Strip Boris of ex-PM £115k allowance until he comes clean

EMBARGO: Immediate Release

Boris Johnson should be stripped of the ex-PM allowance of up to £115,000 a year until he answers questions about his financial arrangements while he was Prime Minister, the Lib Dems have said. 

This comes further to successive reports regarding ‘credit facilities’ which Johnson secured while he was in Downing Street, reportedly facilitated by Richard Sharp who was subsequently appointed as BBC Chair.

The Lib Dems have warned that until Johnson comes clean about these facilities, whether there was any conflict of interest with the public appointments process, and why they were not declared, he should be denied access to the funding available to former Prime Ministers.

Former Prime Ministers are able to claim a sum of money from the taxpayer to fund office costs for life, under the Public Duty Costs Allowance (PDCA). 

Liberal Democrat Chief Whip Wendy Chamberlain MP commented: 

“Every day brings yet another story of sleaze and cronyism at the heart of this Conservative government.

“Serious questions remain unanswered about this major potential conflict of interest that was kept hidden from the public.

"Boris Johnson has a dismal track record of avoiding scrutiny and covering up his lies and deceit. We know he’s only interested in following the money, so it’s time to hit him where it hurts - his wallet.

“Johnson should be stripped of his taxpayer-funded ex-Prime Minister’s allowance until he finally comes clean.”

ENDS

Notes to Editors

According to Gov.UK: 

“The Public Duty Costs Allowance (PDCA)...was introduced to assist former Prime Ministers still active in public life. Payments are made only to meet the actual cost of continuing to fulfil public duties.

The costs are a reimbursement of incurred expenses for necessary office costs and secretarial costs arising from their special position in public life. The allowance is not paid to support private or parliamentary duties. The PDCA is in addition to any constituency office which they may maintain as a Member of Parliament. The PDCA allowance is paid from the Cabinet Office vote and administered by the Cabinet Office Finance Team.

All former Prime Ministers’ are eligible to draw on the PDCA. They cannot claim the allowance if they are serving as Leader of the Opposition.

The PDCA has a financial limit which was originally set to align with the staffing allowance for MPs’ offices. The current limit is set at £115,000 and has remained frozen since 2011. It will remain frozen at this level in 2022-23. The level of the limit will be reviewed by the Prime Minister at the start of a Parliament and annually.”

Earlier in January, the Sunday Times cited a credit facility worth up to £800,000, secured by a distant relative of Johnson’s, Sam Blyth. This weekend, the same paper reported that Richard Sharp - now BBC Chair - was also involved in arranging a credit facility of the same amount. 

These credit facilities were never publicly declared. Reports have alleged that these credit facilities were both secured at times when the named individuals were candidates in the recruitment process for public roles - the Chief Executive of the British Council and the Chair of the BBC.