The afternoon and evening of Monday, 19 June 2023 will go down in our parliamentary history either as a day of the triumph of parliamentary democracy or a day of shame – very largely according to whether or not you like the man, Boris Johnson.

Parliamentary Integrity

But that should not be the dividing line. The true dividing line should be in terms of justice. As I listened to the debate in the House of Commons on the report of Harriet Harman’s committee, I grew more and more uneasy, as Members on both sides of the House queued up to make speeches in defence of ‘parliamentary integrity’. Even those who had benefited from the patronage of the former Prime Minister were keen to demonstrate their own level of righteousness by turning on the one who had put bread in their mouths.

Speech after speech added to this exercise in character assassination of the one whose major sin, it appeared to me, was that he had risen above all his compatriots. “He made the rules but did not keep them himself” was the constant refrain. So, we had to listen to stories of those who were unable to hold the hands of their dying mother because they were among the many who did not break the rules.

Even those who had benefited from the patronage of the former Prime Minister were keen to demonstrate their own level of righteousness by turning on the one who had put bread in their mouths.

Of course, they didn’t admit that, for most, their obedience to the rules was because they did not have any option. There can surely be no doubt for many that if they could have found a way around the rules, they would have broken them – as Dominic Cummings did with his visit to Barnard Castle, to give just one notable example.

Breaking the Rules

The central truth that appeared to be ignored by most of those who took part in the debate was the statement in Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” There is not one of us who would not break the rules to get to a dying loved-one if that had been possible. Which of course, shows that there are things that are more important than rules when it comes to our love relationships as human beings.

But, of course, Boris’s sin was not about neglecting a love relationship, but about allowing a culture of partying in the workplace of Number 10 during the highly pressurised atmosphere of leading the nation through a pandemic. 

Running for London’s Mayor

I want to say at this point that I am not a fan of Boris Johnson – indeed I have every reason to dislike the man. But I always react strongly against injustice. I was in the unique position of being a white man who was trusted in the black communities of London due to my work among the Windrush Generation in the 1950s and 60s. Running for Mayor of London, Boris and his team knew that the only way they could win England’s capital after two terms of Ken Livingstone was with the support of the black voters in inner-city areas. They chased me for months before I agreed to meet Boris, but when I spent a morning alone with him, I recognised his extraordinary charisma, which, of course, was a potential for amazing creativity for good – or for chaos.

I have no reason to support Boris, but I hate to see the mass character assassination of a man who has already fallen from grace.

I brought together about a hundred black community leaders to meet with Mr Johnson, which undoubtedly resulted in the support he gained in inner-city boroughs that confounded the pollsters. But he failed to keep his promises of support for work among young black people and he spectacularly failed to support his Mayoral deputy, Ray Lewis – also a black church youth leader, whom I knew well, – when he came under attack in the press. So, I have no reason to support Boris, but I hate to see the mass character assassination of a man who has already fallen from grace – like kicking a man on the ground.

Boris Witch-Hunt

The self-righteousness of some Conservative leaders I found particularly distasteful, claiming to be upholding the finest principles of the ‘Mother of Parliaments’ by turning on their own erstwhile leader who had won for them the greatest majority in recent parliamentary history. Was there no one among the Tory grandees who could have got alongside Boris after he came out of hospital following recovery from Covid and shielded him from the wild partying antics of staff in Number 10?

The parties were not organised by Johnson, but his cavalier attitude towards rules was always a danger that should have been recognised by senior Conservatives, who must have known what was going on and did nothing to stop it.

Overwhelming Evidence

The systematic character assassination of Boris in the House of Commons this week was a shameful act of injustice rather than a serious examination of evidence and a search for justice. To brand the man a liar is a disgrace he will live with for the rest of his life. I don’t deny that the evidence is overwhelming that he did not tell the truth on questions of partying. But who can say that he was deliberately lying when he said that he had been assured that no rules had been broken – because it is impossible to prove that he did not actually believe what he was saying to be true.

I don’t deny that the evidence is overwhelming that he did not tell the truth on questions of partying.

None of us has the power to see into another human being’s mind or even to hear what they hear. We often say, ‘It isn’t what you think you have said that matters, but what others hear you to say’. I have suffered many times from things I have been reported as saying that had been distorted or misrepresented in the media. We should all be extremely reluctant to accuse someone of deliberately lying.

Culture of Deception

I want to make clear, I am not saying that the verdict of the enquiry was wrong or that the balance of probability in the evidence does not show that Parliament was misled by the Prime Minister. What I am saying is that there was a large amount of hypocrisy in the finely honed speeches from many MPs as they took delight in stabbing the fallen body of their former hero.

I don’t think this episode will go any way to counter the culture of deception that currently engulfs the nation – the lies, deceit and fraud that is everywhere to be seen, as elderly citizens are robbed of their life savings through the deception of fraudsters, the Internet is used to steal people’s identity and organised crime is everywhere seeking to trip up the unwary.

Crumbling Institutions

Our politicians have spent three years arguing over petty issues of ‘Partygate’ – a journalists’ invention – a reflection of the abysmal levels to which our parliamentary democracy as slumped. In the context of the great issues facing us today, does it really matter that a few staff in Number 10 had drinks in their workplace at the end of a working day?

All our major institutions are crumbling ...

Ironically, given all the Parliamentary finger-pointing at Boris, our politicians have collectively failed to deal with the massive levels of lies and deception that are engulfing the nation. All our major institutions are crumbling, we cannot get an appointment with a doctor, cannot rely upon a train to get us to somewhere on time, we cannot trust a policeman, and we cannot rely on the integrity of strangers who call us on our telephone. Much of this goes back to family breakdown and the lack of teaching children basic standards of biblical morality. We are indeed a nation that has turned its back upon God.

Godless Nation

The woke-driven values in the nation have reached such a point that school children are not only encouraged to choose their sexual identity, that must be respected by their teachers, but in some schools, it seems that they even have to be respected if they choose to be an animal.

Isaiah saw the nation in his day where there was rebellion and treachery everywhere because people had turned their backs upon God. He observed, “Truth has stumbled in the streets, honesty cannot enter. Truth is nowhere to be found” (Is 59:14).

Is this not a fair description of Britain today?

Changing the Government won’t change the nation. Surely, the Church should be leading the nation in repentance! That, truly, is the only hope.