Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson accused opponents of forcing him out of Parliament with an inquiry into whether he misled lawmakers about parties at 10 Downing Street during the pandemic. Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he was standing down as a member of Parliament on Friday after confidentially receiving the Partygate report. Johnson accused opponents of trying to drive him out of Parliament. The former British premier said the "letter from the Privileges Committee make it clear — much to my amazement — that they are determind to use the proceedings against me to drive me out of Parliament." He added it "is very sad to be leaving Parliament — at least for now — but above all I am bewildered and appalled that I can be forced out." Johnson says not a 'shred of evidence' he misled lawmakers Johnson added in his statement Friday that the inquiry has "not produced a shred of evidence that I knowingly or recklessly misled the Commons." Johnson said the committee investigating the scandal was out to get him, saying that their "purpose from the beginning has been to find me guilty, regardless of the facts". The committee will produce the report in the next few weeks.  What was 'Partygate'? In May 2022, an internal investigation following media reports of multiple gatherings at government buildings during the pandemic revealed the gatherings should never have taken place. The report by senior civil servant Sue Gray laid out how many of those gatherings were held, including describing parties that went on into the early hours, with music from a karaoke machine.  Gray published photographs of Johnson toasting staff with wine.  All the gatherings took place between 2020 and 2021 — when the UK was under lockdown rules that were put in place by Johnson's government. After the media reports first emerged in December 2021, Johnson repeatedly assured lawmakers that he and his staff had always followed the rules. That turned out to be wrong, Johnson later acknowledged in testimony before Parliament in March this year. But he said it was "what I honestly believed at the time."  His resignation now triggers a special election to replace him as a lawmaker for a suburban London seat. Johnson won the general election in 2019 in a landslide after delivering a Brexit deal, but was forced to resign from office in 2022. A string of scandals, including the illegal lockdown parties, engulfed his time as premier.

Richard Sharp said a report on the controversial loan showed he played no part in facilitating, arranging or financing it. However, he was found to have breached the governance code for public appointments. The chairman of the BBC, Britain's main public broadcaster, resigned on Friday after he was found to have breached ethical standards over the Boris Johnson loan scandal. Richard Sharp announced his resignation as an investigation found him in breach of a governance code for public appointments. The report was also published on Friday. Yet, he said the report on the controversial loan established that he played no part in the "facilitation, arrangement, or financing of a loan for the former prime minister." What was in the reports on Richard Sharp? A committee of UK lawmakers found that Sharp had made "significant errors of judgment" by not revealing that he had acted as a go-between to help Johnson secure an 800,000 pound ($964,640 or €902,000) loan. Sharp was appointed to lead the BBC in 2021, shortly after the loan was arranged. "I feel that this matter may well be a distraction from the Corporation's good work were I to remain in post until the end of my term," said Sharp, in reference to the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation). He agreed to stay in his role until the end of June, to give time for the government to appoint a successor. Britain's public appointments watchdog, the Commissioner of Public Appointments, has been probing Sharp's selection to chair the BBC.  A report on the probe found that the chairman failed to disclose a potential conflict of interest while being appointed, that being his role in facilitating Johnson's loan. However, the report established that the aforementioned breach did not nullify his appointment.

Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said he will not be running to become Conservative Party leader once again. He insisted that he had secured the support of 100 MPs required to run, without having to prove it. Boris Johnson announced late on Sunday that he would not be standing for the leadership of the Conservative Party, and by extension another stint as British prime minister. This put Johnson's former Finance Minister Rishi Sunak seemingly in prime position to seek the job. Sunak is one of two politicians, along with Penny Mordaunt, to have officially expressed a desire to run, and the only candidate who had more than 100 public endorsements from Conservative lawmakers, the minimum threshold to qualify for the role.   What did Johnson say?  Johnson said that he had been "overwhelmed by the number of people who suggested that I should once again contest the Conservative Party leadership" in the last few days, following Liz Truss' resignation after just a few weeks in office.  He said he believed he was "uniquely placed to avert a general election now," and that he had cleared the "very high hurdle of 102 nominations, including a proposer and a seconder" required to qualify for the contest. "But in the course of the last days I have sadly come to the conclusion that this would simply not be the right thing to do. You can't govern effectively unless you have a united party in parliament," Johnson said.   He said he would therefore not allow his nomination to go forward and said he would commit his support to "whoever succeeds," suggesting he did not intend to endorse anybody else.  He appeared to leave the door open for some later return, concluding the message to supporters: "I believe that I have much to offer but I am afraid that this is simply not the right time." Path cleared for Rishi Sunak? Mordaunt still in contention Johnson's announcement adds further weight to the leadership bid of bookmakers' favorite Rishi Sunak.  Sunak is one of two candidates to have declared, and the only one who more than 100 Conservative MPs have publicly backed. He sought to strike a conciliatory tone after his rival's announcement.  "Boris Johnson delivered Brexit and the great vaccine rollout," Sunak wrote on Twitter. "He led our country through some of the toughest challenges we have ever faced, and then took on Putin and his barbaric war in Ukraine. We will forever be grateful to him for that."  Sunak went on to say, "Although he has decided not to run for PM again, I truly hope he continues to contribute to public life at home and abroad." One of Johnson's higher-profile public backers to declare on Saturday had been Nadhim Zahawi. He had a brief but memorable tenure as Johnson's finance minister following Sunak's resignation back in July, before himself calling on Johnson to quit roughly 48 hours after his appointment. Late on Sunday, he took to Twitter once more to say he would now switch his support from a Johnson comeback to Sunak.  "A day is a long time in politics," Zahawi wrote. "Given today's news, it's clear that we should turn to Rishi Sunak to become our next prime minister."  He said Sunak would have his "full support and loyalty."  Why all this talk of 100 lawmakers' support? The high threshold of 100 MPs' support is a new rule the party has introduced, changing its existing leadership election standards in a bid to avoid continued division in a party that has now toppled two of its own prime ministers in a matter of months.  There are 357 Conservative MPs, however, meaning that in theory, the other candidate Penny Mordaunt might be able to secure enough support to contest the leadership with Sunak. As of Sunday evening, Mordaunt had 24 declared backers. If more than one person qualifies by the 2 p.m (1300 UTC/GMT) deadline on Monday, the Conservatives plan to hold an online members' vote to pick a winner. Johnson said that he had held talks with both Sunak and Mordaunt "because I hoped that we could come together in the national interest," but said "we have sadly not been able to work out a way of doing this."  Shades of June 2016 Sunday's statement had echoes of June 30, 2016, barely a week after the Brexit referendum. At the time, Johnson was seen by many as a likely candidate to run to succeed David Cameron having been the front man for the "Leave" campaign.  Johnson went through a furious process of drumming up support for a campaign, only to hold a press conference in which he said he had come to the conclusion that "that person cannot be me." Why aren't there just new elections?  It's extremely common in Britain for prime ministers not to rise or fall at the ballot box. No British prime minister since Edward Heath (1970-74) has entered and left 10 Downing Street as the direct result of elections. Labour's Gordon Brown was the last politician to lose the job at the ballot box, in 2010.  Given that the prime minister is appointed by a majority of MPs, it's possible for parties to seek to change leaders during a term in office.  Opinion polls currently suggest that if elections were held right now, as the opposition Labour Party says they should be, the Conservatives would fare very poorly after a tempestuous few months, no matter who was leading the party.  Assuming they can maintain a stable government in the mean time, elections do not have to take place until January of 2025 at the latest.   

