accountability

Boris Johnson let off the hook over ‘clear breach of rules’ over Daily Mail column

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https://leftfootforward.org/2023/09/boris-johnson-let-off-the-hook-over-clear-breach-of-rules-over-daily-mail-column/

Image of Elmo and former Prime Minister Tory idiot Boris Johnson
Image of Elmo (left) and former Prime Minister Tory idiot Boris Johnson (right)

‘Here we go again. There is no real democracy without real accountability.’

The former prime minister will not face action despite having been found to have committed a ‘clear and unambiguous breach’ of the rules over his column in the Daily Mail.

Johnson had sparked a backlash when, in June, he gave Parliament’s anti-corruption watchdog just 30 minutes’ notice that he had taken a job as a columnist for the Daily Mail.

Under Parliamentary rules, former ministers are forbidden to take up new appointments, prior to receiving advice from the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (Acoba). They must consult Acoba on any jobs they take within two years of leaving government.

Lord Pickles, Acoba chairman, said Johnson had ‘clearly flouted the rules,’ but said it was up to the government to take action. Pickles had also called for urgent reform of the ‘good chaps’ approach to ministerial jobs.

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https://leftfootforward.org/2023/09/boris-johnson-let-off-the-hook-over-clear-breach-of-rules-over-daily-mail-column/

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OpenDemocracy starting legal action to defeat Boris Johnson’s UK government evasions of scrutiny and accountability

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Why we’re taking the UK government to court to protect Freedom of Information

OpenDemocracy is taking legal action over the Cabinet Office’s ‘Orwellian’ Clearing House that vets FOI requests and could breach data protection law

openDemocracy is going to court to force the British government to release full details about its controversial ‘Clearing House’– a secretive unit inside Michael Gove’s Cabinet Office, which is accused of blocking sensitive Freedom of Information (FOI) requests.

In November, openDemocracy revealed that the ‘Orwellian’ unit in the Cabinet Office was vetting FOI requests and sharing personal information about journalists across Whitehall in ways that experts believe could be in breach of the law.

The Cabinet Office has refused to disclose full details about the Clearing House operation under the Freedom of Information Act – despite the FOI watchdog, the Information Commissioner’s Office, ordering it to do so in July 2020.

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Now openDemocracy is going to an information tribunal in a bid to force transparency on the Clearing House.

On Thursday 29 April, a first-tier tribunal will hear the case. openDemocracy has instructed Leigh Day, a firm of public law specialists, to argue its case and has received support from across the British media.

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Continue ReadingOpenDemocracy starting legal action to defeat Boris Johnson’s UK government evasions of scrutiny and accountability