentions.

MPs vote to deny Johnson parliamentary pass

Monday 19 June 2023 21:55 , Andy Gregory

MPs have voted overwhelmingly in favour of the privileges committee’s recommended sanctions.

This means that Boris Johnson will be denied an ex-member’s pass to parliament. The recommendation of a 90-day suspension from the Commons no longer applies given that Mr Johnson stepped down as an MP last week once being made aware of the report’s contents.

There were also calls from some MPs, who argued that removing his pass did not go far enough, to also ensure that the ex-PM’s honour’s list was not approved.

MPs vote to uphold committee’s findings and sanctions

Monday 19 June 2023 21:42 , Andy Gregory

Boris Johnson has been dealt a humiliating blow as MPs voted to back the findings and recommended sanctions of a damning report which found he lied to parliament over Partygate.

While some of the former PM’s staunch supporters appeared to boycott the vote, while others such as the PM were also absent, Mr Johnson was roundly condemned in several hours of debate before MPs returned a verdict of 354 to seven in favour of upholding the committee’s findings.

MPs to vote on committee report

Monday 19 June 2023 21:29 , Andy Gregory

Several shouts of “no, no, no” could be heard as speaker Lindsay Hoyle ordered the lobbies to be cleared for a vote on the privileges committee report.

We will have the results shortly.

Boris Johnson ‘hits out at committee’ in speech to forum

Monday 19 June 2023 21:25 , Andy Gregory

Boris Johnson is absent from tonight’s proceedings and is instead reportedly giving a speech to the International Democratic Union.

According to a source cited by the Guardian’s Aubrey Allegretti, the ex-PM has called the privileges committee “biased and wilfully ignorant”, and claimed there's “always another innings”.

Mr Johnson’s supporter Brendan Clarke-Smith, who has called the committee’s recommendations “appalling” said he “fully intended to vote against” but would not give “others the satisfaction of taking part in their silly games”, appeared to be in attendace.

Jess Phillips relieved the ‘system is bigger than demagogue’ Johnson

Monday 19 June 2023 21:11 , Andy Gregory

Labour MP Jess Phillips has expressed relief that “the system is bigger than this demagogue”, as she praised the privileges committee for its report.

“The idea that Boris Johnson didn’t understand the regulations ... I mean, it is a cracking defence on his part I have to say, because it basically means he is too stupid. He is either lying or he is thick,” Ms Phillips told MPs.

The Birmingham Yardley MP added that the committee report reassured her there was “a lock on the system”, also describing it as “a valve to release the pressure”.

She told MPs: “What I have seen for the past five years of people lying and deceiving, specifically Boris Johnson lying and deceiving, I felt like oh gosh, it is okay, the system is bigger than this demagogue, it is bigger than this man who thinks he is bigger than the world.”

Tory MP says he is ‘so over Boris'

Monday 19 June 2023 21:08 , Andy Gregory

A Conservative MP has claimed he is “so over Boris”, as he said telling the truth was a “keystone” of parliament.

Isle of Wight MP Bob Seely told MPs he would vote for the report, but said: “I am so over Boris, and I am pretty over lockdown as well. I think sometimes, and really the point I want to make tonight is that we are in danger of making Westminster look small and petty.”

While he described politicians telling the truth as “a keystone to this place”, he added: “The scandal of lockdown, or Covid and how we dealt with it, is not only whether there were ‘wine Fridays’ and cake in Downing Street, and people in protest carrying about pints of milk, but actually whether lockdown worked, the cost of lockdown in terms of lives, in terms of learning, in terms of sanity, in terms of money, and in terms of truth.”

Nick Fletcher: ‘We must remember Boris is human too'

Monday 19 June 2023 20:04 , Katy Clifton

Conservative Nick Fletcher, who said he will vote against the motion, urged MPs to remember Boris Johnson is “human” and that during Covid, he “nearly died”.

The MP for Don Valley told the Commons: “We must also remember he is a human, too. In addition to running the country, he dealt with the highs and lows that this life brings. During Covid, he nearly died. He got married. He lost his mum and had a child.”

He insisted committees like the Privileges one are “set up to fail”, adding: “Let me use a football analogy: if Man City’s star player had to sit in front of seven of his peers for the hearing, how fair would it be if three of the committee were Man United players? Not very. I think if we are going to use MPs as committee members, which I think we should, then they must be of the same party.”

