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Boris Johnson suggests ‘outbreak of irrationality’ in Tory party after he quit

06 Oct 2024 3 minute read
Boris Johnson. Photo Charles McQuillan PA Wire/PA Images

Boris Johnson has suggested the Conservatives had an “outbreak of irrationality” when he quit as leader.

The former prime minister said his party made the “wrong calculation” when he was “kick(ed)” out as leader in July 2022 following a raft of ministerial resignations.

Mr Johnson has undertaken a series of interviews to mark the publication of his book Unleashed, which comes out next week.

‘Wrong calculation’

Speaking to GB News in an interview that was broadcast on Sunday, Mr Johnson was asked why he was no longer in Number 10, given that his party were now in opposition despite winning a majority of 80 in 2019.

“I think the answer to that, sadly, is that there was an outbreak of irrationality in my party, and I think they made the wrong calculation,” he said.

Pointing to things he achieved in office, including the vaccine roll-out, Mr Johnson added: “If you ask me, if you really push me to say, was it all a terrible mistake to kick me out? Yes, I think it was and I think it was a goof.”

Scandals

Mr Johnson announced he was quitting as prime minister and Conservative leader in the wake of the partygate and Chris Pincher scandals.

His announcement followed a series of mass ministerial resignations, including by now-Tory leader Rishi Sunak, over a period of several days, as the support of the parliamentary party ebbed away.

In the book, due to be released on Thursday, Mr Johnson retracted his apology for the partygate scandal that contributed to his political downfall.

He wrote that he made a “mistake” in offering “pathetic” and “grovelling” statements over the lockdown-era gatherings in Downing Street that sparked a public outcry and dealt a major blow to his premiership.

Challenged on his change of tone in an ITV News interview on Friday, Mr Johnson said: “What I was trying to say there was, I think that the blanket apology – the sort of apology I issued right at the beginning – I think the trouble with it was that afterwards, all the accusations that then rained down on officials who’d been working very hard in Number 10 and elsewhere were thought to be true.”

He added: “You can’t say that I haven’t been exposed over the last few years to the full force of people’s anger and indignation.”


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Martyn Vaughan
Martyn Vaughan
1 month ago

This is not to be confused with the outbreak of irrationality in the Tory party when they elected a known chancer as PM

Fi yn unig
Fi yn unig
1 month ago
Reply to  Martyn Vaughan

Even before he was engineered into the leaders’ role in July 2019, the idea of him being a PM was floated to the excitement of some. This was before Theresa May was in post so the ‘outbreak of irrationality’ that lead to their annihilation started a long time ago.

Alwyn
Alwyn
1 month ago

He himself and his appointment was the first product of the Tories’ ‘outbreak of irrationality’ . Just think – they got rid of Theresa May , who struggled honourably to make sense of Brexit, and elevated this twerp to a position for which he was monumentally disqualified. Like putting a known comedian to steer the ‘ship of state’

Mab Meirion
Mab Meirion
1 month ago

Hopefully that is just the preamble…to a manslaughter charge…

Mab Meirion
Mab Meirion
1 month ago

Keep pulling Fat Shanks you know you deserve it…

Y Cymro
Y Cymro
1 month ago

Duw, here we go again. The blond buffoon is at it with his crazed ramblings. He forgets that he led one of the worst governments in British political history before quitting like a coward rather that facing the House of Commons to take his punishment like a man, which meant being suspended for 90 days, expelled as an MP, and certain sacking. Rat leaving a sinking ship comes to mind. Remember this is a man who wanted to be injected with Covid-19 live on TV. He also admitted with a fix grin that he shook the hands of Covid sufferers… Read more »

Amos Johnston
Amos Johnston
1 month ago

I am so tired of this manbaby.

Jeff
Jeff
1 month ago

He lied and cheated before being a PM and ran off to a kgb party (that party alone would bar everyone else form security clearance). There was a big hint there. He tried to protect pincher and change the rules for Patterson. He was going to throw elderly under the bus during covid, after all they had a good innings apparently was what he said. His action during covid increased the death rate. He then lied again about parties. He then tried to borrow 800k as a PM and had people pay his way from food to wallpaper and weddings.… Read more »

Jeff
Jeff
1 month ago

Oh yeah, look up Johnathan Pie New York Times Johnson opinion video. Language gets blue so no links. But it is bang on the money.

onedragonontheshirt
onedragonontheshirt
1 month ago

This lying charlatan should be in jail, not on a book tour desperately trying to rewrite his disastrous history.

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