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has agreed to step down after several high-profile Cabinet members left the government due to multiple scandals. Boris Johnson says he will stand down as Conservative leader and prime minister Johnson says will stay on as prime minister until a new Conservative Party leader is elected. Opposition leaders have said he should leave as UK head of government immediately. The decision came after the PM was abandoned by newly-appointed ministers, following dozens of resignations of others. The prime minister had pledged to push through the open rebellion Possible caretaker prime ministers? UK Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab and former senior minister Michael Gove will not run to become the next Conservative leader, according to the right-leaning Daily Mail newspaper. The two both senior figures in the Johnson Cabinet have both been touted as the possible caretaker prime minister if Johnson is forced out before the leader is elected. Anyone taking the temporary prime ministerial role would most likely have to rule themselves out of the leadership race. Gove, who served as secretary of state for leveling, housing and communities, was sacked by Johnson late on Wednesday. As Johnson’s deputy, having led the UK government when the prime minister was incapacitated by COVID-19, Raab is seen as most likely to succeed should there be a caretaker. British former PM Major says Johnson must go now. Former British Prime Minister John Major has said that outgoing Conservative leader Boris Johnson should not remain as prime minister until a new Tory party leader is found. Major, which was Conservative prime minister from 1990 to 1997, said Johnson should go for the overall wellbeing of the country. The former premier said Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab could take over until a new leader is found. Alternatively, he suggested, the party could change the selection rules to accelerate the process. The proposal for the prime minister to remain in office for up to three months having lost the support of his cabinet, his government and his parliamentary party is unwise, and may be unsustainable, Major said in a public letter. Major succeeded Margaret Thatcher as Conservative Party leader and UK prime minister after a damaging leadership challenge that left her with little option but to resign. Irish PM sees opportunity for a reset with UK The Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin says there is now the chance for Ireland and Britain to repair relations that have become strained because of Brexit. Martin has consistently rejected Johnson’s attempts to make changes to the Northern Ireland Protocol, which is part of the UK Brexit withdrawal agreement with the European Union. Martin said has warned that such a course would represent a unilateral decision to breach international law and threated the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, which brought peace to Northern Ireland. In his response to Johnson’s resignation, the Taoiseach offered his best wishes to Johnson and his family. However, he also said there was now an opportunity to repair areas in which relations had become frayed. While Prime Minister Johnson and I engaged actively together, we didn’t always agree, and the relationship between our Governments has been strained and challenged in recent times. We have now an opportunity to return to the true spirit of partnership and mutual respect that is needed to underpin the gains of the Good Friday Agreement. Top Kyiv adviser thanks Johnson for support Ukraine presidential adviser Mikhail Podolyak has thanked Boris Johnson for his support of the country after Russia’s invasion. In a tweet, Podolyak thanked Johnson for being the first to arrive in Kyiv, despite missile attacks. He thanked Johnson for realizing the threat of the RF [Russian Federation] monster and always being at the forefront of supporting Ukraine. The UK prime minister has been a strong supporter of Ukraine, as it battles Russia, visiting Kyiv twice since the conflict began. During his resignation speech, Johnson listed his support for Ukraine as one of his proudest achievements. Johnson says he will resign as leader Boris Johnson has announced his resignation as Conservative leader and said the reason he fought so hard to remain in the post was a sense of duty. However, Johnson said it was now clearly the will of the Conservative Party that there should be a new party head. He said the herd instinct is powerful in reference to the pressure placed upon him to stand down by fellow Conservatives. I want you to know how sad I am to be giving up the best job in the world, Johnson said. Johnson said he had appointed a new Cabinet he will remain as prime minister until a new party chief is chosen. He promised to support the new leader of the party and said the government of the country would be carried on during the handover process. The reason I have fought so hard in the last few days to continue to deliver that mandate in person was not just because I wanted to do so, but because I felt it was my job, my duty, my obligation, to you to continue to do what we promised in 2019. In the last few days, I’ve tried to persuade my colleagues that it would be eccentric to change governments when we are delivering so much and when we have such a vast mandate... And I regret not to have been successful in those arguments and, of course, it’s painful not to be able to see through so many ideas and projects myself. Podium for PM’s statement appears The podium from which the prime minister is expected to make his speech has been brought out in front of Number 10 Downing Street. Johnson fills some Cabinet posts Downing Street says British Conservative lawmaker