Selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership. These are the seven Nolan principles of public life, which apply to everyone elected to public office, as well as the civil servants who work for us all.
Until last week, these principles were clearly stated in the Prime Minister’s introduction to the Ministerial Code. In the aftermath of the Sue Gray report, Boris Johnson has relegated these to an annex.
The changes the Prime Minister has made to the Ministerial Code water down significantly the consequences of lying and misleading the public, of handing contracts to pals and donors. It makes it easier for a scandal-hit government to cling to office.
He has also stymied the powers of the Independent Advisor on the Ministerial Code, who will need the permission of the Prime Minister to launch an investigation – not that independent, then.
Few people watching were convinced by Boris Johnson when he came to give his response to the Sue Gray report. He has failed even to win over his own Conservative colleagues, as letters of no confidence have been dripping in one by one to the Chair of the 1922 Committee.
Whether one of these will belong to Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross, whose no-confidence letter has been in and out more times than the hokey-cokey, remains to be seen.
Throughout all of this sorry saga, the Prime Minister’s apologies have rung hollow. Often, Boris Johnson has looked more like a wean who has been found with his face smeared in chocolate, denying the empty biscuit packet had anything to do with him, saying sorry because he got caught rather than because he truly believed he’d done anything wrong.
The Sue Gray report was shocking in the blatant attitude to breaking the rules; reports of excessive drinking to the point of being sick and fighting in 10 Downing Street, security guards being ignored when they tried to break up the parties, and cleaners being left to clear up the aftermath.
All in the very same building where the Prime Minister lived, where he and his ministers stood at daily press conferences telling us we must follow the coronavirus rules under pain of fine and arrest.
Let’s not forget that members of the public got into bother for sitting on a park bench or taking a walk in the wrong place; students were thrown out of university for breaching rules, and public officials resigned in disgrace for what by comparison to the Sue Gray revelations seem like minor infractions.
For Boris Johnson to say now that attending boozy leaving parties for officials was right and appropriate is a huge insult to every person who never got the chance to say their final farewell to loved ones who died during lockdown. I’m certain many would have risked a fine or even arrest to have had that time together, but they followed the rules in good faith.
Those who suffered loss and loneliness during the pandemic will not forget or forgive, and to water down the consequences of Ministerial rule-breaking is an insult to all of us; the Prime Minister must finally take responsibility and resign.
COST OF LIVING LET DOWN
Barely two months have passed from the Spring Statement and the Chancellor has had to come back to Parliament with an increased support package for people struggling with the cost-of-living crisis. It felt inevitable. It doesn’t take a cynic to guess why it came the day after the Sue Gray report was published, but it really does stick in the craw.
Households have been struggling with energy prices for many months. It was clear from the second it was announced that the Chancellor’s “heat now, pay later” £200 loan-not-loan was inadequate and unworkable, and I’m glad to hear that this is being converted to a more generous grant as my SNP colleagues and I have called for.
Yet, the Chancellor’s announcement still doesn’t recognise that those with pre-payment meters are facing these price hikes right now.
Standing charges, outstanding debt on meters, and energy inefficient homes mean people already can’t afford to top up. Stories of people self-disconnecting are growing, and things are going to get significantly worse as the energy cap rises.
The Fuelbank Foundation estimate that this winter, the average prepayment customer will need to top up their meter by an eyewatering £391 per month.
The Chancellor needs to get support to pre-payment customers urgently, not wait until later in the year.
GUN TRAGEDIES REQUIRE ACTION
The atrocity at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas has left me heartbroken and angry – more innocent lives brutally cut short by an obsession with firearms which I find completely incomprehensible. My thoughts and solidarity are with all the families affected; I hope action will finally come from the US Government.
