A scandal and an ultimatum, which expired this Tuesday at 4pm but has been extended until June 1st, shake the British government.
He Covid party (the covid party) of former prime minister Boris Johnson, his agenda and diaries have plunged the British cabinet into a situation of unprecedented legal battle for the publication of Boris’ WhatsApp messages, as part of the Covid-19 investigation and how the Prime Minister and the government they handled the pandemic.
The Cabinet Office is determined that the documents, diary, journals and correspondence, which cover more than two yearsthey need not be published in their entirety, claiming that parts of the threads are “unequivocally irrelevant” and “infringe on Boris Johnson’s privacy” for the inquiry, which was never consulted.
However, Baroness Heather Hallett, chair of the Covid 19 inquiry, accused ministers of misunderstanding the “broad scope” of the research she was conducting and said she would be the judge to judge what did or did not fall within her scope.
Ultimatum
Hallett gave an ultimatum: first at 4pm this Tuesday, British time, but then postponed it to June 1, when the documents will have to be handed over. Otherwise the case will end up judicially and it will be the first time a government refuses to deliver material to those who investigate and resort to justice.
This Tuesday, Downing St had to decide whether ministers will launch a judicial review to try evade Hallett’s requests.
A government source said ministers were “unlikely” to change their position and that it would be “a rather dramatic u-turn” to undertake as they have already publicly established their position.
What did the judge ask?
The investigation, which is expected to start in the next two weeks, requested WhatsApp messages, marked as sensitive (not redacted), traded for Johnson with 40 political figures.
They include Rishi Sunak, Liz Truss, Matt Hancock, Dominic Cummings, who was Johnson’s chief adviser, and Simon Case, the cabinet secretary, between January 1, 2020 and February 24, 2022.
The inquiry also required the government to hand over unpublished agendas by Johnson e 24 personal notebooks weather.
In these diaries, Boris’ alleged meetings with his mother and sister Raquel are reflected eat in the gardens of Downing St or friends visiting Checkers, the premier’s country home, during the period of the Covid restrictions. Boris denies. He assures that these meetings took place when there were no such restrictions.
The Cabinet has refused to hand them over as some of the material, such as the prime minister’s daily commitments, is not related to the pandemic. But also because they consider it privacy suffers. Boris Johnson was not consulted and called it “nonsensical allegations” on Sky News.
Divisions in the Conservative Party
The scandal reflects divisions in the Conservative Party and a political assassination attempt on former Prime Minister Johnsonfather of the failed Brexit. A Tory sector is against a return of Boris Johnson and wants to eliminate a probable return of him for fear that he will run in the next elections. They are the ones who believe their personal messages should be exposed.
The challenge, including judicial, to the baroness is supported by other ministers and former ministers, unhappy with the possibility that their messages will be exposed in the investigation. They could be next.
However, Hallett told the government all of the material was “potentially relevant”. He rejected a Cabinet argument that his request was illegal.
The retired Court of Appeal judge said: “There is, for example, a well-established public concern about the degree of attention the then Prime Minister paid to the emergence of Covid-19 in early 2020.” .
Hallett suggested he should not trust Cabinet to pass judgment on what was relevant.
A spokesman for Johnson said he “has no objection in principle to the disclosure of materials for the investigation”. But that “the present objection It’s a Cabinet issue. and is guided by them”.
But Boris was not satisfied with the Cabinet Office lawyers. He doesn’t trust them. He has appointed a new legal representation for the investigation after losing faith in the Cabinet, according to the sources.
Meeting between Boris and Sunak
The move further deepens the rift between the former prime minister and the Tory government, after the Cabinet Office handed over his official diary entries to police, fearing he may have engaged in further rules breaches during the pandemic and not he didn’t even consult it.
Johnson said releasing the agenda and diaries would “violate national security”. He called the suggestion that he violated the coronavirus rules, made in preparation for the investigation, “a load of complete nonsense”.
His supporters blame Oliver Dowden, a cabinet minister and close ally of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, for the latest scandal.
According to the conservative newspaper The Telegraph, Boris Johnson and Sunak met yesterday and agreed not to hand over the documents.
The ultimatum is June 1st
Cabinet had until 4pm on Tuesday to provide all the material or challenge Hallett’s ruling through a judicial review. The ultimatum was postponed to June 1st. Nothing like this has ever happened with calls for an inquiry into the British government.
The Cabinet would argue that comply with the request would set “a dangerous precedent and could violate Johnson’s privacy.
An inquiry spokesman said he would not comment until he was informed of the Cabinet’s decision.
Johnson’s political life, in the spotlight
With this research Boris Johnson risks his political life. He could be doomed and unable to return to the House of Commons or return triumphantly to stand in the general election, when the Conservatives are – so far – heading towards certain defeat.
The Liberal Democrats said they would not deliver the material it would be a “mockery” of the process.
Daisy Cooper, the party’s health spokeswoman, said not handing over the evidence in its entirety, as requested by the inquiry, would be “another insult to the bereaved families still awaiting justice”.
“Looks like Rishi Sunak he is too concerned with upsetting Boris Johnson and their allies to do the right thing. The public deserves the whole truth about what went wrong. Vital evidence shouldn’t be kept secret just to avoid the blushing of ministers.”
The Cabinet Office provided more than 55,000 documents, 24 personal witness statements and eight company statements to the Covid investigation.
Paris, correspondent
ap
Source: Clarin
Mary Ortiz is a seasoned journalist with a passion for world events. As a writer for News Rebeat, she brings a fresh perspective to the latest global happenings and provides in-depth coverage that offers a deeper understanding of the world around us.