British Prime Minister, Boris johnson, canceled an official act this Thursday and will limit his personal contacts until next Tuesday after a member of his family has tested positive for covid, while in the United Kingdom pressure mounts for him to resign after acknowledging that he attended a party in Downing Street during confinement.
(In context: Boris Johnson apologizes for partying during lockdown)
A spokesman for the head of the Government reported that Johnson was not going to visit this Thursday, as planned, a vaccination center in the English county of Lancashire, where the press hoped to be able to ask him about his attendance at the event on May 20, 2020 in the garden of his official residence and office, to which a hundred colleagues were invited at a time of harsh restrictions.
The source also said that, “following current guidelines”, for seven days the Conservative leader will take daily antigen tests and “limit his contacts” with people outside his family nucleus, “both inside and outside Downing Street”.
The announced reduction of the isolation period for those infected from those seven to five days (if they obtain a negative test in the last two) does not apply, as it comes into force next Monday.
The spokesman, who did not specify who the positive case is – whether his wife, Carrie, or one of their two young children, Wilfred and Romy – confirmed that Johnson will continue to hold meetings with his team, but most “will be virtual” .
No time for ‘self-reflection’
Asked by the media if the prime minister is concerned about criticism from within their own ranks, The source maintained that he is focused on “meeting the priorities” for the country and not on “self-reflection.”
(Read here: London deploys 200 soldiers in hospitals under pressure from covid)
The “tory” leader apologized before Parliament on Wednesday for having attended that celebration organized by his personal secretary, Martin Reynolds -who in an email urged to “bring a drink” taking advantage of “the good weather”-, but assured that he thought that it was “a work event”.
His justification did not convince the opposition, led by Labor, nor a good part of his own deputies, of whom the head of the Conservative Party in Scotland, Douglas Ross, openly called for his resignation.
(In other news: The United Kingdom feels the weight of leaving the European Union)
Most ministers for their part declared their support for the chief, at least until the civil servant Sue Gray concludes, possibly next week, her internal investigation into social gatherings that took place in Downing Street during the lockdowns and that may have breached the rules.
The Minister of Economy, Rishi Sunak, the presumptive candidate to replace the prime minister, further calculated his response by noting that Johnson “did the right thing to apologize” and seconding his “request for patience” until Gray finishes his investigation.
The minister for Northern Ireland, Brandon Lewis, insisted that the cabinet “is united” and predicted that the “tory” leader can still “win the next election”, while the Labor spokeswoman for Housing, Lisa Nandy, warned against underestimate the level of indignation that exists in the country.
All eyes are now on the Gray investigation, although analysts warn that it will likely limit itself to establishing the facts without directly attributing responsibility.
Depending on what he says, there could be resignations in the Government or that the deputies of the conservative parliamentary group instigate a motion of internal confidence to replace the leader, for which at least 54 petitions are needed (from 360 “Tories” parliamentarians in the Chamber of the Commons). It is more unlikely that Johnson, who has overcome more crises during his career than any other British politician, will resign on his own initiative.
EFE
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