WESTMINSTER parliament should be recalled so that Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak can resign and be held to account by MPs, Ian Blackford has said.
The SNP Westminster leader also said that the easter recess should be interrupted so that the Prime Minister and Chancellor have the opportunity to give resignation statements in the wake of revelations that they were both given fines for Covid-19 rule breaches.
Blackford made the call in a letter to the Prime Minister shortly after the news regarding Fixed Penalty Notice’s broke.
READ MORE: Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak to be fined over partygate scandal
The SNP MP wrote: “Dear Prime Minister, It is time for you to resign.
“The Metropolitan Police have concluded that during the pandemic lockdowns, you and your colleagues were blatantly breaching the very rules you wrote. While the public were trying to protect one another by obeying the rules, you and your colleagues partied in Downing Street.
“What’s worse, is that faced with these allegations, you have repeatedly misled Parliament and lied to the public.
“You said there weren’t any parties - you said this in parliament.”
Parliament must now be recalled so Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak can give their resignation statements, and MPs can hold this Tory government to account. pic.twitter.com/hSKncop9dW
— Ian Blackford 🇺🇦🏴 (@Ianblackford_MP) April 12, 2022
Blackford added that the truth has now “finally been exposed”.
He added: “The police have not alone uncovered that there were multiple parties, but have found that Downing Street was the venue for some of the bigget lockdown breaches during the entire pandemic, leading the Metropolitan Police to issue a staggering number of fines for rule breaking.
“As Prime Minister, you were at some of these parties, and you are ultimately responsible for them all.
“You can’t hide behind the lies that have kept you in office any longer.
READ MORE: Eight times Boris Johnson denied breaking his own Covid rules
“The facts are clear, the police fines will be issued and your period as Prime Minister is over.”
Blackford then pointed out that Johnson was the first sitting PM in history to have been “officially found to have broken the law”, adding that he should “do the right thing and resign”.
Blackford ended the letter setting out the process for the PM to quit.
This includes; requesting the speaker recall Parliament on Thursday April 14, sending a statement to the House of Commons confirming the PM’s resignation, that Rishi Sunak should also resign and produce a resignation statement, and that the Sue Gray report should be published in full.
Blackford signed off: “I look forward to you enacting these steps and the public looks forward to your resignation.”
It comes as First Minister Nicola Sturgeon led calls from opposition politicians for Johnson and Sunak to stand down.
Meanwhile, Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross refused to call on the PM or Chancellor to resign, although he admitted their “behaviour was unacceptable”.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel