Sketch: Boris Johnson's ethics adviser talks forever, but fails to deny he threatened to resign

Boris Johnson’s independent ethics adviser appeared before a committee on Tuesday determined to speak constantly without ever saying anything.

Lord Geidt appeared before the Commons public administration and constitutional affairs committee for a grilling about corruption or abuse of power at the heart of Government.

Having investigated so much of the Prime Minister’s conduct, Lord Geidt clearly has answers to the many questions put to him by the panel.

However, he instead chose to talk around them, doing his best to ensure any sense of a news line or insight was from inference rather than what he said.

Lord Geidt, Boris Johnson's adviser on ministerial interests giving evidence to the Commons Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee

Asked several times if he threatened to quit, which is a yes or no question, Lord Geidt instead smiled coyly while deploying an X-Factor style pause.

He admitted the “commentariat” had picked up on his “frustration”, and said resigning was one of few “blunt tools available to the adviser”.

Lord Geidt explained he was unable to give a direct answer because he hadn’t had a direct thought, which of course is a believable real thing.

Do I want ice cream, yes or no? Well I can’t say for sure because I have many thoughts, but none are linked to a choice.

Lord Geidt also accepted it was “reasonable” to suggest the Prime Minister may have breached the ministerial code as a result of having been issued with a fixed penalty notice by the Metropolitan Police.

This again is not saying he did or he didn’t. It’s a coy non-answer of a man doing his best not to reveal anything.

You could ask him the weather while he stands in rain and he couldn’t tell you for sure it wasn’t dry.

This was not so much a question and answer as a live performance, with Lord Geidt frequently speaking about himself in the third person.

One area he did feel a little bolder on was the delay in appointing him after his predecessor, Sir Alex Allan, quit in 2020, following Mr Johnson’s refusal to accept his finding home secretary Priti Patel had bullied civil servants.

We, of course, don’t know if he agrees with the resignation, but after this committee I’m not sure we know anything at all.