Meanwhile, Conservative MP for Guildford Angela Richardson said: “I deplore the attacks on members of the Privileges Committee. Whether they come from external commentators or within this House. The work of the committee is thankless, there is no need to make it potentially dangerous, too. The additional security that was needed is deeply shameful.”

She told MPs that Harriet Harman, the Labour chairwoman of the Privileges Committee, is “an exceptional parliamentarian”, adding: “I also deplore the attacks on the member for Warrington South (Andy Carter), who is a voluntary magistrate, as well as serving his constituents in this place. Shame, shame, shame on those who are working to undermine him and his future prospects.”

Watch: Ian McKellen spotted in House of Commons

Monday 19 June 2023 19:48 , Katy Clifton

Rees-Mogg says removing Boris’ pass ‘ridiculous'

Monday 19 June 2023 19:44 , Katy Clifton

Conservative former cabinet minister Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg said it was legitimate to challenge the findings of the Privileges Committee, and dismissed removing Boris Johnson’s parliamentary pass as “ridiculous”.

Addressing the proposed 90-day suspension from the Commons, said: “A vindictive sanction, it seems to me, which they can’t implement because Mr Johnson has left Parliament. So they go from the vindictive to the ridiculous with not allowing him a parliamentary pass.”

Addressing a comment from Labour MP Harriet Harman, who chaired the committee when it was producing the report, Sir Jacob said: “Suddenly we discover in this transparent approach that there was a secret agreement that her involvement was all right. Well, I was in the Government at the time, I never heard that this had happened.”

He also told MPs: “It is absolutely legitimate to criticise the conduct of a committee, to criticise the members of a committee. That is politics.

“Our politics is adversarial… it is open to us within this chamber to accuse people within the bounds of good order of saying things that we disagree with. Outside this chamber freedom of speech is paramount.”

He added: “We must defend the right of freedom of speech. And, frankly, if politicians cannot cope with criticism you wonder what on earth they are doing with a political career.”

Andrea Leadsom: We have to back a properly constituted committee

Monday 19 June 2023 19:43 , Katy Clifton

MPs should “back a properly constituted committee” by voting in favour of the Privileges Committee report on Boris Johnson, Tory former Cabinet minister Dame Andrea Leadsom has said.

She told Channel 4 News: “In my view, as a former leader of the Commons but also a real believer in the importance of parliamentary sovereignty, we have to back a properly constituted committee.

“And it’s not right to simply say, ‘well, I don’t like its findings so I’m just going to bring into question its legitimacy’.”

She also said she hoped enough MPs would support it so it would not need to come to a vote.

“I’m hopeful that this will go through on the nod rather than having a division.

“I want all members to accept the validity of that committee’s findings.”

Johnson’s former aide speaks out in defence of ex-boss

Monday 19 June 2023 19:19 , Andy Gregory

Lia Nici, former parliamentary private secretary for Boris Johnson, defended her old boss, saying the “prime minister is not the caretaker of the building, it is not their job to go round and look in rooms and decide who may be working and who may not be working”.

The Tory MP for Great Grimsby said: “I have to speak in the House today because I cannot see where the evidence is where Boris Johnson misled Parliament knowingly, intentionally or recklessly ... The reality is - is that Boris Johnson did not knowingly or intentionally mislead this House.”

She went on: “No 10 is full of police officers, full of security people. Why did nobody report this to the prime minister so that he was aware of it.”

Intervening, Labour’s Jess Phillips asked: “Do think that there’s any chance that Boris Johnson could also have lied to her?”

Ms Nici claimed: “Actually, no I don’t believe he did ... sadly I believe that unelected officials, some of them, because many, many are very, very good and very professional, but some of them made a choice not to inform the then prime minister because they wanted to cover their own backs, I’m very, very sad to say.”

She said: “Sadly this is all becoming part of a kind of political opportunism for those people who don’t like Boris Johnson’s approach.”

Johnson’s exit was ‘narcissistic howl of a man child’, says Labour MP

Monday 19 June 2023 18:47 , Andy Gregory

Labour’s Dame Angela Eagle branded Boris Johnson’s departure the “narcissistic howl of a man child who won’t see that he only has himself to blame”.

Of the report, she said: “It’s a damning verdict and one which I believe the whole House must not only note but vote to accept.”

She added: “Boris Johnson and his acolytes have engaged in a systematic attempt to undermine the legitimacy of the committee and its work for their own purposes.”

