Il Messaggiere - Defiant Johnson begins UK parliament grilling over 'Partygate'

Opening the crunch hearing by a House of Commons committee, the ex-Conservative leader swore an oath on the Bible to tell the "whole truth and nothing but the truth".

He insisted that everything he had told the Commons regarding serial partying in 10 Downing Street, breaking the lockdown legislation he introduced, was done "in good faith and based on what I honestly believed at the time".

Harriet Harman, the chairwoman of the privileges committee, said at the opening that the MPs wanted to establish whether Johnson "told the truth to the best of his knowledge".

The case went to the "heart of our democracy", added Harman, a veteran member of the Labour opposition party. The rest of the seven-strong committee has a majority drawn from Johnson's Conservative party.

Rejecting the contention of Johnson loyalists that the hearing amounts to a "kangaroo court", Harman said the MPs were acting only "in the interests of the House" and not from any partisan motivation.

Johnson's supporters insist he was betrayed by Conservative colleagues when he was forced out of office last year and are campaigning for his return ahead of a general election likely next year.

But opinion polls suggest that Johnson remains toxic for a large swathe of the electorate, and the hearing by the cross-party committee threatens to reopen old wounds just as his successor, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, tries to heal Conservative fortunes.

- 'Culture' -

If the committee decides that Johnson lied to parliament about the parties, it could recommend his suspension from the House of Commons.

If the full House agrees to a suspension of more than 10 sitting days, that could trigger a special election for his northwest London seat, if enough voters demand one.

This month, the committee found in an interim report that Johnson should have known the rules were being flouted on multiple occasions when he joined staff at boozy gatherings during the Covid lockdowns.

It released previously unseen photographs and also published WhatsApp messages showing senior aides struggling to come up with a public justification for the parties.

Hours before Wednesday's televised hearing, it published a larger 110-page bundle of evidence.

It included a Downing Street official stating that Johnson "often saw and joined" gatherings in the complex during lockdowns, and that "he had the opportunity to shut them down".

"He could see what was happening and allowed the culture to continue," the official added.

Johnson's former senior adviser Martin Reynolds also stated that in early December 2021, he asked him "whether it was realistic to argue that all guidance had been followed at all times".

The evidence also showed Cabinet Secretary Simon Case, Britain's most senior civil servant, denying he had ever assured Johnson that Covid rules were followed at all times.

- 'Shame' -

On Tuesday, Johnson released his own 52-page dossier detailing his belief that he was truthful when he repeatedly told parliament that all regulations were respected.

In hindsight, he recognised that he did "mislead" MPs, but only inadvertently and based on assurances given by top aides that the rules had been followed.

Johnson was fined by police for one gathering, along with Sunak, his finance minister at the time, while dozens of other staff received fines.

The former leader apologised and corrected the parliamentary record last May after previously insisting to MPs that the gatherings were above board.

Johnson said that correction came at the earliest opportunity -- after London police and senior civil servant Sue Gray had concluded their own investigations.

Johnson, 58, nearly died himself of Covid, but relatives of patients who died said his claims were a brazen attempt to evade responsibility

"Johnson's defence continues to highlight his lack of shame and humility," said Kathryn de Prudhoe, a psychotherapist whose father died early in the pandemic.

"The victims in all of this are families like mine who lost loved ones... people who lost their jobs, livelihoods and homes or their mental health because they followed the rules that he made, but couldn't stick to," she said.

N.Tornincasa--IM