In his last speech to the British Parliament as prime minister, Boris Johnson said goodbye this Wednesday (20) with a round of applause from members of his party – with the exception of his predecessor, Theresa May -, boos from opponents and an enigmatic sentence: “Mission largely accomplished… Hasta la vista, baby.”
Boris was forced to step down earlier this month after a rebellion by allies, a move in the wake of scandals that saw the Conservative Party decide that it was no longer in a position to keep him at the head of the country after nearly three turbulent years at the helm. UK.
In addition to the impact phrase he took from the American film “Terminator 2”, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, the prime minister also highlighted his government’s response to the Covid pandemic and the support offered to Ukraine against Russia. “We helped, I helped, to get this country through a pandemic and save another country from barbarism. And frankly, that’s enough for the moment. Mission largely accomplished,” Boris said. “I want to thank everyone here and hasta la vista, baby.”
Two weeks ago, some of those who cheered the outgoing prime minister on Wednesday left the government with strong criticism of Boris and calls for him to step down. Opponents were not part of the celebration – instead, they took advantage of the Q&A session to ask him about a range of policies, from the still unfinished Brexit process to the response to the rising cost of living for Britons.
With an eye on the 2024 election, Labor leader Keir Starmer sought to highlight the divide among Conservatives by listing criticism of government decisions made by candidates to replace Boris. “He came down from his gold-wallpapered bunker for the last time to tell us everything is fine. I will miss that illusion,” he said, a statement the prime minister called “completely satirical.”
The premier’s farewell speech also offered advice to his soon-to-be-selected successor: stay close to the United States, support Ukraine, cut taxes and deregulate, don’t let the finance ministry constrain ambitious projects and pay attention to the electorate.
“Remember, above all, it’s not Twitter that counts, it’s the people who put us here,” he said.
