Johnson’s party faces scrutiny of hospital oath as scandals escalate

by James Luden | bloomberg

The UK government’s official expenditure watchdog is planning an investigation into Boris Johnson’s election promises to build 40 new hospitals, an unexpected investigation set to add to the troubles surrounding the prime minister.

The National Audit Office sent a letter to the shadow health secretary, Wes Streeting, saying it would conduct a “value for money review” in the program, the Conservative Party’s manifesto for the winning 2019 election campaign. an important part of.

The Guardian reported that most of the investigation is set to see what the manifesto described as “new” – some of the projects under investigation include a new wing of an existing hospital or renovation of an existing site.

Streeting confirmed the investigation on Saturday, tweeting: “The only place these hospitals are in the prime minister’s imagination.”

The investigation is mounting trouble for Johnson – his party lost two special elections last month, another sign that voters are turning against a politician who has built a reputation among his party’s disciples as a vote-winner. . A YouGov poll published on Saturday indicated the Conservative Party would suffer significant losses in so-called Blue Wall seats if elections were to be held now.

Over the weekend, the political focus was on Johnson’s delay in suspending an aide over an incident involving excessive drinking and misconduct. Chris Pincher had resigned as deputy chief whip – one of the parliamentary party’s most senior promoters – nearly 24 hours before Johnson took over.

Newspapers including the Telegraph, usually staunch supporters of the government, noted that the prime minister was under increasing pressure to explain what he knew about Pincher and when. Pincher resigned from the whip office in 2017 after another incident was reported. For now, Pincher will remain in parliament as an independent parliamentarian.