Brexit: Campaign to prosecute Boris Johnson over £350m NHS bus claim raises £24,000 in two days

Former foreign secretary accused of 'misconduct in public office' over discredit claim about how much Britain sends to EU

Boris Johnson has previously been rebuked by the UK Statistics Authority for 'misusing' the figure (Getty)

A crowdfunding campaign to have Boris Johnson prosecuted over his claims about Brexit has received £24,000 in donations in just two days.

The "Brexit Justice" campaign has hired barristers to work on a legal case relating to an alleged "abuse of public trust" by Mr Johnson over his claim that Britain pays £350m a week to the EU.

The former foreign secretary has previously been warned by the UK’s official statistics watchdog that the figure is a “misuse of public statistics”

Almost 700 people donated to the fund within 48 hours of it being launched, while celebrities such as Sir Alan Sugar and Paloma Faith tweeted their support.

The campaign has instructed barrister Lewis Power QC in an attempt to have Mr Johnson put on trial for criminal charges of misconduct in public office. The offence carries a maximum punishment of life imprisonment.

Mr Power, who specialises in cases relating to organised crime, war crimes and terrorism, believes there are sufficient grounds for prosecuting the MP.

The campaigners are now seeking to raise £500,000 in 42 days to cover the costs of bringing a private prosecution against the former foreign secretary.

They have published a 48,000-word document detailing their evidence against Mr Johnson. Once the money has been raised, a case against him will be presented at the magistrates court.

The attempt is being organised by campaigner Marcus J Ball, who wants to bring criminal cases against politicians he says “have abused their duties and the trust of the public” over Brexit.

He has already crowdfunded £200,000 to appoint the legal team to work on the case, and the extra money is needed to bring their case to court.

Mr Hall said: “Our prosecution case rests upon Mr Johnson’s claims that the UK ‘sends’, ‘spends’ or ‘pays’ £350m every week on EU membership. The UK does not ‘send’, ‘spend’ or ‘pay’ this amount of money. There is an abatement, not a rebate.

“The abatement money is deducted from the total before the rest is sent to the EU. We have evidence that Mr Johnson is fully aware of this, yet decided to advance knowingly incorrect claims on multiple occasions. Put simply, he lied. This is an abuse of public trust and contrary to the public interest.”

He denied the campaign was an attempt to stop Brexit, saying: “As far as we’re aware, the courts do not have the power to reverse Brexit or order a second referendum. What the courts do have the power to do is address knowingly false statements advanced by elected officials to further their agendas.”

He added: “If we win this case, we could establish a precedent in the common law making it illegal for elected representatives to lie to the public about public spending. It is also possible, given the criminal nature of the offence, that Mr Johnson will receive a prison sentence.”

Mr Johnson has previously been rebuked over the £350m a week claim.

Last year, Sir David Norgrove, head of the UK Statistics Authority, wrote to him saying: “I am surprised and disappointed that you have chosen to repeat the figure of £350m per week, in connection with the amount that might be available for extra public spending when we leave the European Union.

“This confuses gross and net contributions. It also assumes that payments currently made to the UK by the EU, including for example for the support of agriculture and scientific research, will not be paid by the UK government when we leave. It is a clear misuse of official statistics.”

Sir David’s predecessor, Sir Andrew Dilnot, had also called use of the £350m figure “misleading”.

Mr Johnson has previously defended his use of the figure.

Earlier this year he told The Guardian: “There was an error on the side of the bus. We grossly underestimated the sum over which we would be able to take back control.

“As and when the cash becomes available – and it won’t until we leave – the NHS should be at the very top of the list.”

Mr Johnson’s team did not respond to request for comment.