She went on: “It is beneath contempt for serving members of this House and the ex-Prime Minister to accuse the committee of being a kangaroo court or of being biased against him. In my view all those who’ve made such baseless accusations should themselves be referred to the Privileges Committee for contempt of this House.”

She added: “He has left in disgrace, he has run from accountability for his lies and untruths. There has been no self-reflection, no apology, no acceptance of a shred of responsibility, just the narcissistic howl of a man child who won’t see that he only has himself to blame.

“So egregious and so damaging for public trust in our democracy, Boris Johnson and his cheerleaders’ actions, it’s now imperative that this report is accepted.”

Senior Tory Tobias Ellwood backs Partygate report

Monday 19 June 2023 18:42 , Andy Gregory

Conservative former minister Tobias Ellwood said he would “vote in support” of the Privileges Committee report.

He told MPs: “Even though Boris Johnson has absented himself from this House, almost to some degree making this report somewhat academic, the nation wants to see its conclusion, the nation who puts us here wants to make sure that this process reaches its conclusion.”

Theresa May, speaking after Mr Ellwood’s intervention, said: “If people see us making rules for them and acting as if they are not for us that trust that I spoke about between the public and Parliament is undermined.

“If they see members of this House trying to save the careers of friends who have been clearly found by due process to have been guilty of wrongdoing, as happened in the case of Owen Paterson, their respect for us is eroded. And without that trust and respect their faith in our very parliamentary democracy is damaged.”

Watch: Labour MP asks ‘what would Covid victims say?’

Monday 19 June 2023 18:33 , Andy Gregory

Tory committee members subjected to ‘threats, intimidation and harassment’, says Harman

Monday 19 June 2023 18:33 , Andy Gregory

Tory members of the Privileges Committee have had to withstand a campaign of “threats, intimidation and harassment” designed to challenge the legitimacy of the inquiry, MPs have heard.

Labour veteran and Privileges Committee chair Harriet Harman thanked “every member of the Privileges Committee” for their “outstanding dedication and commitment”, adding: “But particularly the Conservative members of the committee. They have also had to be extraordinarily resilient.

“They have had to withstand a campaign of threats, intimidation, and harassment designed to challenge the legitimacy of the inquiry, to drive them off the Committee and thereby frustrate the intention of the House that this inquiry should be carried out. Yet through all this, they have not given into the intimidation.”

She added: “Attacks by honourable members on other honourable members designed to pre-empt the committee’s findings, frustrate the will of the House, erode public confidence and thereby undermine our democracy. They may themselves be contempt of the House because they are attempting to impede the functioning of the House.

“We will be doing a further report to the House on this shortly inviting consideration of what could be done to prevent this happening in the future.”

Harriet Harman in ‘mic drop’ moment after Jacob Rees-Mogg criticism

Monday 19 June 2023 18:01 , Andy Gregory

Privileges committee chair Harriet Harman said the government gave her assurances that she would not be seen as biased in her judgment of Boris Johnson.

Conservative former minister Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg referenced a precedent regarding the perception of bias in a House of Lords committee as he highlighted Ms Harman’s tweets criticising the ex-PM, asking: “In relation to her famous tweets, how does she think she met the Hoffmann test?”

Ms Harman responded “I am happy to answer that point that is made. I was appointed by this House in the expectation that I would chair the committee with no one speaking against it.

“After the tweets were brought to light, they were highlighted, because I am concerned about the perception of fairness of the committee and I agree that perception matters, I made it my business to find out whether or not it would mean that the government would not have confidence in me if I continued to chair the committee.

“I actually said I am more than happy to step aside because perception matters and I don’t want to do this if the government doesn’t have confidence in me, because I need the whole House to have confidence in the work that the committee has mandated.

“I was assured that I should continue the work that the House had mandated with the appointment that the House had put me into and so I did just that.”

One MP could then be heard to shout in support of Ms Harman: “I think that’s a mic drop, Jacob Rees-Mogg.”

Actor Sir Ian McKellen watches on as MPs debate Boris Johnson findings

Monday 19 June 2023 17:57 , Andy Gregory

Lord of the Rings actor Sir Ian McKellen has been spotted in the Commons viewing gallery as MPs debate the findings against Boris Johnson.

PMs ‘must tell the truth’, says Harriet Harman

Monday 19 June 2023 17:54 , Adam Forrest

Senior Labour MP Harriet Harman, the chair of the privileges committee, said prime ministers “must tell the truth” to parliament as she condemned Boris Johnson and defended the recommended punishment.