Greg Clarke has been appointed as the country’s new leveling-up secretary, replacing former incumbent of the role, Michael Gove. Johnson on Wednesday sacked Gove from the role, which involves responsibility for local government and the regions. Gove had led the line of ministers urging him to resign. With several of Gove’s Cabinet colleagues having resigned, replacements for other positions were also needed for Johnson to carry on as caretaker prime minister. The prime minister’s office said James Cleverly, previously junior minister for Europe and North America, takes over the portfolio of education minister. Meanwhile, former justice minister Robert Buckland was announced as the new Secretary of State for Wales. Policing minister Kit Malthouse becomes the new Chancellor of the Dutchy of Lancaster, according to Downing Street. The role, previously also held by Gove, has no departmental responsibilities but is the second-highest-ranking position in the Cabinet after that of prime minister. Opposition leader threatens no-confidence vote The leader of the UK opposition Labour Party has said that, if the Conservative Party does not get rid of Johnson as prime minister now, it will call a vote of no-confidence. He needs to go completely, none of this nonsense about clinging on for a few months. He’s inflicted lies, fraud and chaos in the country, said Labour leader Keir Starmer. He needs to go. He can’t cling on in this way. His own party have finally concluded that he is unfit to be prime minister. They can’t now inflict him on the country for the next few months. If they don’t get rid of him then Labour will step up in the national interest and bring a vote of no-confidence. New caretaker cabinet chosen report Downing Street has appointed a new Cabinet to take over the business of government until a new Conservative Party leader is chosen, according to the BBC. It’s expected that a Tory leadership race will take place in the coming months, with the victor to replace Johnson in October. Several senior members of Johnson’s Conservative Party say he should be replaced immediately rather than be allowed to remain as a caretaker prime minister until a new party leader is chosen. Tory members want defense minister as PM-survey According to a survey by opinion pollsters YouGov, Secretary of State for Defence Ben Wallace would be Conservative Party members favorite to replace Boris Johnson. It will be up to party members to decide between the final candidates after they are whittled down to the last two in voting by Conservative lawmakers. Wallace has called on Johnson to quit but said he would stay in his role leading the UK defense ministry to protect national security. A former soldier, he was security minister from 2016 until taking on his current role three years later. Wallace has won plaudits after his department evacuated British nationals and allies from Afghanistan last year, and for his advocacy of sending weapons to Ukraine. Other possible contenders in the poll included Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, departed finance minister Rishi Sunak, and Jeremy Hunt, who faced Johnson in the last showdown decided by party members. PM speaks to queen in advance Boris Johnson has reportedly spoken to Queen Elizabeth as a courtesy ahead of an impending announcement about his plans to stand down, according to a report from the British broadcaster ITV. EU Brexit chair Verhofstadt welcomes end of era The European Parliament’s Brexit coordinator Guy Verhofstadt has welcomed the end of Johnson’s tenure. The former Belgian prime minister compared the British prime minister to former US President Donald Trump, and said he hoped UK-EU relations could improve. Boris Johnson’s reign ends in disgrace, just like his friend Donald Trump, Verhofstadt tweeted. The end of an era of transatlantic populism? Let’s hope so. EU - UK relations suffered hugely with Johnson’s choice of Brexit. Things can only get better! Johnson emerged as a figurehead of Brexit, and disputes with the EU have bubbled in the background throughout his tenure. Scotland leader Sturgeon says PM cannot stay on Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said that the idea of Johnson remaining as prime minister until later this year, when a new Tory leader is elected, is not feasible. There will be a widespread sense of relief that the chaos of the last few days, indeed months, will come to an end, though [the] notion of Boris Johnson staying on as PM until autumn seems far from ideal, and surely not sustainable? Boris Johnson was always manifestly unfit to be PM and the Tories should never have elected him leader or sustained him in office for as long as they have. It’s expected that a leader might not be finally decided upon until October. A day earlier, Johnson told Sturgeon in a letter that now was not the time to revisit the question of a vote on Scottish independence. Sturgeon last week announced plans for a second independence referendum to be held on October 2023. UK stocks and sterling enjoy bounce Reports of Johnson’s planned resignation gave the UK stock market a boost, with the key FTSE 100 index gaining 1.2% after the news. The FTSE 250, which is more exposed to Britain’s domestic economy, rose by 0.9%. The pound sterling, which had been in the doldrums, jumped 0.5% following the media reports. The currency hit two-year lows against the dollar on Wednesday after the resignation of the finance and health secretaries threw Johnson’s tenure into doubt. Opposition leader Starmer urges change of government Keir Starmer, the leader of Britain’s opposition Labour Party, said that news of Johnson’s impending resignation was good news for the country. But Starmer warned that the prime minister’s resignation was not enough. We don’t need