Rebel alliance plots to impeach Boris Johnson

PM facing unprecedented motion by opponents over his unlawful suspension of parliament.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his girlfriend Carrie Symonds arrive at the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester on September 28. Picture: Getty images

Boris Johnson is facing impeachment proceedings under proposals being considered by opposition parties in the wake of last week’s Supreme Court ruling.

Plans to impeach the prime minister were put forward at a meeting of the parties on Thursday and are among options being explored to censure Johnson for the unlawful suspension of parliament.

The motion, which has been drafted by Plaid Cymru, could be tabled as early as this week, disrupting Johnson’s first Conservative Party conference as leader.

The development comes days after the US Democratic Party began a formal impeachment inquiry into Donald Trump over allegations that the American president pressured a foreign power to damage a political rival, raising the prospect that leaders on either side of the Atlantic could be removed from power.

The process would mean the House of Commons voting on an impeachment motion, which, if passed, could lead to prosecution and trial. Historically, trials have taken place in Westminster Hall on the parliamentary estate.

Though impeachment was once a common sanction against abuse of power by the executive, the last attempt to persuade the Commons to use it was in 1848, when it was alleged that Lord Palmerston, while foreign minister, had entered into a secret treaty with Russia.

The proposal would involve a committee of MPs constituted to report on the disciplinary mechanisms, including impeachment, available to parliament.

Specifically, the MPs would be asked “whether there exist sufficient grounds to impeach the Rt Hon Boris Johnson on charges of gross misconduct in relation to the unlawful prorogation of parliament” as well as his threat to break the law by failing to comply with the Benn Act, which aims to stop a no-deal Brexit on October 31. The report would come after October 19, the date by which the Benn Act requires Johnson to seek an extension of article 50 to delay Brexit.

No UK prime minister has yet been impeached, but Johnson himself supported a bid to impeach Tony Blair when he was prime minister. In a column for The Daily Telegraph, Johnson wrote in 2004: “He treated parliament and the public with contempt, and that is why he deserves to be impeached.”

Labour and the Liberal Democrats are “open-minded” about the impeachment motion and will meet again tomorrow (Monday) to discuss it along with other options, which include kicking Johnson out of the Commons and cutting his salary.

Last week, shadow digital minister Liam Byrne tweeted: “Impeachment of Boris Johnson should begin immediately.” A Lib Dem source said: “Clearly, no prime minister is above the law and this would be one way of making sure he is held to account.”

In an article for the Sunday Times’s website, Plaid Cymru’s Westminster leader, Liz Saville Roberts, writes: “I admit, the idea of impeaching a prime minister seems extraordinary - unique even. But we are in extraordinary times.

“I have made clear to opposition leaders that Boris Johnson cannot be allowed to get away scot-free with breaking the law by shutting down parliament.”

She adds: “Motions are being discussed between opposition parties and House of Commons officials that would see a salary cut, bans from parliament and other disciplinary measures, alongside a motion to explore impeachment.”

The intervention comes amid claims by the Scottish National Party (SNP) there could be a vote of no confidence in the government within days with the aim of replacing Johnson as prime minister.

After talks among opposition party leaders at Westminster last week, Stewart Hosie, the SNP’s deputy Commons leader, said a no-confidence vote was now the “only game in town” in ensuring Johnson did not take Britain out of the EU on October 31 without a deal.

The Sunday Times