LONDON: British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak became embroiled in a public war of words with ex-premier Boris Johnson on Monday, in a spat over the latter’s controversial awards to his important political allies.
The long-awaited political honours list of Boris Johnson was published on Friday, rewarding Brexit die-hards and even those people who are implicated in the “Partygate” scandal that contributed to his collapse last year.
But its failure to feature many potential names prompted accusations from Johnson’s camp of meddling from PM Rishi Sunak and Downing Street before it was submitted, AFP reported.
Sunak’s spokesman told journalists that it was completely untrue that the prime minister or other officials removed names from Boris Johnson’s list before it was submitted in a House of Lords vetting committee.
The PM Sunak himself then criticized Johnson, accusing him of asking him to nullify the committee, which rejected 8 of his nominations to the upper chamber of parliament.
The prime minister said at a tech conference in London that Boris Johnson asked him to do something that he was not prepared to do, because he did not think it was right.
Sunak added that Johnson asked him either overrule the Holac committee or to make promises to people.
Former British PM hits back
Johnson furiously hit back in a statement, and said that Sunak was talking rubbish.
His resignation honours list has sparked a fresh factional war in the ruling Conservative party.
Sunak has tried to reunite the party, which was riven by ideological conflicts over Brexit until Boris Johnson’s landslide general election win in 2019.
