Johnson Accused Of Ministerial Code Breach Over No.10 Campaign Video

Labour writes to top civil servant to say PM's publicly-funded base should be off limits for Tory electioneering.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson
Prime Minister Boris Johnson
ASSOCIATED PRESS

Boris Johnson stands accused of breaching official rules for ministers after using Number 10 Downing Street for a Tory election video.

Footage of the PM walking around his official residence is featured in a party ad asking people to vote Conservative at the December 12 election.

But the Johnson’s bid to drum up support could have landed him in trouble as opponents claim he has broken the Ministerial Code.

The rules state that buildings and resources provided to the government by the taxpayer should be used by minister to carry out their duties, not for party political purposes.

Ex-Labour MP Wes Streeting has written to top civil servant Mark Sedwill asking for him to investigate the matter.

He told HuffPost UK: “The Conservatives are breaking all the usual rules when it comes to abusing taxpayer funded property and communications channels.

“The cabinet secretary needs to get a grip.”

Wes Streeting
Wes Streeting
Wes Streeting
Wes Streeting
Wes Streeting
Wes Streeting

It is not the first time since parties agreed a snap general election should take place that Johnson has faced claims his government misused public resources.

It was also reported that Johnson’s chancellor, Sajid Javid, had ordered a Treasury analysis of Labour’s policies, but the move was halted after complaints from Jeremy Corbyn’s team.

Johnson and no-deal minister Michael Gove were also accused of breaching the ministerial code after using public funds for a no-deal Brexit ad campaign claimed to be “nakedly partisan”.

Billboards, mugs and newspaper adverts warning people to ‘Get Ready For Brexit’ on October 31 were green-lighted by the PM and cabinet minister Gove and paid for with £100m of public cash.

But a cross-party group of MPs, led by Lib Dem leader Jo Swinson, claimed the campaign was based something which could not be government policy backbenchers made a Halloween no-deal Brexit illegal.

HuffPost UK has contacted Number 10 for comment on the video.

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