by Stevan Balac
A ‘Winter of Discontent’ would perhaps best describe the myriad of scandals that have tainted the (already claret-soaked) walls of No. 10 Downing Street over the past few weeks. There is, of course, a grotesque injustice and hypocrisy which the political classes have displayed in the incessant breaking of their own draconian rules. Such instances as the April 2021 boozy gathering to mark the departure of Johnson’s former communications chief, James Slack, are of particularly poignant offence to the public given their occurrence the night before Prince Philip’s heavily restricted funeral. Regardless of the popularity or reputation of the monarchy in 2021, the haunting images of a mother sat grief stricken, unable to seek comfort from her own children in her weakest hour, will perhaps form part of the morbid iconography of the injustice that has taken place over the past two years.
The birthdays missed, weddings ruined, the first dates and last goodbyes that never were… these represent the very real human tragedy of COVID-19 restrictions. Indeed, it would be obviousness akin to an insult to describe just how and why the numerous lockdown parties which the Prime Minister was involved with, and by his own admission lied about, were immoral – whilst the rest of the country adopted a wartime, spirit-of-the-Blitz stoicism in the face of what seemed like a well-intentioned national effort. What is of more interest, and I believe of more use is, rather than examining the way in which the political classes behave behind closed doors, is to analyse their response upon being caught. Of particular interest, and tantamount to a psychological marvel, is the refusal of Boris Johnson to resign or apologise in any sincere way.
Whilst political scandals are of course nothing new in British politics, I feel there was a meaningful level of accountability, but more importantly, a sense of personal embarrassment, about such events in the past. The Profumo Scandal – a true 60s classic – is great evidence of this. Like a proper Bond thriller, it had it all: supermodels, Russian spies and threats to national security. It occurred when John Profumo, Secretary of State for War, was found guilty of lying to the House of Commons about an extra-marital affair with 19 year old model Christine Keeler. To complicate matters further, Keeler was also sexually invoved with Soviet naval attaché Yevgeny Ivanov, the discovery of which led to Profumo’s resignation in 1963, in no small way influencing the resignation of Macmillan as Prime Minister shortly after.
Johnson’s government, on the other hand, seems completely unable to accept true responsibility for not only breaking their own COVID guidelines, dating back to at least May 2020, but more importantly for their dishonesty towards Parliament. It is indeed this same breach of the ministerial code which actually triggered Profumo’s resignation (albeit he may have resigned otherwise, from personal embarrassment). Members of the Johnson government display no such embarrassment though, nor any such adherence to the ministerial code. The fact that accountability in the executive heart of government seems to actually be receding over time is worrying, and while Johnson is – and always has been – a political anomaly, one cannot help but view Downing Street´s behaviour as setting a new precedent of political arrogance.
However, there does exist this ‘Boris-centric’ narrative, so to speak, which depicts him as an outlier: a politician for whom the standard rules of government do not apply. This has some truth to it – he has made an entire career upon scruffiness, controversy, and manufactured eccentricity. However, as former PM David Cameron suggested, the idea that ‘Boris has always been able to get away with things that mere mortals can’t’, is simply fictitious. I would make a distinction between the ability to navigate scandals unharmed, and Johnson’s tactic, which is to simply ignore any sense of responsibility or failing. In other words, I disbelieve any suggestion that Boris is some sort of Scarlet Pimpernel figure, a political genius who masterfully avoids blame or capture from scandal to scandal; he better resembles a schoolboy pushing his luck with the ‘nice’ teacher to see how far it will get him.
It’s true to say that Boris’ character, in comparison to the dryness of the rest of the Conservative personalities, was previously a promise of Tory victory in any general election. But Johnson’s constructed veneer of indifference and his ability to appear to shrug problems off in a cheeky and loveable manner, has now shattered – with 62% of people believing he should resign according to YouGov polls. The only remaining hope for his premiership is the pragmatic argument: the narrative that the ranks of the senior Tories offer no better alternative candidates, particularly any free from involvement in these scandals. But advocating ministerial resignation is not a moralistic or self righteous attitude. It does not seek to construct a pretence of innocence or altruism about any politician. Nor is it naivety that a ‘golden child’ minister is waiting in the wings to liberate us from the corruption of their colleagues. It is about crime and punishment, a simple but crucial factor of accountability that binds the rest of us rightly or wrongly, as members of the public. The argument that ‘he is the lesser of two evils’, or indeed several dozen, is not good enough. The damage caused by his blatant lies and lack of empathy to those suffering over the past two years has cemented his place in what appears to the public to be a web of corruption, deceit and utter disdain towards the British people. His position, as Conservative MP Andrew Bridgen said, is simply untenable. Boris’ rhetorical garbage is a sad indictment of our political system; it is, quite simply, substanceless, meaningless and shameless.
