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30 June 2023

Johnson’s populists have lost their battle with the Privileges Committee

The committee’s report on “interference” by MPs is an assertion of strength by an institution under attack.

By Zoë Grünewald

The parliamentary Privileges Committee has accused Boris Johnson‘s allies of running a “coordinated campaign of interference” with its inquiry into the actions of the former prime minister.

In a report published yesterday (29 June) the MPs on the committee described “disturbing” attempts by seven parliamentarians to undermine, pressure and intimidate the committee while it was examining whether Johnson had deliberately misled parliament over partygate. The former ministers Nadine Dorries and Jacob Rees-Mogg, who called the committee a “kangaroo court”, came in for especially sharp criticism.

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