Partygate: Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak should resign and Ukraine war cannot be used as an excuse not to – Scotsman comment

In January, The Scotsman called for Boris Johnson to resign as Prime Minister when it became clear he had broken his own lockdown laws – designed to tackle the deadly threat posed by Covid – and then lied about it.

Our opinion then was that Johnson had lost the moral authority to lead the country. It is a view that has not changed.

If anything, it has become stronger following the news that the Metropolitan Police is to issue fixed-penalty notices to Johnson, along with Chancellor Rishi Sunak, for attending illegal gatherings. There is now absolutely no doubt about what took place.

Labour’s deputy leader, Angela Rayner, pointed out what we all know to be true about the scandal – Johnson “told the country all the rules were followed in Downing Street, but that was a lie. Widespread criminality took place at the heart of government”.

In a functioning democracy, there have to be consequences for this kind of behaviour. If not, we are set on a path towards the increasing corruption of our democracy. It should be deeply alarming that it needs to be said at all, but the truth does matter and obeying the law does matter. In the UK, our leaders do not lie and mislead parliament with impunity – that’s what happens in countries run by tin-pot dictators.

Scottish Conservative Party leader Douglas Ross, who has dropped his earlier call for Johnson to resign, said yesterday that forcing Johnson to quit now would “destabilise the UK government when we need to be united in the face of Russian aggression and the murdering of innocent Ukrainians”.

Both the statement, and its argument, were further miscalculations by Ross. While there is a terrible war raging in Ukraine, Johnson’s position as UK Prime Minister is far from central to the outcome.

A brief constitutional wobble in Britain while we find an honest leader will not cause anything other than a minor ripple – particularly given the unanimous backing of Ukraine across the political spectrum.

Boris Johnson must resign as Prime Minister (Picture: Aaron Chown/WPA pool/Getty Images)

Indeed, a new leader would be free of the stains on Johnson’s character. They would be able to talk about the importance of the rule of law on the international stage, in a way that would stand a chance of being taken seriously.

Domestically, the Conservatives under Johnson will no longer be able describe themselves as the “party of law and order” without inducing a chorus of derision. With what authority can Johnson and co claim to be tough on crime when they themselves are such unrepentant lawbreakers?

Moreover, the fact that the make-up of many councils may well be decided at next month’s elections, not on local issues, but the immorality of the UK’s leaders is just one example of how corrosive this scandal is likely to be.

Conservatives who think they must support Johnson for party political reasons – there are hardly any others – are deluding themselves. But worse, they are legitimising criminality and deceit in high office and, by doing so, putting the Union in mortal danger.

If dishonesty is tolerated at the heart of Westminster, it should not be a surprise if, when offered an alternative future in an independent Scotland, some voters decide to take the plunge out of despair at the state of British politics.

Johnson, Sunak and any other Cabinet ministers who broke the lockdown rules – while others lost lives and livelihoods, missed the funerals of loved ones, suffered severe loneliness and isolation, and yet still obeyed the law because they wanted to save lives by preventing the spread of a deadly disease – must resign.

The fact that they cannot see this, that they do not seem to understand this is their only honourable course of action, makes them appear grubby, foolishly arrogant and ruinously self-interested.