to change the Tory at the top we need a proper change of government, Starmer said. We need a fresh start for Britain. British media: Johnson agrees to step down British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has agreed to resign as leader of the Conservative Party, British broadcasters BBC and Sky reported on Thursday. The reports follow a slew of scandals that surrounded him and his government, and reports that Michael Gove, one of the most senior ministers in the British government, told Johnson he must go. Johnson had initially refused to resign, despite a succession of resignations, as he faced a grilling from UK lawmakers in parliament on Wednesday. His grip on power was weakened considerably, however, when Rishi Sunak quit as finance minister and Sajid Javid resigned as health secretary within minutes of one another on Tuesday evening. More ministers resigned their posts on Wednesday and Thursday, bringing the total to more than 50 in less than 48 hours. The resignations follow shifting explanations from Johnson’s Downing Street office about a sex scandal that involved a mid-ranking ally of the prime minister. Johnson has faced sharp criticism over his promotion of junior minister Chris Pincher to the role of chief whip a key position that involves enforcing party discipline. The promotion came despite Pincher being accused of drunkenly groping two men, and Johnson having been made aware of the allegations. New Cabinet ministers abandon PM Cabinet member Nadhim Zahawi on Thursday said Johnson must quit despite being appointed by the prime minister as the UK’s finance minister only 36 hours earlier. He replaced Rishi Sunak as Chancellor of the Exchequer on Tuesday evening. This is not sustainable and it will only get worse  for you, for the Conservative Party and most importantly of all the country. You must do the right thing and go now. Moments after Zahawi’s intervention, the education minister Johnson appointed at the same time, Michelle Donelan, announced her resignation. With great sadness, I must resign from government, she said. Earlier, Northern Ireland Secretary became the first Cabinet minister of the day to quit, saying the situation was past the point of no return. That resignation was followed by the departure of a succession of junior ministers. What’s behind the ministerial resignations? Ministers of Johnson’s Cabinet resigned shortly after he appeared on television to apologize for appointing Pincher to the role despite knowing the allegations. Johnson is alleged to have joked about the claims, referring to the lawmaker as Pincher by name, pincher by nature in 2020. The prime minister’s office had initially said that it was not aware of any complaints against Pincher, but later changed this to serious specific complaints. This account was refuted by the top civil servant in the UK Foreign Office from 2015 to 2020, who said the complaints about Pincher had been upheld. In a highly unusual move for a civil servant, Simon McDonald publicly claimed that Johnson’s office had repeatedly failed to tell the truth. The revelations are only the latest in a string of scandals involving Johnson, who was been fined by police for lockdown-breaching parties. Last month, he survived a no-confidence vote that saw 41% of Conservative lawmakers vote to topple him.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson hailed the UK-US relationship as “indestructible” after his first meeting with President Joe Biden ahead of the G7 leaders’ summit which opens on Friday. “It’s a relationship, you can call it the ‘deep and meaningful relationship’, whatever you want, the ‘indestructible relationship’,” Johnson said in a BBC interview broadcast Friday morning. “It’s a relationship that has endured for a very long time, and has been an important part of peace and prosperity both in Europe and around the world.” During their face-to-face meeting Thursday, the two leaders discussed “about 25 subjects in some detail”, including the Brexit-induced disruption in Northern Ireland, he said. Johnson played down the displeasure of Biden, who is proud of his Irish origins, over London’s attempts to reverse the “Northern Ireland Protocol” which seeks to avoid the return of a border with EU member Ireland but which has disrupted trade between mainland Britain and Northern Ireland. “Everybody has a massive interest in making sure that we keep the essential symmetry of the Good Friday Agreement,” which ended three decades of conflict in the British-ruled province. “I think we can sort it out,” he said. In his meeting with Biden, Johnson said he also raised the case of British teenager Harry Dunn, who was killed in a road accident caused by the wife of an American diplomat. She quickly left Britain for the United States after the accident, claiming diplomatic immunity. Biden was “actively engaged in the case”, Johnson said. “As you know, he has his own personal reasons for feeling very deeply about the issue,” he said, referring to Biden losing his first wife and one-year-old daughter in a car accident in 1972. According to Johnson, the difficulty in the case “is that there are limits to what the executive can do with the legal, with the judiciary and the legal system, but both sides are working together.” Source: AFP/BSS AH

