♪ ♪ narrator: funding for this presentation of this program is provideby... narrator: pediatric surgeon. volunteer. topiary artist. a raymond james financial advisor tailors advice to help you live your life. life well planned. brook: these are people who are trying to change the world. y that energizes me. i'm thriving by helping others everyday. people who know, know bdo.

narrator: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. by judy and peter blum kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. and by contributions to this pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. announcer: and now, "bbc news". >> you are watching t on bbc news. >> i think they want to find the worst of every opportunity and it shows a degree of vindictiveness. >> boris johnson as not only a lawbreaker but a lawyer. he has disgraced himself and continues to act like trump and the way he tries to discredit anybody who criticizes his actions.

>> if you think about the several hundred year history there's nothing like this. there is no case, no example of a former or sitting prime minister being found in contempt of our limit. -- parliament. >> welcome to the context. boris johnson deliberately misled mp's and suspended for 90 days. our findings of a damning report. also in the program tonight we will bring you the latest on the disaster off the coast of southern greece. at least 78 people have died. the survivors suggesting as many packed onto that boat.

reports of 100 children in the hold. a group of right-wing mep's pushback on the plans to increase conservation across the block. and nato defse leaders meet to discuss ongoing support for ukraine including a training timeline for the f-16 fighter jets. first, for the next half hour we are going to focus on the monumental date in u.k. politics. the release of the parliamentary report into boris johnson. the committee found the former prime minister deliberately and repeatedly misled mp's about parties at downing street when covid walked on measures were in place. it would have recommended suspending him for 90 days if he hadn't already stood down from the role after he saw the report

last week. it also recommends the former pm should not get a pass which allows former mp's to get access to parliament. he denied doing so intentionally or recklessly. saying this is rubbish, this is a lie. we have some reaction shortly. here's our political editor. >> so many chapters of boris johnson's life have his relationship the truth running straight through them. today, the latest chapter, the committee of his peers throwing the book at him. was he honest about what went on during the covid restrictions? >> all guidelines were followed. >> really? >> there was no party. and no covid rules were broken. >> is senior civil servant

investigated area so too the police. today, and another page turns. the conclusion, devastating for mr. johnson. >> this report concludes that he lied. it says he deliberately misled mp's. he deliberately misled the committee. he breached their confidence by saying out loud what was in there were boards and that he was complicit in a competing of abuse and intimidation of the committee. >> look at what else the committee had to say. the frequency with which he closed his mind to the truth. and it said some of mr. johnson's denial was in explanations was so disingenuous that they were deliberate attempts to mislead.

shouting at boris johnson because he said no to an interview. heut out a written statement instead claiming the art his rubbish, a lie, absurd, and complete tripe. and he said i do not have the slightest contempt for parliament or for the important work that should be done by the privileges committee. it is for the people of this country to decide who sits in parliament, not. harmon. >> you've been there and seen it with your own eyes. >> he claims she was prejudice from the outset. the report says its members were informed by the facts. >> jacob was knighted by johnson what did he make of the report? >> i think they want to find the

worst of every possible opportunity and i think it shows a degree of addictiveness. >> is this the end of boris johnson? >> there is a great virtue of our system. it can suspend you but if your voters send you back, back you come. >> today's report came out at 9:00 a.m. but the prime minister found himself in front of the cameras earlier than that. wanting to look like he's getting on with the job on an immigration raid in west london. >> you're talking about a report that no one else has seen it would be wrong to comment on it. >> so he didn't fancy saying very much. >> boris johnson is not only a lawbreaker but a liar. he's disgraced himself and continues to act like you know pound shop trump in the way he

tries to discredit anybody who criticizes his actions. >> he felt his entire career on being shady and with the committee has found is that he purposely lied to parliament as prime minister. >> today the final page turns on the former prime minister covid roll breaking and the truth. the big question is whether the book is now closed for good on boris johnson. chris mason, as westminster -- at westminster. >> that was a lot of detail in the report. jonathan blake has been looking at some of the key bits and is in the newsroom with more. >> the report has six events to establish whether boris johnson deliberately misled mp's when he said rules had been followed at all times. there are pictures inside the published report. this one from the 19th of june 2020. you can see the prime minister

at the time. let's take a look at what the committee had to say. the infamous bring your own booze drinks in the garden may 2020. the committee highlights concerns from some senior officials about whether it should go ahead. it should have been obvious because there were tables, alcohol available, people from the outside and they say the number of people increased while mr. johnson was there. so they say it can't be considered to have been essential for work purposes and committees and boris johnson is suggests would not have advised the public at the time that that sort of event was essential for work purposes had he been asked. let's talk about why the committee believes that and other breaches of the rules about them constitutes contempt of parliament. in other words getting in the

waof parliament doing its job. the committee talks here on page 61, paragraph 201 is disingenuousness the inquiry. the committee says has personal knowledge of breaches of the rules seek assurances and the deliberate closing of his mind, the committee says. or at least reckless behavior means that it's highly unlikely if he's given any reflection they say to these matters that he could have believed the assertions he made when he was making them that is why the committee has found boris johnson to have deliberately misled the house of commons. that alone would have gotten him a severe punishment recommendation. at least 10 days suspension. boris johnson's statements and behavior sense he was sent the draft report last week in his resignation as an mp which followed.

