An avalanche of internal leaks corners the Government of Boris Johnson

Boris Johnson, during an election ceremony with supporters in Llandudno (Wales), this Monday.PHIL NOBLE / AFP

In Boris Johnson's sweetest moment, for his successful vaccination campaign, someone has smelled weakness. A chain of internal leaks, to which more serious, has revealed the dubious ethics that operate in Downing Street. From the invention of collecting anonymous donations for the prime minister and his partner to decorate their private home, to the outburst launched by the politician during the meeting in which a second confinement was decided: "I prefer that thousands of corpses be piled up first," he said. , as confirmed by several witnesses to the discussion.

Johnson was the first to react this Monday, during an electoral act in Wrexham, to denounce that accusation as "absolute rubbish". “The citizens are not in this debate. What they want is to talk about employment, growth or recovery plans, "he said. His current Chief of Staff, Michael Gove (a rank similar to that of Minister of the Spanish Presidency), also rejected the possibility that Johnson had uttered such a grave expression: “I find the mere idea of ​​such a thing incredible. I was in that room, and I didn't hear that kind of language. " Gove, one of the most skilled politicians on the British scene today, was sibylline in his response. He never "heard" those words, but several others did.

The

Daily Mail

, the journalist Robert Peston in the weekly

The Spectator

and even the

BBC ignored the denial of the Government and supported the version that, at least three anonymous witnesses of the discussion, have confirmed.

It happened at the end of last October, when Downing Street began to verify with pain that its management of the pandemic had been erratic and the data forced a new tightening of social restrictions.

At the time, it was reported the clash between Johnson, who saw the British economy crumble, and several of his ministers who called for tougher measures to curb the virus.

More information

• Johnson orders investigation into former prime minister Cameron's role as advisor to finance company Greensill

• Boris Johnson's messages to a pro-Brexit businessman reveal Downing Street's favoritism

“The news has caused me a lot of concern. And the first I've thought about have been families that lost a member during the pandemic, "said Keir Starmer, the leader of the Labor Party. "I don't know if it will be true or not, but I think the prime minister should clarify it publicly," he added. The opposition has not wanted to push this matter further, aware that the prime minister's outburst, true or not, alone serves to further deteriorate the politician's image. Starmer has preferred to channel his forces towards another leak with possible more compromising legal derivatives. The former Brexit ideologue and Johnson's top adviser, Dominic Cummings, formally declared war on his former boss last Friday in a public statement. Among other things,he claimed in that text that he advised Johnson not to go ahead with the idea of ​​redecorating his private Downing Street residence with the help of anonymous donations. It would be "stupid and probably illegal," he warned.

The media presented the episode as a personal endeavor of the prime minister's partner, Carrie Symonds, whose personal war against Cummings was a determining factor in the adviser leaving the government. Johnson's team has been quick to claim that the politician ended up paying out of his own pocket the more than 66,000 euros it cost to renovate the apartment. Nor has he managed to settle this controversy with his denial, because it seems clear that the money came through donations collected by the Conservative Party and that it was only later, given the magnitude of the scandal, that Johnson decided to scratch his pocket and return the amount to the match.

Downing Street is preparing to face a roller coaster ride in the coming weeks.

Cummings, aware of all the secrets of Johnson's first year in office, has been willing to answer openly the questions of the deputies when he appears before Parliament next month.

Cameron and Dyson: the shadow of favoritism

Added to the flow of leaks about the dubious management of the pandemic are those that point to a conservative government guided by favoritism. The messages of former Prime Minister David Cameron to various ministers in search of financial aid for the bankrupt Greensill have been joined with those that Johnson himself exchanged with businessman James Dyson, in which he promised a fiscal favor treatment at the beginning of the pandemic. Former state attorney general, the conservative Dominique Grieve, erupted on Saturday, denouncing an "integrity vacuum" in Downing Street.