Stand down Boris | Rebecca Jane column

I nearly stayed away from recent events, but I’ve had enough of witnessing the sacrifices the people of our county have made whilst Boris ‘accidentally' stumbled into his back garden when a full blown cheese and wine event was being held during the middle of the pandemic.

For the purpose of this article, said gathering will now be referred to as ‘#PartyGate’.

The first question I’m asking Boris. Where is your pride? The nation is screaming for you to step down, but it seems that your ego is standing in the way.

I went to law school, and public law taught us the ‘ministerial code’. Boris has forgotten what that is, so, if you’re reading Boris, let me remind you!

The ministerial code is a set of rules and principles issued by our prime minister, outlining the standard our government officials should follow. An overarching seven principles of public life, a set of ethical standards.

These principles apply to all government ministers, and who is at the top of that tree? Boris. Meaning that there is no one who should comply more than the man himself.

What are these magical seven principles that Boris has forgotten?

Selflessness. Well, if you ask me, that one went out of the window when Boris and Carrie parted with £840 per roll of wallpaper for Downing Street. With so many people in poverty, and fabulous wallpapers available for £20 per roll, their behaviour was atrocious and selfish. Even if it was their own money, I would still claim they have lost their mind. No one requires wallpaper so expensive!

Integrity. Public ministers should not financially gain or materially benefit. It is only my personal opinion, but it would appear contracts for providing PPE and other requirements during the pandemic were given to people remarkably close to the government. With Boris overseeing this whole farce, I believe his integrity diminished long ago. Coupled with the fact he sent the whole country on a public rollercoaster of indecisions through the last two years. Does he actually have any integrity left?

Objectivity. Make decisions fairly, without bias and on their own merit. See point above!

For these next four points, I have done an executive summary of all the newspapers in the last week to present you with apparent facts.

Openness. Boris gave the ‘go-ahead’ for the party conducted in Downing Street whilst our nation was in complete lockdown. He failed to admit this, during various press conferences and in the House of Commons. Over 100 people were invited by email to #PartyGate

Honesty. Boris has directly lied, on repeated occasions not only about #PartyGate number one, but various Downing Street gatherings during lockdown. In December last year, they even had a dedicated alcohol fridge shipped in for said ‘work events’. Boris apologised in the House of Commons last week, claiming he knew nothing of the gathering taking place in his own backyard. Once the emails to over 100 staff members came out, from Boris’ secretary, he changed his tune and claimed he didn’t realise the gathering was not allowed. Has Boris even made his mind up which lie he is sticking to yet?!

Leadership. Boris has claimed he ‘did not know the gatherings were illegal and alcoholic beverages were not allowed’. How on earth can we take lead from this man? If he doesn’t even understand his own rules (read: ‘selective behaviour’) how are the public expected to know? Various ministers asked Boris if the event should continue and if it was allowed. He gave his approval. OUR country’s leader, the man who lied in the House of Commons just one week ago. If he lied about something so trivial, what else has he lied about?

Accountability. Boris has made an absolute series of catastrophic decisions and errors during the time of Covid-19. The number one rule of the ministerial code, when you mess up, you take accountability and you step down! Matt Hancock took his time, but he still did it! At this point, Boris has turned into the country’s most glorified squatter. No one really wants him there, but he’s still hanging in until the bailiffs turn up! Embarrassing.

We get it Boris, honestly we do. It must be hard to sacrifice your £800 a roll wallpaper, bought for you by the taxpayers of this country.

It will be hard to step down from your lovely annual salary and most of all, it will be like a sharp stab in the neck to give up the sheer amount of power currently at your fingertips, but it is time.

You have lied, you have deceived our people, you have made an entire mockery of our government. Make one decent decision in your tenure of 10 Downing Street, and stand down immediately.

For my final note today. I want to leave you with people that matter. I asked the wonderful people who converse with me on social media to send me exactly what they were doing at the time when Boris stumbled into his back garden, surrounded by over 40 government ministers with their buckets of wine and cheese.

A time when our country had begun a journey into trauma, anxiety and lockdowns that will take us years to recover from….

Tom: ‘I was sneaking into my Dad’s house to see him before he died of cancer.’

Jennifer: ‘I was struggling alone with postnatal depression and not seeing anyone’

Eva: ‘I was having a breakdown and planning my suicide. I was at rock bottom.’

Laura: ‘I was alone, sticking to the rules HE set’

Jan: ‘I was attending my pregnancy scans alone and unwell’

Kirsty: ‘I was home, schooling my 5 year old, believing I was a failure’

James: ‘I isolated for 9 months because I was scared the virus was killing everyone’

Paul: ‘I sat alone at my grandmother's funeral’

Emma: ‘I was suffered with being locked down, struggling with bulimia and depression’

Walton: ‘I relied on my grandmother’s carers for updates until she passed and I didn’t get to see her for 12 months.’

Jackie: ‘I was at work, looking after vulnerable and key worker children, whilst trying to avoid everyone’

Madeline: ‘I was alone, looking after my mentally unwell child’

THIS is what the good people of our local county were sacrificing, because you, Boris Johnson, told them they had to ‘do their part’ and ‘protect our NHS’... you’re a hypocrite. Stand down.