Gove ‘disagrees’ with Privileges Committee conclusion and will abstain from vote

The Levelling Up Secretary refused to be drawn on whether he believed Rishi Sunak should back the report.

Michael Gove speaks to the media outside BBC Broadcasting House (Lucy North/PA) (PA Wire)

Cabinet minister Michael Gove has said he will abstain from voting on the report which found Boris Johnson lied to MPs over partygate because he disagrees with its conclusion.

The Levelling Up Secretary claimed the Privileges Committee’s finding that the former prime minister should have been suspended from Parliament for 90 days was “not merited”.

He refused to be drawn on whether he believed the Prime Minister should back the report, saying it is a matter for “each individual” MP to decide for themselves.

However, former Conservative minister Justine Greening urged MPs to “get behind” the committee’s work and recognise that political leaders cannot be “allowed to get away with” misleading the Commons.

The report recommended that Mr Johnson should have faced a 90-day suspension for committing repeated contempts of Parliament had he not already resigned in advance of its judgment.

Though he cannot now serve that penalty, the cross-party group of MPs chaired by Labour’s Harriet Harman also recommended that he should be banned from holding a pass to access Parliament following a series of offences.

Speaking to the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg show, he said: “I don’t agree with the conclusion, however, personally … the decision to impose a 90-day penalty is not merited by the evidence that the committee has put forward.”

If the report is not opposed then it could just be nodded through the Commons, saving Mr Sunak from having to choose between further riling Mr Johnson by backing it, voting against the report and risking public anger, or avoiding the action altogether and facing allegations of being weak.

Tory MPs will be given a free vote, but allies of Mr Johnson warned they could face battles with their local parties to remain as candidates at the next election if they back the motion.

The sanctions proposed by the Tory-majority committee are expected to pass regardless, with only a relatively small group of Johnson loyalists expected to oppose the report’s findings.

Mr Johnson was privately urging his supporters not to oppose it, arguing the sanctions have no practical effect.

Tory backbencher Bill Cash wrote in the Sunday Telegraph he would vote against the report, but former justice secretary Sir Robert Buckland MP told Times Radio he would be endorsing it if it came to a division, highlighting the importance of “the overall authority and standing of the House of Commons”.

Former Conservative minister Justine Greening said it was important for the public to see that “due process has been followed” and MPs are actively supporting its outcome.

It's important to recognise that MPs, and especially prime ministers, cannot mislead Parliament and be allowed to get away with that

Former Tory minister Justine Greening

“I think it would be easier to persuade the public that we’ve moved on from it if MPs simply went into the House of Commons on Monday and supported the Privileges Committee report,” she said.

“I think people are in Parliament to take votes and I think they should be decisive about supporting the Privileges Committee’s work. Essentially, it’s important to recognise that MPs, and especially prime ministers, cannot mislead Parliament and be allowed to get away with that.”

Mr Johnson dismissed the report by the cross-party committee, which he claims is a “kangaroo court”, as smacking of “bias” – an accusation which led it to recommended a harsher sanction against him.

The committee found that the former prime minister had not only lied to MPs but launched what amounted to an “attack on our democratic institutions” by impugning the parliamentary process.

Despite the report being published early on Thursday, Downing Street said on Friday Mr Sunak “hasn’t fully had time to consider the report”.

“The Prime Minister takes these processes very seriously, which is why he intends to take the time to study the report closely,” a spokesman added.

Mr Sunak will be hosting a foreign leader in No 10 on Monday, which could give him an excuse not to take part.