in doing that, the committee has gone back to a letter he sent them after giving evidence in march of this year where boris johnson says i have the utmost respect for the committee and its members. talking about kangaroo court's and witchhunts and they say that boris johnson has used precisely those abusive terms and they have no doubt he was insincere in his attempt to distance himself from the campaign of abuse and intimidation that members of this committee have found. they say that is a further significant contempt. that's why it's the 90 day suspension they recommended together with orest johnson losi his parliamentary pass for good. those punishments will be debated and voted on on monday. >> well let's hear a little from conservative mp a close supporter of boris johnson over the years. >> i am concerned that a number

of people have criticized others who have impugned the nature of the privileges committee. what i do want to say ii was there when boris johnson gave evidence to the committee. now that committee stands in a judicial role and when boris johnson was answering questions, i could members of the committee not all of them, some of them behaved with dignity as jurors would do in a court, but some of them were putting faces, looking skywards, turning their backs on boris johnson. justice doesn't have to be done it has to be seen to be done. >> we have a great panel to discuss all of the above. former conservative cabinet ministercofounder and director of public opinion consultant and conservative political commentator and former home office special advisor.

let me start with you, claire. is this the end of boris johnson's political career? >> i think it's the end of his career within the conservative party. we can never rule out him going on to other political -- >> i'm going to jump in. i'm sorry your line is breaking up but we will reconnect with you and get a better lie to you and come back. let me turn to you, joe. i was reading something just before i came up about another pole that was out. i'd like your thoughts on this. he was saying that only 17%, a positive view of boris johnson, 62% have a negative vi. he said for context boris johnson is more unpopular than philip schofield or xi jinping of china. do you think that's appropriate?

>> there's lots of polling that hasn't really changed much. for some time now and i imagine that the latest revelation will reinforce the view that many people have. a majority of people thought he had a right to parliament. a clear majority thought these parties had taken place not in accordance with the rules. so we find ourselves in a situation where what many people believed has been confirmed. there remains a proportion of people, about 15 or 20% of people that believe he is honest. that is certainly not enough on which to build any kind of political comeback. ection, many lauded borisat even johnson fohis performance. his personal ratings were still behind that of theresa may during the 2017 general election campaign. he was less popular but more

popular than jeremy corbyn which gave him a strong position at the time. once jeremy corbyn left the scene, his popularity once brexit was done, and once covid left us he was in a situation where his personal ratings began to fall and fall fast. by the time he left office he was as unpopular as theresa may had been and margaret thatcher had been during the poll tax. >> he was an advisor to theresa may. let me turn to you, justine for a moment. were you surprised by the length of the suspension if in fact he still in office? >> yes, i was actually. i think it was clear from his reaction last friday to resign from parliament which of course is one of the reasons why the suspension is being made. actually, that was contempt and

licking the report before it was at. i think despite that she was always able to get out and of any tricky situation he was in. he's going to somehow get a suspension but it will be less than the 10 days. clearly, 90 days shows they did a very thorough job. since friday last week has penalty in this action. >> let me go back to you, claire, for a moment as well. you are saying you believe there is some sort of future, may be political but not in the conservative already today hear that right? >> you did hear that right. i think boris johnson would always be around politics just not within the conservative already. he isn't willing to go quietly.

as we have seen from around the world with all the political world leaders they doang around if they think they have done nothing wrong and boris johnson has always maintained that he has done nothing wrong so he will see this as a massive injustice and will look to try to put that right. whether they want that remains to be seen. i think the level of self-confidence and arrogance will push him forward. >> what about the language that has been used? many people are signaling parallels between that and donald trump. he called it a kangaroo court. donald trump would have called some of the procedures against him as a witch hunt. >> i don't think it's near assist -- necessarily aimed at the public generally. it's aimed at his supporters. the conservative party has but i

think is best described as a life of pride. supporters, believe that boris johnson is the messiah. in contrast there is a proportion of conservative mps, supporters, members, who believe boris johnson is a very naughty boy. that division is hugely problematic for the party because the specter, even if it's not in a party political sense the specter of boris johnson hanging around, attempting to preserve the myth of his leadership and his legacy could be hugely damaging. not just to richie sunak but the conservatives of the next general election and potentially general elections to come. >> these are some of the terms i have heard so far. we are only 15 minutes into the program. what do you think the conservative party will do when it comes to this boat -- vote

that was recommended? >> if it was a functioning conservative party parliament it would accept the work being done by the committee it set up. it remains to be seen what will actually happen but i think joe is absolutely right. the conservative party faces really tough times ahead unless it's able to get a grip on some of these challenges within the party that constantly portray to the outside world as if it's the middle of the civil war. it's very important over the coming months that richie sunak is seen to get a grip on this. i think we started to see that early this week but i think joe is right. boris johnson, when he feels wrong will feel very angry and it won't be this insnct to shut up and go away.