Ms Harman said the government gave her assurances that she would not be seen as biased in her judgment of Mr Johnson. “I was assured that I should continue the work that the House had mandated with the appointment that the House had put me into and so I did just that.”

The Labour chair said Tory members of the committe have had to withstand a campaign of “threats, intimidation and harassment” designed to challenge the legitimacy of the inquiry.

Warning Mr Johnson’s allies that could be found in contempt for their “witch hunt” attacks, Ms Harman said such attacks “designed to pre-empt the committee’s findings, frustrate the will of the House, erode public confidence and thereby undermine our democracy – they may themselves be contempt of the House”.

She added: “We will be doing a further report to the House on this shortly inviting consideration of what could be done to prevent this happening in the future.”

Ms Harman said: “There is no impunity for wrongdoing. Even if you’re the prime minister, especially if you’re the prime minister, you must tell the truth to parliament.”

Father of the House to support committee’s findings

Monday 19 June 2023 17:54 , Andy Gregory

Father of the House and Conservative MP Sir Peter Bottomley said he would “support the committee” after it found Boris Johnson lied to parliament over Partygate.

“The question I think facing each of us is no matter how many good things we have done, and the former prime minister did many good things, is what we do when we’ve done something wrong,” Sir Peter told MPs.

SNP attacks Tories who ‘indulged’ Boris Johnson

Monday 19 June 2023 17:53 , Andy Gregory

SNP Commons leader Deidre Brock told MPs: “We need to turn our gaze to all the members opposite who ignored his track record, indulged his behaviour, and the obvious failings of the man simply because (they) thought he could win them their seat.”

She added: “At the very least they should show some remorse for that cynicism, accept the recommendations of this report and vote for those recommendations.

“And if they don’t, I hope their cowardly refusal will dog them for the rest of their political lives. If ever there was a moment for them to stand up and be counted, it is now.”

She said it would be a “spineless dereliction of the responsibilities of his office if (Prime Minister Rishi Sunak) doesn’t show active support for the committee’s recommendations”.

She said legal fees spent on Boris Johnson’s defence should be “recovered”, “rescind the honours we bestowed in disgrace”, and called for Parliament to “abandon the damaging traditions that protect those who lie in Parliament”.

Boris has been ‘found wanting’, says Theresa May

Monday 19 June 2023 17:38 , Andy Gregory

Our political correspondent Adam Forrest reports:

Former Tory prime minister Theresa May has said Boris Johnson has been “found wanting” by lying to parliament – urging all Tory MPs to back the privileges committee’s report.

“I also say to members of my own party that it is doubly important for us to show that we are prepared to act when one of our own – however senior – is found wanting,” said Ms May in scathing remarks.

She added: “I will vote in favour of the report of the privileges committee. I urge all members of this House to do so, to uphold standards in public life, to show we all recognise the responsibility we have to the people we serve, and to help restore faith in our parliamentary democracy.”

Theresa May backs findings against Boris Johnson

Monday 19 June 2023 17:25 , Andy Gregory

Conservative former prime minister Theresa May has told the Commons she accepts the privileges committee’s findings against her successor Boris Johnson, as she condemned “slurs on [the] integrity” of its members.

“It is a rigorous report and I accept its findings,” Ms May told MPs.

“It is not easy to sit in judgment on friends and colleagues,” she said, adding “but friendship, working together, should not get in the way of doing what is right.

“I commend the members of the Privileges Committee for their painstaking work, and for their dignity in the face of slurs on their integrity. To all the members of the committee, this House should ... say thank you for your service.”

She added: “This committee report matters. This debate matters. And this vote matters. They matter because they strike at the heart of the bond of trust and respect between the public and parliament that underpin the workings of this place and of our democracy.”

Sunak ‘too weak’ to stand up to Johnson and his ‘sycophants’, claims Labour

Monday 19 June 2023 17:23 , Andy Gregory

Rishi Sunak is “too weak” to stand up to Boris Johnson and his “sycophants”, Labour has said.

Shadow Commons leader Thangam Debbonaire told MPs: “When stories or scandals like this one cut through with the public, it offers a Prime Minister the chance to press the reset button, to show leadership, get to grips with an issue, tackle it head on, but this prime minister is simply too weak to do so.

“Despite promising integrity, professionalism, accountability at every level, he has shown he is too weak to stand up to Boris Johnson and his sycophants, which is profoundly dangerous because if we can’t have a prime minister that stand up for standards, what have we got?”