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will return to work in Downing Street on Monday, about two weeks after leaving hospital, British media reported Saturday night. Johnson told his cabinet colleagues that he will be back to his normal schedule following his treatment in St. Thomas' Hospital in London for COVID-19. Depending on doctors' advice, Johnson may host Monday's daily Downing Street news conference and possibly take on the new Labour leader Keir Starmer at Prime Minister's Questions on Wednesday, Sky News reported. "He is 'raring to go' and will be back Monday," Sky News noted, citing a Downing Street source. Johnson said on April 12 that he had left the hospital "after a week in which the NHS has saved my life, no question." Johnson, who spent three nights in intensive care in the hospital, spent a week in Chequers, the prime minister's country house after leaving hospital. "He had a Chequers meeting with advisers on Friday and he will be meeting the (British) health secretary, Matt Hancock, and getting back to his normal schedule," Sky News reported. British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, who is also the first secretary of state, had been deputized by Johnson to carry out his duties during his illness. Earlier in the day, the British Department of Health said that a further 813 people had died of COVID-19 as of 1600 GMT on Friday, bringing the death toll to 20,319 and making UK the fifth nation globally to pass the grim milestone of 20,000 deaths, after the United States, Italy, Spain and France. Care home deaths and those in the community are still excluded from the British tally. The UK-wide figure has doubled in less than two weeks. A total of 148,377 people have now tested positive for the virus in the country, a jump of 4,913 in 24 hours. Source: Xinhua/UNB AH

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was moved out of intensive care Thursday at the London hospital where he is being treated for the new coronavirus, as his government told Britons to prepare for several more weeks in lockdown. Johnson had been in the ICU at St. Thomas' Hospital since Monday after his symptoms of COVID-19 worsened. Johnson's office said he was "moved this evening from intensive care back to the ward, where he will receive close monitoring during the early phase of his recovery." It said Johnson was in "extremely good spirits." The British leader tested positive for the new coronavirus two weeks ago and at first had only "mild" symptoms. He was hospitalized Sunday and taken to the ICU a day later. Johnson had been receiving oxygen without being placed on a ventilator. His condition appeared to be improving over the past day or so. Earlier Thursday, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, who has been standing in for the prime minister during key meetings, said Johnson was "making positive steps forward." News of Johnson's improving condition was welcomed across the British political spectrum — and by U.S. President Donald Trump, who tweeted: "Great News: Prime Minister Boris Johnson has just been moved out of Intensive Care. Get well Boris!!!" As Johnson recovered, the government told Britons it was too early to ease restrictions on public activity imposed March 23 to try to slow the spread of the virus. The original restrictions were for three weeks, a period that ends Monday. But after chairing a meeting of the government's crisis committee, COBRA, Raab said no decision on lifting the government's stay-home order and business closures would be made "until evidence clearly shows that we've moved beyond the peak" of the outbreak. Raab said "we're starting to see the impact of the sacrifices we've all made, but the deaths are still rising and we haven't yet reached the peak of the virus." He said the government and its scientific experts would assess the evidence again next week. "We mustn't give the coronavirus a second chance to kill more people and to hurt our country," Raab said at the government's daily news conference. For most people, the coronavirus causes mild to moderate symptoms such as fever and cough. But for some, especially older adults and the infirm, it can cause pneumonia and in some cases death. Almost 8,000 people with the coronavirus have died in British hospitals, according to government figures. While the number of new confirmed cases has begun to plateau, deaths have neared the peaks seen in Italy and Spain, the two countries with the greatest number of fatalities. On Thursday, the U.K. reported 881 new deaths, down from the 938 recorded the day before. Italy recorded a high of 969 deaths on March 27 and Spain 950 deaths on April 2. The figures may not be directly comparable, however. Not all the U.K. deaths reported each day occurred in the preceding 24 hours, and the total only includes deaths in hospitals. U.K. officials have suggested restrictions could be tightened if people flock to parks and outdoor spaces over what is forecast to be a warm, sunny Easter weekend. Currently most parks remain open, and people are allowed to go outside for essential work, shopping and exercise. While most Britons have observed the rules, there have been breaches. Police in the northwest English city of Manchester said they had broken up 660 parties in the city over the past two weeks, including some with DJs and fireworks. In some cases, police have been accused of excessive zeal. Nick Adderley, the chief of Northamptonshire Police in central England, said Thursday that his officers might have to set up road blocks and start "checking the items in (shopping) baskets and trolleys to see whether it's a legitimate, necessary item." Civil liberties group Big Brother Watch called those comments "outrageous" and Adderley later clarified that his officers would not be inspecting people's shopping. Johnson's government was slower than those in some European countries to impose restrictions on daily life in response to the pandemic, leading his critics to accuse him of complacency. Britain also had one of the lowest numbers of hospital beds per capita in Western Europe before the pandemic, with only about 5,000 intensive-care beds nationwide. That number has been increased vastly in the past few weeks, both by converting other areas of