Against the background of the investigation into the partying scandal, Johnson resigns from the British Parliament and puts new pressure on Sunak

Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced his resignation from the House of Commons (Parliament) on Friday evening, against the backdrop of a parliamentary investigation into the “Party Gate” scandal, which focused on Johnson’s violation of social distancing laws during the Corona pandemic at parties held at the government headquarters at 10 Downing Street.

Johnson’s resignation, 58, – which has become effective immediately – means holding by-elections to choose who will succeed him in his seat, which he won by a narrow majority, which will put more political pressure on the current Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak.

A year after his exclusion from Downing Street by the hands of his majority, following his 3 years in power that witnessed a series of scandals, Johnson remained under parliamentary investigation to determine whether he had misled Parliament in the “Party Gate” case.

Johnson submitted his resignation from the House of Commons after he saw the report of the Parliamentary Privileges Committee after an investigation into possible misleading of Parliament.

He said he was resigning as a member of Parliament because it was “clear” that the committee was “intent to use the proceedings against me to expel me from Parliament”.

“I am very sad to leave Parliament – at least for the time being – but above all I resent that I was forced to leave in an undemocratic way,” the former prime minister added in a statement, accusing the committee of “flagrant bias.”

Parliament’s Benefits Committee has the power to recommend Johnson’s suspension from Parliament for more than 10 days if it finds that he has recklessly or willfully misled the House, which could lead to an election for his seat.

“I have been forced out (of Parliament) by a small handful of people without evidence to support their assertions and without the consent of even members of the Conservative Party as well as the wider electorate,” Johnson said in a statement.

He accused the commission of having issued an unpublished report “full of inaccuracies and reeking of bias” without giving him “any formal opportunity to challenge what they say”.

Johnson has fought for his political future in the face of a parliamentary inquiry into whether he misled the House of Commons when he said all COVID-19 rules were being followed even though parties were held in government buildings during the lockdown.

Johnson was forced to resign from the premiership last summer after a series of scandals, foremost of which were parties in Downing Street during the period of health restrictions imposed to curb Corona.