Boris Johnson in Crosshairs as Owen Paterson 'Sleaze' Row Plunges Tories Into Chaos

On Thursday, Conservative lawmaker Owen Paterson announced his resignation, saying that he would "remain a public servant but outside the cruel world of politics". The move came hours after Prime Minister Boris Johnson's about-face on halting the suspension of Paterson, who's accused of paid lobbying.

Tory MPs reacted angrily to UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson's U-turn on Thursday, when he scrapped plans to stop Conservative lawmaker Owen Paterson being suspended from parliament for lobbying on behalf of companies that had paid him more than £500,000 ($682,882).

The former secretary of state for Northern Ireland was facing a 30-day suspension from the Commons for "repeatedly" breaching lobbying rules over his paid consultancy work on behalf of the clinical diagnostics company Randox, and Lynn's Country Foods, a meat processor and distributor.

The UK media cited unnamed senior Tory sources as saying that the developments raise serious questions about Johnson's judgment and leaves the entire Conservative Party tarnished by "sleaze".

Several sources referred to the situation as "a s**t storm", while other insiders argued that it was "an absolute disaster" and that Johnson was "p****d off" over the developments.

Conservative MP Owen Paterson (R) and former UK Independence Party (UKIP) leader Nigel Farage arrive for a press conference on the impact of Brexit on the fisheries industry in London on February 28, 2017

© AFP 2023 / JUSTIN TALLIS

Some sources minced no words when commenting on the news that Tory Chief Whip Mark Spencer is currently under pressure to resign amid corruption accusations against the Conservative Party, which is purportedly creating "one rule for us, another rule for everyone else".

The Times quoted unnamed insiders as suggesting that the government is trying to throw Spencer under the bus so as to absolve Johnson of responsibility.

"The chief [whip] only does as he is ordered", one source claimed, while another asserted that Downing Street is "spineless" and trying to hide its own complicity in the plan to remove Paterson from parliament.

The view was echoed by a Cabinet minister, who insisted that Johnson should have made Paterson "turn up and accept his punishment" instead of putting the full might of the government machine behind him.

One more senior minister claimed that the political debacle was "completely avoidable" and that "the problem with Boris is he packs his Cabinet with second-rate people, meaning there is no one to tell him he should take a different course".

"It all just looks like we're back to the 1990s – MPs getting together to support their friends", the minister added. Another insider dubbed No 10's handling of the situation "incoherent".

One Tory MP told The Independent that he holds "the prime minister, chief whip, and leader of the Commons [Jacob Rees-Mogg] jointly culpable", adding, "if I was the chief whip, I would hang my head in shame and resign".

Former Chief Whip Mark Harper has, meanwhile, described the developments as "one of the most unedifying episodes I have seen in my 16 years as an MP".

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, for his part, urged Johnson to apologise to the nation for a "grubby attempt to cover up for the misdemeanour of his friend" after an "unbelievable 24 hours even by this government's chaotic standards".

Paterson Announces Resignation

The remarks follow Paterson announcing his resignation a day after his colleagues voted to overrule his suspension for alleged paid lobbying.

"I will remain a public servant but outside the cruel world of politics", Paterson said on Thursday, adding that his resignation would allow him to grieve for his wife of 40 years, Rose, whose suicide last year he has blamed on the probe into his conduct.

My statement today: pic.twitter.com/gZocV3WIwS

— Owen Paterson (@OwenPaterson) November 4, 2021

The announcement came after government sources argued that a re-run of Wednesday night's vote would be held, with the expectation that the punishment of Paterson's 30-day suspension would be reimposed.

Prime Minister Johnson, for his part, was accused of "corruption" following the vote to protect Paterson from being suspended over alleged violations of the House of Commons' rules on lobbying.