British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to be cleared of breaching ministerial standards over the funding of his flat refurbishment, despite controversy surrounding his handling of the issue. According to reports, Johnson told his ministerial standards adviser, Lord Geidt, that he did not disclose WhatsApp messages exchanged with a Tory donor about the refurbishment because he had changed his mobile number and the messages were on his old phone. Lord Geidt previously cleared Johnson of breaching the code in relation to the funding of the flat refurbishment, and it is expected that he will uphold his initial decision that no rules were broken.
The controversy surrounding the flat refurbishment arose after it emerged that Johnson had sent a WhatsApp message to Lord Brownlow, a Tory peer and major donor, in November 2020, asking him to authorize further refurbishment works on his official residence. However, Johnson had previously denied any knowledge of the payments until after media reports in February 2021. The incident prompted Lord Geidt to demand clarification from No 10, amid claims that Johnson had been misled by him.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson (Via Boris Johnson/Twitter)
The investigation into the matter was sparked by a report by the UK’s electoral commission, which found that the Conservative party had failed to accurately report a donation and keep a proper accounting record of the money handed over by Lord Brownlow to help cover the renovations, which exceeded £112,500. The party was fined £17,800 as a result. Johnson’s official spokesman declined to comment on whether he has apologized to Lord Geidt over the matter.
Despite the controversy, Downing Street has insisted that Johnson did not lie to Lord Geidt, and that the adviser will express his dissatisfaction that he was not provided with the WhatsApp messages before and was not made aware of them before the electoral commission investigation was released. However, Labour MP Angela Rayner has called for the letters between Johnson and Lord Geidt to be published, saying that the public has a right to know how Johnson justifies asking a Tory donor to pay for the refurbishment of his flat and then lying about it.
