Johnson quits as MP as he accuses partygate probe of trying to drive him out

After claiming that a Commons investigation into whether he lied to Parliament on partygate was trying to “drive me out,” Boris Johnson announced his resignation as a member of parliament.

As he announced his intention to resign as MP for Uxbridge and South Ruislip, the former prime minister compared the Privileges Committee investigation to a “kangaroo court” in a statement to the media.

After seeing a letter from the committee with a majority of Conservatives, he claimed that he now thought the group was “determined to use the proceedings against me to drive me out of Parliament.”

“It is very sad to be leaving Parliament – at least for now – but above all I am bewildered and appalled that I can be forced out, anti-democratically, by a committee chaired and managed, by Harriet Harman, with such egregious bias,” he said.

The announcement, which came shortly after the publication of his retirement honors list, implies the Conservatives would probably face a difficult fight to retain the London seat in a by-election.

As a result of the former culture secretary Nadine Dorries’ decision to resign from the Commons without waiting for the next election, a second by-election was called on Friday.

In light of reports of lockdown-busting parties, the Privileges Committee has been looking into whether Mr. Johnson mislead MPs when he said that No. 10 observed Covid guidelines.

In a scathing attack, he accused the committee of producing a yet-to-be-published report “riddled with inaccuracies and reeks of prejudice” while providing him with “no formal ability to challenge anything they say”.

He said the panel of MPs had “still not produced a shred of evidence that I knowingly or recklessly misled the Commons”.

But he said he thought their “purpose from the beginning has been to find me guilty, regardless of the facts”.

“They know that I corrected the record as soon as possible; and they know that I and every other senior official and minister – including the current Prime Minister and then occupant of the same building, Rishi Sunak – believed that we were working lawfully together,” he said.

But he said that he believed their “purpose from the beginning has been to find me guilty, regardless of the facts”.

“They know that I corrected the record as soon as possible; and they know that I and every other senior official and minister – including the current Prime Minister and then occupant of the same building, Rishi Sunak – believed that we were working lawfully together,” he said.

“I did not lie, and I believe that in their hearts the committee know it.”

He continued: “So I have today written to my association in Uxbridge and South Ruislip to say that I am stepping down forthwith and triggering an immediate by-election.

“I am very sorry to leave my wonderful constituency. It has been a huge honour to serve them, both as mayor and MP.”

He demanded an end to the Ms. Harman-led investigation into his partygate remarks, which he claimed was a “witch hunt” and “revenge for Brexit.”

Mr. Johnson, who previously served as the Commons representative for Henley between 2001 and 2008 and held two terms as mayor of London, was re-elected to the House of Representatives in 2015.

When Theresa May succeeded David Cameron, he was elevated to the position of foreign secretary, but he later quit over her Brexit strategy.

The 58-year-old took over as prime minister in 2019 and went on to win the emergency winter general election that year with a resounding victory.

After losing the party’s support for the way he handled the sexual assault charges against former deputy chief whip Chris Pincher, he made his departure from No. 10 official in July 2022.

Mr. Johnson criticized Mr. Sunak’s administration in his statement on Friday, appearing to keep the door open for a return to Westminster and criticizing the choice to raise taxes and give up on the idea of a free trade agreement with the US.

In the 2019 election, Mr. Johnson retained his Uxbridge seat with a margin of 7,200 votes; Labour was his main challenger.

Given that Labour leads the Tories by more than 10 points in the majority of surveys, the by-election is expected to be challenging for Mr. Sunak’s party.

According to a Savanta poll, Mr. Johnson’s former west London constituency is currently held by Sir Keir Starmer’s party by a margin of 14 points over the Conservatives.

Contrary to what many outside the community would think, Mr. Johnson has been a “outstanding” advocate for the neighborhood, according to Richard Mills, chairman of the Uxbridge and South Ruislip Conservative Association.

According to Mr. Mills, the Privileges Committee had launched a “coordinated campaign against him,” and the local party recognized “his decision to stand down.”

The former No. 10 occupant, according to SNP deputy Westminster leader Mhairi Black, “jumped before he was pushed.”

Deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner urged voters to “turn the page with a fresh start” under a Labour government, claiming that the British people were “sick to the back teeth of this never-ending Tory soap opera played out at their expense.”

Daisy Cooper, the deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, said it was “good riddance” to Mr. Johnson.