hospitals to treat COVID-19 patients and by building temporary facilities, including a 4,000-bed hospital at London's Excel conference center. So far, hospitals have been stretched but not overwhelmed, But some medics say they are struggling and still have not received adequate supplies of personal protective equipment, or PPE "We're still, by and large, wearing the same equipment that we were a few weeks ago," said Dr. Nishant Joshi, an accident and emergency doctor who works in a hospital north of London. "We're getting a higher volume of patients, and they are more unwell and they're probably more contagious," he said. "So it's fair to assume that the PPE that we were kind of making do with, it was a hit and hope situation, a few weeks ago. It's fair to say that it's no longer adequate." James Slack, the prime minister's spokesman, said "we are confident that enough supply is now reaching the front line" and that the government was working urgently to sort out any distribution problems with protective equipment. Source: AP/UNB AH

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was spending a second night in intensive care battling the coronavirus which has infected more than 55,000 across the country and killed nearly 6,200. “He stayed at work for you… now pray at home for him,” The Sun tabloid splashed across its front page Wednesday while the Daily Express said: “Boris ‘will pull through’.” Deputizing for Johnson, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said he was “confident he’ll pull through, because if there’s one thing I know about this prime minister, he’s a fighter and he’ll be back, leading us through this crisis in short order”. In an update Tuesday evening, the prime minister’s spokesman said his “condition is stable and he remains in intensive care for close monitoring.” He earlier said the 55-year-old Conservative leader was receiving “standard oxygen treatment and breathing without any other assistance” and had not required a ventilator. Johnson is the most high-profile government leader to become infected with COVID-19 and messages of support flooded in from across Britain and the world. He was admitted to intensive care on Monday evening after spending Sunday night in hospital following concerns he still had a cough and high temperature 10 days after being diagnosed with COVID-19. His transfer to intensive care is unprecedented for a prime minister during a national emergency. For many people, it brought home the seriousness of the disease that has so far seen 6,159 deaths in Britain, with a record 786 more reported in a daily update on Tuesday. – ‘Work goes on’ – Despite the record daily death toll, there was more encouraging news with the number of new daily cases remaining at a roughly stable 3,643. In a round of broadcast interviews, senior minister Michael Gove insisted the “work of government goes on”. He later said he was now staying at home after a family member displayed mild coronavirus symptoms. Raab chaired the daily coronavirus meeting in the prime minister’s place on Tuesday. “There is a clear plan… the government and the cabinet are working together to implement that plan,” Johnson’s spokesman said when asked if there was a power vacuum in Britain. The country does not have a formal constitutional role of deputy prime minister, and experts said Raab would need the support of the rest of the cabinet to make any big decisions. The most pressing issue is a review expected next week on whether to continue the nationwide lockdown introduced on March 23 to try to stem the spread of COVID-19. – ‘Enormous shock’ – Johnson announced on March 27 that he had coronavirus and went into self-isolation in a flat above his Downing Street office. But on Monday evening he was moved to intensive care in London’s St Thomas’ hospital after his condition worsened. The prime minister has received messages of support from around the world, with US President Donald Trump sending best wishes to his “very good friend” while Russian leader Vladimir Putin said Johnson’s “energy, optimism and sense of humor” would see him through. For some, Johnson’s larger-than-life personality has made his hospitalization all the more shocking. His biographer Andrew Gimson said Johnson always made him feel upbeat, and “now here he is the stricken one”. “This is an enormous shock, completely unfamiliar territory for all those who know him,” he told BBC radio. Experts said it was not uncommon for coronavirus patients to move to intensive care, but said it showed Johnson’s condition was serious. “There is no doubt this turn of events means Boris Johnson is extremely sick,” said Derek Hill, professor of medical imaging at University College London. – Still shaking hands – The British government was criticized for initially refusing to follow other European countries in requiring people to stay home as the virus spread rapidly across the globe. Johnson himself said in early March that he was still shaking hands with people. Two weeks ago, he ordered a nationwide lockdown, but parliament continued to sit for several days after and Westminster became a hotspot for the virus. Health Secretary Matt Hancock and the heir to the throne, Prince Charles, have both been infected, although they have since recovered. Johnson, who has been prime minister only since July last year, is not known to have any underlying health issues, although he has struggled with his weight. Johnson’s pregnant partner, Carrie Symonds, moved out of Downing Street after some staff fell ill. But she said on Saturday she had just spent a week in bed with symptoms, although she has not been tested. Source: AFP/BSS AH