Ms Debbonaire said she welcomes the motion in the name of the Commons Leader, adding: “But I ask: who on her side actually supports it? The government frontbench from the media over the weekend otherwise seems to be in chaos. Just yesterday, the Levelling Up Secretary [Michael Gove] said he disagrees with the committee’s conclusions, does the leader know how many of her other Cabinet colleagues aren’t supporting her motion?”

Making an intervention, Penny Mordaunt said: “The prime minister is on record defending the work of the privileges committee. He has called out those that have overstepped the mark from genuine, legitimate questions around process and so forth to attacking and intimidating members of the committee and bringing the house into disrepute.”

MPs must consider bereaved families during debate, urges Labour MP

Monday 19 June 2023 17:00 , Andy Gregory

MPs must consider the families of those who lost loved ones during the Covid pandemic as they debate the privileges committee report into the conduct of Boris Johnson, Labour’s shadow Commons leader Thangam Debbonaire has said.

“The backdrop to this report is the thousands of red hearts on the Covid memorial wall just over the river,” Ms Debbonaire told the Commons. “Every one represents a life lost to this awful disease. For every single heart there is human being loved, mourned, and missed.

“For each there is a story around them of awful loss, of grief compounded by goodbyes done over smartphones, lives ended alone, people robbed of precious time together, and relatives unable to comfort each other at funerals.”

Appealing to Mr Johnson’s supporters, she added: “I urge members who continue to defend Mr Johnson and attack the committee and their findings: think of these families and what this means to them, they are our constituents. By defending Mr Johnson’s consistent insistence that thank yous, birthdays, and morale boosting parties were essential work events, this hurts them.”

Johnson ‘far cry from PM country can be proud of’, says Labour frontbencher

Monday 19 June 2023 16:55 , Andy Gregory

Boris Johnson is “a far cry from a prime minister this country can be proud of”, Labour’s Thangam Debbonaire said, after quoting Winston Churchill in the Commons.

The shadow Commons leader said: “The truth is incontrovertible. Malice may attack it, ignorance may deride it, but in the end, there it is. The words of Winston Churchill. First said in this House decades ago and they hang over us today. Boris Johnson in particular and his supporters should heed the words of his hero.

“Mr Johnson undermined and attacked our democratic institutions, a far cry from a prime minister this country can be proud of. He lied to this House, to the people of this country, and when exposed, lashed out at the system designed to hold him and all of us here to account.”

Debate on Boris Johnson report is important for public trust, says Penny Mordaunt

Monday 19 June 2023 16:53 , Andy Gregory

The debate on the Privileges Committee report into Boris Johnson’s conduct is important for public trust and the rights of MPs “not to be misled”, Penny Mordaunt said.

The Commons Leader said: “The real world consequences of a vote today may seem to come down to whether the former member for Uxbridge has a pass to the estate. Our constituents may not appreciate why we are focused on contempt towards the House, as opposed to contempts they may feel have been made against them.”

She added: “But we would be wrong to think there is no meaningful consequences to our actions this afternoon. The work of the privileges committee in producing this report before us today does not just examine the conduct of a former colleague.

“Their work has also sought to defend our rights and privileges in this place. The right not to be misled, the right not to be abused in carrying out our duties.”

Ms Mordaunt went on: “This matters because the integrity of our institutions matter. The respect and trust afforded to them matters. This has real world consequences for the accountability of members of parliament to each other and the members of the public they represent.

“Today, all members should do what they think is right, and others should leave them alone to do so.”

Penny Mordaunt says she will vote to back privileges committee report

Monday 19 June 2023 16:52 , Andy Gregory

Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt said she will support the motion to approve the privileges committee report into the conduct of former prime minister Boris Johnson.

Asked by shadow Commons leader Thangam Debbonaire about how she would vote, Ms Mordaunt told the Commons: “As the member for Portsmouth North I will be voting to support the committee’s report and recommendations.

“But all members need to make up their own minds and others should leave them alone to do so.”

Watch live: MPs debate Partygate report after committee finds Boris Johnson misled parliament

Monday 19 June 2023 16:47 , Andy Gregory

Commons debate on Boris Johnson report under way

Monday 19 June 2023 16:46 , Andy Gregory

The Commons debate over the privileges committee’s report into the conduct of Boris Johnson is now underway.

Introducing the motion, Commons leader Penny Mordaunt told MPs: “The committee’s report found that Mr Johnson deliberately misled the House and the committee and in doing so committed a serious contempt.

