A serving Tory Minister has hit out at Boris Johnson being wheeled out in one of the final desperate acts of Rishi Sunak’s election campaign.
Just moments after the Tory leader hailed a “united” Conservative family, Transport Minister Huw Merriman publicly criticised the surprise appearance of disgraced ex-PM.
Posting on X, he said: “Given my refusal to support this man and to then welcome a change from his leadership when the wheels of public and Parliamentary tolerance finally fell off, I’m not sure how this pitches for my vote.”
His remarks came as Mr Johnson, who was ousted from office in 2022, appeared at a Tory election rally in central London. The former Conservative leader told supporters: “When Rishi asked me to come and help, of course I couldn’t say no… We’re all here because we love our country.”
Making a reference to “other parties” allegedly “full of Kremlin crawlers”, Mr Johnson said: “Don’t let the Putinistas deliver the Corbynistas. Don’t let Putin’s pet parrots give this entire country psittacosis – which is a disease you get by the way from cosying up to pet parrots.”
He also urged people to vote Tory just hours after the pollster Survation found Keir Starmer is on course to win more seats than ex-Labour PM Tony Blair in 1997. Mr Johnson was invited to speak by Mr Sunak, who resigned from his Government as Chancellor in 2022 with a brutal assault on his leadership.
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Manchester Evening News)
Mr Johnson later stood down as an MP in disgrace in 2023 – and ahead of the publication of a damning report that found he lied about the Partygate scandal.
Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader Daisy Cooper also attacked Mr Johnson’s return, saying: “This is an insult to everyone who made heartbreaking sacrifices during the pandemic. Rishi Sunak has reached a desperate new low, turning to a man who discredited the office of Prime Minister and lied to the country time after time.”
The Labour Shadow Minister Chris Bryant added: “He resigned rather than face the music for lying to Parliament. He thought the rules didn’t apply to him but enforced them on others. He’s not exactly an asset.”