5 godzin temu
Kemi Badenoch (Conservative) has defended Boris Johnson over allegations he profited from contacts made while in office. The Conservative Party leader said people "should be able to earn money when they leave politics" during an interview with GB News.
Her comments follow Guardian reports based on leaked data suggesting Johnson exploited contacts and influence gained during his time as prime minister. The allegations include claims he lobbied a senior Saudi official he met while in office to share a pitch with crown prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Johnson is also alleged to have been paid more than £200,000 after meeting Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. The reports prompted the Liberal Democrats to call for the former prime minister to lose access to his public duty allowance.
Badenoch hits back at critics
Badenoch accused The Guardian of "distracting from what Labour are doing, which is making a mess of our economy". She defended Johnson's right to earn money after leaving political office.
The reports are based on files obtained by Distributed Denial of Secrets, a US-registered non-profit organisation that archives leaked and hacked documents. The files mostly concern the period from September 2022 to July 2024, along with some documents from Johnson's time in Downing Street.
Questions have been raised about whether Johnson's company, the Office of Boris Johnson, blurred the lines of how his ex-prime minister's allowance was used. The public duty costs allowance provides former prime ministers up to £115,000 annually to cover office and secretarial costs arising from public duties, but cannot be used for private or commercial activities.
Investigation potential grows
The Advisory Committee on Business Appointments said it could investigate Johnson over the reports. An Acoba spokeswoman confirmed: "We are currently looking at the information reported in The Guardian."
The committee has already investigated and found breaches of business appointment rules by Johnson. "Where there is evidence of further non-compliance, we will investigate," the spokeswoman added.
The PA news agency was unable to contact Johnson's office for comment on the allegations.
Sources used: "PA Media" Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.
