The committee of inquiry, appointed by the British House of Commons, started the investigation a year ago. The House will subsequently vote on the suspension proposal. In any case, Johnson has nothing more to say on the matter, because he retired last Friday. “He did it because there was a good chance he’d lose his job in a long suspension. He kept the honor to himself,’ says Van Bekhoven.
Johnson, of course, had not envisioned his political demise this way. It is a failure and shameful’
According to Van Bekhoven, Johnson’s reputational damage is enormous. He will receive the highest sentence ever imposed on a former prime minister. “Of course he hadn’t imagined that he would come to his political end this way. He’s embarrassing and shameful,’ says Van Bekhoven. She thinks he won’t accept the consequences. He is not inclined to admit his mistakes or take responsibility.
Tougher punishment
Because Johnson was so dismissive of Parliament, the committee went even further. Johnson was also accused of attempting to intimidate committee members. The official punishment is now a 90-day suspension plus a recommendation to Johnson to waive the pass of him.
“If you are an MP, you usually still have the right to enter Parliament. All the other former MPs have that pass, but Johnson doesn’t,’ says Van Bekhoven. “Despite everything, people think this punishment goes too far.”
“Caravan went on without Johnson”
Johnson still has a small army of supporters in the group, “but this has dwindled significantly”. According to Van Bekhoven, the hope was that much of the Conservative party would also resign last Friday. Eventually, only two people joined him.
“It still has a lot of fans among party members, but voters have had enough. It feels like the end of an era.” According to Van Bekhoven, he will still be heard loud and clear from the sidelines, “but the caravan has moved on.”