Boris Johnson ordered to apologise to Parliament for failing to declare earnings

Matt Cardy / Stringer

Boris Johnson

• Boris Johnson ordered to apologise after failing to declare over £50,000 in earnings to parliament.
• The Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards finds that the errors were not inadvertant.
• Johnson failed on nine occasions to make declarations within the rules.
• The revelation is embarrassing as allies of Johnson prepare to back him in a potential leadership challenge against Theresa May.

Boris Johnson has been ordered to apologise to the House of Commons after failing to report his earnings to the House authorities on nine occasions.

The former Foreign Secretary repeatedly failed to register his earnings within the time period required under parliamentary rules, the Commissioner for Standards said in a statement.

"The nine late registrations made by the Member at the time I began my inquiry had a total value of £52,722.80 which represents almost seventy per cent of a Member's salary," the Commisisoner said.

They added that the breach of the rules did not appear to be inadvertent.

"The number of late registrations suggested a lack of attention to the House's requirements, rather than inadvertent error. In light of that, this matter could not be concluded by way of the rectification procedure," they said.

They added: "Although Mr Johnson has told me that the late registrations were 'inadvertent', the fact that the late registrations had happened on four separate occasions and involved nine payments, suggests a lack of attention to, or regard for, the House's requirements rather than oversight or inadvertent error."

The revelation is embarrassing for Johnson as allies prepare for him to challenge May should there be a vote of no confidence in her leadership in the coming months.

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