“It also found that Mr Johnson breached confidence, undermined the democratic process of this House and was complicit in a campaign of abuse and attempted intimidation of the committee. It is for members to decide whether these findings and conclusions and sanctions they propose are correct and reasonable, and that is question in front of us today.”

Ms Mordaunt earlier said parliamentary rules are “obligations we have to one another, to this place and to those that sent us here”, adding: “They are also obligations we have to future generations that will sit in this place too.”

Boris Johnson still more popular than Rishi Sunak among 2019 Tory voters, poll reveals

Monday 19 June 2023 16:30 , Matt Mathers

Boris Johnson is more popular than Rishi Sunak among 2019 Tory voters despite his disgrace over Partygate, a shock poll has revealed.

Mr Sunak has been accused of “running scared” of Monday’s vote on the damning report which found Mr Johnson lied to parliament, as the PM tries to distance himself from the scandal.

But the prime minister has an even lower approval rating among Conservatives who backed the party at the last election than Mr Johnson.

Adam Forrest reports:

Boris Johnson still more popular than Sunak among 2019 Tory voters, poll shows

MPs to debate privileges committee’s Partygate report on Boris Johnson

Monday 19 June 2023 16:16 , Andy Gregory

The Commons is shortly set to debate the explosive Partygate report by MPs on the privileges committee which found that Boris Johnson repeatedly lied to parliament.

MPs are expected to debate the findings today from around 4:30pm. The cross-party committee’s Labour chair Harriet Harman will likely be among those blistering in their criticism of Mr Johnson.

The cross-party committee concluded that Mr Johnson – who quit as an MP and labelled the probe a "kangaroo court" after being told in advance of its findings – should have faced a 90-day suspension for misleading the House, and recommended banning him from receiving a pass to access parliament usually available to former MPs.

It is not clear whether there will ultimately be a vote on the conclusions of the report, which could go through on the nod unless there are objections from Mr Johnson's supporters.

The former prime minister has been urging his allies not to oppose it, arguing that the sanctions have no practical effect. However, his critics argue that the level of support shown for him would have been very low anyway.

UK will keep Russian sanctions until Ukraine is compensated - Clevely

Monday 19 June 2023 15:45 , Matt Mathers

The UK has introduced new legislation which will maintain Russian sanctions until compensation is paid to Ukraine, Adam Forrest reports.

Frozen Russian assets could also be donated to fund Ukrainian reconstruction under the plans.

Foreign secretary James Cleverly said: "Through our new measures today, we’re strengthening the UK’s sanctions approach, affirming that the UK is prepared to use sanctions to ensure Russia pays to repair the country it has so recklessly attacked.”

Boris ally says he won’t give enemies ‘satisfaction’ of Partygate vote

Monday 19 June 2023 15:15 , Matt Mathers

Boris Johnson loyalist Brendan Clarke-Smith said he was staying away from parliament today so as not to give the former PM’s enemies “the satisfaction” of a vote – saying he would be watching the cricket instead, Adam Forrest reports.

“I am 100% against today’s appalling recommendations. I fully intended to vote against, but I will be standing with my colleagues and not giving others the satisfaction of taking part in their silly games with a division,” he tweeted.

Senior Labour MP Chris Bryant fired back: “Not doing your job yet again.”

The privileges committee vote is now widely expected to go through “on the nod”. Opposition MPs are set to shout “aye” to approve the report, but if few Johnson allies shouts “no” then there won’t be a division to record votes.

Chickens ‘coming home to roost’ for Tories on Partygate - Bryant

Monday 19 June 2023 14:57 , Matt Mathers

Senior Labour MP Sir Chris Bryant, chairman of parliament’s committee on standards and privileges, said the “chickens are coming home to roost” for the Conservatives, Archie Mitchell reports.

Responding to the Met’s decision to launch a further investigation to events at Downing Street, Chequers and Tory HQ, Mr Bryant told The Independent: “It feels like justice takes a long time to turn the bend. Finally, chickens are coming home to roost.”

And the emergence of the “jingle and mingle” invite led to fresh calls for those implicated to give up their honours.

Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper said bereaved families across the country would be “appalled to see the latest evidence” of rule-breaking by the Conservatives.

“While the Conservatives ‘jingled and mingled’, the British public followed the rules and did the right thing,” she said.

She added: “Sunak should personally intervene and urge those implicated to give up their honours.”