Boris Johnson burka comments: Pressure builds on former foreign secretary after Tory Party launches investigation

Sport and Civil Society secretary Tracey Crouch: Boris Johnson should apologise for his 'letter box' remark

Boris Johnson is to face an investigation by an independent panel following complaints that he breached the Conservative party’s code of conduct over his remarks about niqabs.

The former foreign secretary has faced intensifying pressure in the last two days after comparing Muslim women wearing the religious headgear to “letter boxes” and “bank robbers” in a column.

It his comments have left Tory MPs divided but both Theresa May and the party chairman, Brandon Lewis, have said Mr Johnson should apologise for the “offensive” remarks on Monday.

It came as the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments said it was “unacceptable” that Mr Johnson failed to obtain advanced clearance before resuming his Daily Telegraph column after resigning last month from the government.

The committee – responsible for vetting appointments by ex-ministers and senior civil servants – said Mr Johnson did not notify them until after signing a contract with the newspaper, in breach of the ministerial code.

Follow all the latest updates below

Key Points

[9 August 2018 09:03 · Ashley Cowburn]

[9 August 2018 09:04 · Ashley Cowburn]

Asked whether Mr Johnson should resign or have the whip removed from him, the sports and civil society minister Tracey Crouch told the BBC: “Well I think that his language was intentionally provocative. What he was trying to say is that we should not oppress religious freedom, women should decide what they wear. 

“But then he used some very colourful language on purpose written down in an article and I think that he was wrong to do so. I support the prime minister in what she has said – he should apologise. 

“I think that we need to get back to actually protecting those religious freedoms and not tell women what to wear.”

Pressed again, she said: “That is way above my pay grade. But what I do think we should recognise first of all is that only one per cent or less than one per cent of Muslim women wear burqas in this country. 

“We need to have respect for people with what they wear – it is not for us to decide what people wear. 

“We as politicians should be setting an example for people – a few months ago actually I was quite critical of people who were mocking Boris for the way that he looked when he went out running. Now let’s be clear: nobody looks good when they are out running, particularly a middle-aged man like Boris. I was defending him for going out running and wearing what he was wearing.

"And now I feel that level of respect I tried to show him and defended him in that debate has been cast aside because he’s talking about what women wear in a particular expression of religious freedom."

[9 August 2018 09:37 · Ashley Cowburn]

[9 August 2018 09:56 · Ashley Cowburn]

[9 August 2018 10:09 · Ashley Cowburn]

[9 August 2018 11:11 · Ashley Cowburn]

Commenting on Mr Johnson's remarks on Thursday, Metropolitan Police Commissioner Cressida Dick said that while many people have found them offensive, he "did not commit a criminal offence".

She said: "I know that many people have found this offensive.

"I also know that many other people believe strongly that in the whole of the article, what Mr Johnson appears to have been attempting to do was to say that there shouldn't be a ban and that he was engaging in a legitimate debate."

Asked what she made of the language the former foreign secretary used, Ms Dick told the BBC Asian Network: "Some people have clearly found it offensive.

"I spoke last night to my very experienced officers who deal with hate crime and, although we have not yet received any allegation of such a crime, I can tell you that my preliminary view having spoken to them is that what Mr Johnson said would not reach the bar for a criminal offence. He did not commit a criminal offence."

[9 August 2018 11:46 · Ashley Cowburn]

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[9 August 2018 11:52 · Ashley Cowburn]

The London Evening Standard is reporting that Boris is to face a probe by the Conservative party into whether he broke the code of conduct.

[9 August 2018 12:12 · Ashley Cowburn]

[9 August 2018 12:17 · Ashley Cowburn]

NEW: Boris Johnson is to face an investigation by an independent panel following complaints that his comments about the burka breached the Conservative Party's code of conduct.