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was admitted to a hospital Sunday for tests, his office said, because he is still suffering symptoms, 10 days after he was diagnosed with COVID-19. Johnson's office said the admission to an undisclosed London hospital came on the advice of his doctor and was not an emergency. The prime minister's Downing St. office said it was a "precautionary step" and Johnson remains in charge of the government. Johnson, 55, has been quarantined in his Downing St. residence since being diagnosed with COVID-19 on March 26 — the first known head of government to fall ill with the virus. Johnson has continued to preside at daily meetings on Britain's response to the outbreak and has released several video messages during his 10 days in isolation. In a message Friday, a flushed and red-eyed Johnson said he said he was feeling better but still had a fever. The virus causes mild to moderate symptoms in most people, but for some, especially older adults and the infirm, it can cause pneumonia and lead to death. U.S. President Donald Trump offered encouragement to Johnson as he opened a White House briefing on the pandemic Sunday. "All Americans are praying for him," Trump said. Johnson has received medical advice remotely during his illness, but going to a hospital means doctors can see him in person. Dr. Rupert Beale, a group leader of the cell biology of infection lab at the Francis Crick Institute for biomedical studies, said doctors would likely "be monitoring important vital signs such as oxygen saturations," as well as performing blood tests, assessing Johnson's organ function and possibly performing a CT scan on his chest to assess his lungs. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, who has been designated to take over if Johnson becomes incapacitated, is set to lead the government's coronavirus meeting Monday. Johnson's fiancée, Carrie Symonds, 32, revealed Saturday that she spent a week in bed with coronavirus symptoms, though she wasn't tested. Symonds, who is pregnant, said she was now "on the mend." She has not been staying with the prime minister in Downing St. since his diagnosis. The government said Sunday that almost 48,000 people have been confirmed to have COVID-19 in the U.K., and 4,934 have died. Johnson replaced Theresa May as Conservative prime minister in July and won a resounding election victory in December on a promise to complete Britain's exit from the European Union. But Brexit, which became official Jan. 31, has been overshadowed by the coronavirus pandemic sweeping the globe. Johnson's government was slower than those in some European countries to impose restrictions on daily life in response to the pandemic, leading his critics to accuse him of complacency. He imposed an effective nationwide lockdown March 23, but his government remains under huge pressure to boost the country's number of hospital beds and ventilators and to expand testing for the virus. London has been the center of the outbreak in the U.K., and politicians and civil servants have been hit hard. Several other members of Johnson's government have also tested positive for the virus, including Health Secretary Matt Hancock and junior Health Minister Nadine Dorries. Both have recovered. News of Johnson's admission to hospital came an hour after Queen Elizabeth II made a rare televised address to the nation, in which she urged Britons to remain "united and resolute" in the fight against the virus. "We will succeed — and that success will belong to every one of us," the 93-year-old monarch said, drawing parallels to the struggle of World War II. "We should take comfort that while we may have more still to endure, better days will return: we will be with our friends again; we will be with our families again; we will meet again," she said. Source: AP/UNB AH

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has tested positive for coronavirus. Mr Johnson said he developed mild symptoms over the past 24 hours, including a temperature and cough. He said he will now self-isolate in No 10 but will "continue to lead the government's response via video-conference as we fight this virus". Mr Johnson was last seen on Thursday night, as he clapped outside No 10 as part of a nationwide gesture to thank NHS staff. In a video on his Twitter account, Mr Johnson, 55, said: "I'm working from home and self-isolating and that's entirely the right thing to do. "But, be in no doubt that I can continue thanks to the wizardry of modern technology to communicate with all my top team to lead the national fightback against coronavirus. "I want to thank everybody involved and, of course, our amazing NHS staff." "So thank you to everybody who's doing what I'm doing, working from home to stop the spread of the virus from household to household," he added. "That's the way we're going to win." Mr Johnson was tested at No 10 by NHS staff, on the personal advice of England's chief medical officer, Professor Chris Whitty, Downing Street said. He will still be in charge of the government's handling of the crisis, the statement added. Earlier this week, the prime minister's spokesman said if Mr Johnson was unwell and unable to work, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, as the first secretary of state, was the selected minister to stand in. It is not known whether Mr Johnson will still be living with his fiancee Carrie Symonds, who is several months pregnant. Pregnant women are advised to be particularly stringent when following social distancing advice, and minimise social contact for up to 12 weeks. There are more than 11,600 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the UK, and 578 people have died. It comes after the Prince of Wales also tested positive for the virus earlier this week. Prince Charles, 71, is to be displaying mild symptoms "but otherwise remains in good health", a spokesman said. Source: BBC AH