Boris Johnson says Rishi Sunak betrayed him | Politics | News

Boris Johnson has launched a scathing attack on Rishi Sunak, accusing his former protégé of ending his political career with a betrayal similar to that of Brutus in assassinating Julius Caesar.

The former prime minister drew on his classical upbringing in the latest extract from his memoir, accusing his former chancellor, whom he once considered a friend and partner, of masterminding a plot worse than a crime.

He claimed that when Mr Sunak tried to oust him by resigning from his cabinet in July 2022, Mr Johnson had echoed the last words of Julius Caesar: You too, my child.

Mr Johnson insisted he was not blaming Mr Sunak for wanting to become prime minister prematurely, but stressed his belief he would have won the 2024 election, unlike his rival, who was vaporized.

Mr Johnson resigned after Sajid Javid resigned as Health Secretary, followed less than an hour later by Mr Sunak.

In the days that followed, dozens of other ministers resigned.

In the book, serialized by the Daily Mail, Mr Johnson wrote that he was quite phlegmatic about Mr Javid's resignation, believing him to be paranoid about his own position.

However, he admitted Mr Sunak's resignation later that day had left him sad.

He wrote: It was worse than a crime, it was a mistake for Rishi, for the party and for the country.

Reading his resignation letter, with its heavy wording, I murmured (at least internally) the last words of Julius Caesar, kai sun, teknon [you too, child].

If Caesar was stabbed 23 times by his assassins, I ended up with 62, since a total of 60 ministers followed Saj and Rishi out of the gate.

Ultimately, that's why I had to go. I could still have formed a government, I had enough straw to make bricks. But at that moment, I felt like I was just delaying the inevitable.

You too, my child, is what Caesar actually said to Brutus when he and others fatally stabbed him on March 15, 44 BC, known as the Ides of March.

The most familiar expression, Et tu, Brute? comes from Shakespeare's Julius Caesar.

Mr Johnson even compared his ouster to being shot in the head, saying that sometimes you barely feel the wound at first, but then it hurts a lot.

He also claimed it was part of a longer-term conspiracy, saying many of them had been working on it for ages, some since I took office.

He did, however, admit that he had taken too many bad dates, a few of which turned out to be homicidal maniacs.

He further admitted to having mishandled several crises and failing to keep the parliamentary party on board.

Mr Johnson continued: I don't blame Rishi for prematurely wanting to become Prime Minister; I really don't blame any of them for trying to oust me. This is exactly what Conservative MPs are doing.

Rather than blaming my colleagues for kicking me out, I should thank the majority who supported me, who believed in me and what we were doing and, in many cases, continue to do so.

There is no doubt in my mind that if we had all stuck together we would have won in 2024 and many more of my friends would still have their place.

Mr Johnson also dismissed suggestions that the partygate scandal or the clumsy resignation of minister Chris Pincher had finished him off, saying some MPs just wanted him to “get out of their hair.”

Speaking about Mr Sunak, Mr Johnson said: I have seen no evidence that he knew how to handle the scale of the task, run a massive campaign or project a vision of the future that would resonate with people. voters.

I thought Rishi's best solution would be to stay with us, help us through 2024, and then take over in due time.

He faced some difficulties in April regarding his wife's tax affairs, and I can tell you that we all defended Rishi and his family wholeheartedly. I just assumed he would return the favor.

Mr Johnson also said it was madness to announce the cancellation of HS2 at the Conservative conference in Manchester.

He explained: You don't win an election unless you own the future, and it was like we were canceling the future.

He also said it was crazy to water down the government's planning bill because it left the Tories without a youth housing policy – which he called a cowardly capitulation to the supposed prejudices of their big boys. -Nimby parents.