i think he's likely to stay around unless of course, he really concludes that he's not going to be able to win again. i think if there's one thing that runs through all of his career is the need to win and be popular. if the polls really say where they are, 69% of people think that boris did deliberately mislead parliament. i think it's going to be that much more what happens in the conservative party that dictates the future. >> interesting. we are talking about the infighting, civil war is a term i have heard a number of times. there will be elections that take place. still holding out, she was going to resign, no she wants to know exactly what happened with the potential period. how damaging are these strands? >> it's very damaging to say

you're going to resign and then say will actually know there is some information i want first. you looking at the party to put together a timetable for a by election and as we have seen we have the date of 20th of july for two of those. to have one hanging over you throughout the summer leaving a massive vacuum within the party within the media and the rest of it, you're looking at something where it's going to be filled with those people who can make the most noise and it sadly for the party and justine is quite right. divided parties don't win elections. a prime minister who hasn't really said very much he started to and now has gone silent and a party that is just imploding. >> we haven't heard that much and maybe this is an open goal.

maybe he doesn't need to say anything. do you think that's the strategy he is taking to begin with? >> i'm not sure it is a strategy. i think he doesn't quite know how to react. we don't want to give boris johnson more of a headspace, or airtime, more attention. but the reverse of that brings out those people who were close to him who feel he's been wronged and they take over the narrative. i think if you all try to lead a party you need to be ahead of that game you need to be ahead of t narrative you need to be setting the agenda. unfortunately, we haven't had much of that. the agenda for press releasing, it has been absolutely woeful for some time. so unless they get a much slicker operation he's always going to be on the back foot. where he likes to be. >> i thought it was interesting with richie sunak when they talked about the art and whether he had read it or not read he

was deflecting but he was at an immigration raid also addressed in some of the clothing as we saw a little earlier. what do you think he needs to do with this moment? it feels like it's a pivotal moment for t conservative party. >> it's a long report, it's 108 pages. he's going to have to set up what he's doing. he has a decision if he's going to vote on monday. he had a vision but no real plan. richie sunak's got plans on things like votes but hasn't set out a vision and i think the problem is that until richie sunak accepts a clear compelling vision of where he wants britain to go, where he thinks this country should go next he's going to find it hard to compete with this boris johnson

personality that is all about the zeitgeist. it really is this compare and contrast between the two leaders. the best leaders will have both vision and the ability to put the plans in place that transform the country. ght now it is compare and contrast. the best thing for richie sunak is to deal with the situation but set out a compelling i don't think you're going to see the end of this. the privilege committee itself is going to be so incensed with some of the pressure and intimidation that it's being put under, is going to do a further special report on that. we are going to see what has happened into the autumn that is the last thing richie sunak needs but the reality is unless he gets a grip on the situation himself, then that will be the

narrative that he's having to deal with. >> what about the position of rishi sunak? how does the conservative party see him? >> he is seen as less popular but he is more popular than boris johnson. he is not seen as particularly dynamic. he is not particularly charismatic. but relatively speaking, very little is known about him. he hasn't really been able to make inroads with the whole situation presents two enormous difficulties. the first, all uncertainties could have in norma's momentum to the labour party. there's the problem of division and destruction we talked about vision and difficulties divided party when it's support

among voters. you then have the factor as we talked aut. you have all of this rambling on whether it's the privileges committee whether it's boris johnson, all of these prevent the conservative government from getting their policies, their ideas, and richie sunak's personalities across. 18 months until the next general election they need to make inroads to the labor leader. at the moment, it's very difficult to see how they do that given all these distractions going on. they want to seize the initiative, it's very dficult for them to get. >> 15 seconds, what would you recommend if you were brought in tonight? get some discipline into the party. a little collective responsibility goes a long way. >> thanks so much to all my guests.

it is one of the main stories that we talked about today in the u.k.. there is more on the bbc website and the app on boris johnson and the timeline of events that has happened since this morning. stay with us here on the context. a lot more to come. ♪ narrator: funding for this presentation of this program is provided by... narrator: financial services firm, raymond james. man: bdo. accountants and advisors. narrator: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. by judy and peter blum kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. and by contributions to this pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. ♪ ♪

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♪ ♪ narrator: funding for this presentation of this program is provided by... narrator: pediatric surgeon. volunteer. topiary artist. a raymond james financial advisor tailors advice to help you live your life. life well planned. brook: thesere people who are trying to change the world. startups have this energy that energizes me. i'm thriving by helping others everyday. people who know, know bdo.