Boris Johnson | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| Born | 19 June 1964 (age 59) New York City, US |
| Political orientation | Imperialism Liberalism |
| Political party | Conservative and Unionist Party |
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson is a British Conservative politician, and a former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He replaced Theresa May as Prime Minister on July 24 2019 before he was succeeded himself by Liz Truss on September 6 2022.[1] Johnson is best known for facilitating a Brexit deal, and the Partygate scandal where he threw a party during the COVID-19 pandemic whilst the rest of the country was in lockdown.[2]
Early Life and Career
Before becoming a politician Johnson worked for several right wing newspapers such as the Telegraph, and the Spectator as a 'journalist' where he wrote numerous offensive articles. In a 1998 article he mocked the resignation of gay Labour MP Peter Mandelson, calling gay men "tank-topped bum boys," a comment which he is still yet to apologise for.[3]
Political Career
Member of Parliament for Henley
Johnson became the Conservative MP for Henley in June 2001, and served in the post until June 2008.[1] After winning his seat Johnson wrote Friends, Voters, Countrymen, a book recounting his successful campaign, in this book he criticised gay marriage saying “If gay marriage was OK – and I was uncertain on the issue – then I saw no reason in principle why a union should not be consecrated between three men, as well as two men, or indeed three men and a dog.” Previously in 2000 Johnson had also wrote an article criticizing Labour for its opposition to homophobic law, Section 28, but when it came down to voting, Johnson voted in favour of the abolition of Section 28 in 2003, and for same-sex civil partnerships in 2004, seemingly taking on a 'liberal persona' as it suited him.[3]
Mayor of London
From 2008 to 2016 Johnson was Mayor of London where he carried out a reign of chaos, which Johnson himself prefers to declare as a success based on unfounded claims. Johnson claims to have helped the poor whilst in reality although the wealth of London increased, poverty still persisted.[4]
Johnson's reign was characterised by overpriced passion projects, such as £43m on a garden bridge that was never built, and overspending on elements of the 2012 London Olympics. When riots broke out in 2011, Johnson originally declined to come back from holiday to deal with it, with him only deciding to come back a few days later, showing his lack of commitment to the poor once again.[4]
Member of Parliament for Uxbridge and South Ruislip
He was Conservative MP for Uxbridge and South Ruislip from May 2015 to June 2023.[1]
Johnson was a key supporter in the leave campaign for Brexit, and could be seen posing by buses and releasing newspaper articles in support of withdrawal. On June 30 2016, after the resignation of David Cameron following the decision of the British people to leave the EU, Johnson declared his intention to run for Conservative leader, but withdrew from the race shortly afterwards when Michael Gove declared his own bid for leadership insisting that Boris was unfit for leadership. On July 13, after Theresa May took over the leadership uncontested, she appointed Johnson as foreign secretary, a position he was woefully unsuitable for.[5]
His appointment would almost be laughable due to his propensity to accidentally insult his allies, and cause diplomatic incidents over offensive remarks if it were not coupled with a unrelenting support for western imperialism that cost lives. As foreign secretary Johnson supported Trump, and made grandiose claims such as wanting to end a humanitarian crisis in Yemen, only for him to support the Saudi-UAE coalition once they decided to attack the port of Hodeidah. On July 6 2018 he agreed with the May governments latest Brexit proposals but only a few days later he resigned as foreign secretary in protest against them on 9 July after disappearing for several hours.[5]
Premiership
Boris Johnson was Prime Minister from 24 July 2019 to 6 September 2022.[1]
Covid-19
From the beginning of the pandemic Johnson showed reluctance to pursue a public health plan, preferring to promote the wishes of the bourgeois who wanted to keep their employees working and risk their lives. The UK went into lockdown in May 2020 and the government brought in social distancing laws, many of which were draconian measures targeting the working class disproportionally. The police were given new powers, including the ability to issue fines of up to £10,000 or even jailtime for anyone organising the now outlawed social gatherings, unsurprisingly the working class were the main targets of these laws, not the upper classes.[2]
On June 19 2020 Johnson attended a birthday party in 10 Downing Street among other parties, these parties were concealed from the public and when questioned about them Johnson and his associates lied about their existence repeatedly. Despite breaking his own laws, when Johnson finally admitted to the crime he still claimed that he didn't believe he had done anything wrong and ignored mounting demands for his resignation.[6] Johnson, Sunak and 47 other members of the government received a mere £50 fine each for breaking their own covid legislation, a sharp contrast to the massive fines paid by the working class for breaking lockdown rules far less blatantly.[2]
Post-Premiership
Since his resignation Johnson has remained under fire for his handling of the Covid-19 pandemic and his blatant disregard for his own rules, quitting as an MP in June 2023. Johnson received a six figure sum from the Daily Mail tabloid newspaper to write a weekly column for them, so far he has written about his dog Dilyn, the Elon Musk-Mark Zuckerburg row and his love of cheddar cheese. As well as making around £4.2m from speaking events, Johnson struck a £510,000 deal with HarperCollins in January 2023 to pen a memoir. In October 2023 Johnson announced his plans to join the far-right news outlet GB News as a presenter.[7]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "The Rt Hon Boris Johnson" (2023). GOV.UK.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Proletarian writers (2022-04-25). "Partygate again: Is Boris really about to suffer ‘death by a thousand cuts’?" Proletarian. Retrieved 2023-12-22.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Reiss Smith (2021-07-27). "A comprehensive guide to Boris Johnson’s infamous use of ‘tank-topped bum boys’" Pink News.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Peter Walker (2019-06-12). "Was Boris Johnson as successful as London mayor as he claims?" The Guardian.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Patrick Wintour (2018-07-09). "Few at Foreign Office will mourn Boris Johnson’s departure" The Guardian.
- ↑ Roger Mckenzie (2022-01-25). "Police launch investigation into Downing Street's lockdown-busting parties" Morning Star. Retrieved 2023-12-22.
- ↑ Adam Forrest (2023-10-27). "Boris Johnson reveals he is joining GB News" The Independent.