London, Thanasis Gavos
Boris Johnson has issued a warrant for an investigation by a former secretary of state into Islamophobia at the heart of the British government, in a week that some political commentators may be judging on his political future.
The inquiry to be conducted by the cabinet’s office concerns MP Nusrat Ghani’s statement to the Sunday Times that her religion was given as the reason for her removal from the post of Deputy Minister of Transport in the February 2020 reshuffle.
Two years earlier, Ms. Ghani had been the first Muslim politician in Britain to address lawmakers from the House of Commons as secretary of state.
In an interview, she claimed that a government official in charge of party discipline had told her during the reshuffle that her “Muslimness” had “risen to prominence” and that some of her colleagues in the government “felt uncomfortable” they have with them a Muslim female deputy minister.
In a rare move, the head of the governing body responsible for maintaining party discipline, Mark Spencer, said he was the one who had this conversation with Ms Ghani two years ago, but denied it as “completely false” and ” defamatory ”her complaints.
She noted that when the former deputy minister had initially made the same complaint, she had been offered to make a formal complaint to the competent body of the Conservative Party, a proposal that Ms. Ghani had rejected.
As it later became known, the proposal for a formal complaint was made to the MP in September 2020 by Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Ms. Ghani clarified that she had replied to the Prime Minister that this was not an issue that concerned the party but the government and that is why she considered that a party inquiry would not be the appropriate answer.
Although Boris Johnson reportedly told her at the time that he could not intervene, he today ordered an intergovernmental investigation into the case.
The inquiry was called late Sunday by two top Muslim ministers in the Johnson administration, Education Minister Nadim Zahawi and Health Minister Sajid Javid.
The new episode in the complaints about the mode of operation and the lack of respect for principles and rules by the Johnson government comes at the beginning of a critical week for the British Prime Minister.
Around the middle of the week, the conclusion of the investigation carried out by the senior state official Sue Gray for the reported parties in Downing Street is expected to be published in the middle of a lockdown.
Ms. Gray, the second secretary general in the cabinet, has reportedly received testimony from Downing Street security police in recent days and is likely to receive testimony today from former Boris Johnson senior adviser Dominic Cummings, who has made revelations about the parties. It also has information on the arrival and departure times of all Downing Street employees, as well as the Prime Minister’s official agenda.
Ms Gray has also been reported to be investigating allegations of partying or other gatherings that violated the lockdown rules at the Prime Minister’s apartment at No. 11 Downing Street, which two close friends reportedly visited frequently despite a ban. of Carrie Simonts who worked in the Prime Minister’s Office.
Also on the third open front of complaints for the government, Conservative MP William Rag is expected to testify today to the police about the complaint he has made that the government officials in charge of party discipline have intimidated or even blackmailed party MPs who have challenged the prime minister. because of the ‘partygate’.
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