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The former prime minister of the UK, Boris Johnson, announced his resignation as a member of Parliament (MP) on Jun. 9, 2023 (U.K. time).
According to the BBC, Johnson claimed he was being "forced out of Parliament" over "Partygate", where Johnson held parties during lockdown at 10 Downing Street, breaking Covid-19 rules.
This comes after he received a report from the Commons Privileges Committee on whether he misled Parliament over the lockdown parties as he was under investigation by a parliamentary inquiry looking into the parties, Reuters reported.
In March 2023, BBC said Johnson accepted that he misled Parliament over the Covid-19 parties but denied he did it intentionally.
In his lengthy statement regarding his resignation published by BBC, Johnson accused (without evidence) the Privileges Committee of acting like a "kangaroo court", trying to find him guilty "regardless of the facts".
"Most members of the Committee- especially the chair- had already expressed deeply prejudicial remarks about my guilt before they had even seen the evidence. They should have recused themselves," Johnson wrote.
"In retrospect, it was naïve and trusting of me to think that these proceedings could be remotely useful or fair. But I was determined to believe in the system, and in justice, and to vindicate what I knew to be the truth."
So-called 'witch hunt'
Johnson also called this a "witch hunt" to "take revenge" for Brexit and reverse the 2016 Brexit referendum.
"I am now being forced out of Parliament by a tiny handful of people, with no evidence to back up their assertions, and without the approval even of Conservative party members, let alone the wider electorate," he wrote.
Johnson accused the Committee's report of being "riddled in accuracies and reeks of prejudice". He also shared that he does not have the "formal ability" to challenge the Committee's "absurd and unjust process".
"The Privileges Committee is there to protect the privileges of Parliament. That is a very important job. They should not be using their powers - which have only been very recently designed - to mount what is plainly a political hit job on someone they oppose."
With his resignation, Johnson triggered an immediate by-election in his constituency of Uxbridge and South Ruislip.
"I am very sorry to leave my wonderful constituency. It has been a huge honour to serve them, both as Mayor and MP," Johnson said.
Committee followed procedures at all times: Spokesperson
Following Johnson's attacks, a committee spokesperson said that it had followed the procedures and the mandate of the House of Commons at all times, and will continue to do so.
The spokesperson said Johnson "departed from the processes of the House and has impugned the integrity of the House by his statement."
According to The Guardian, the committee will publish the report in full on Monday (Jun. 12).
Previously, Johnson was fined by the police while he was still sitting prime minister in April 2022 for breach of Covid-19 restrictions.
Johnson resigned as prime minister in Aug. 2022 following a slew of ministerial resignations, including Rishi Sunak as Chancellor.
Sunak is today the prime minister, following the short-lived term of Liz Truss.
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Top photos via Boris Johnson's Twitter