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Mayor 'changed his story four times over Damian Green's arrest'
Martin Bentham11 Feb 2009
Boris Johnson was today accused of changing his account of the arrest of Damian Green four times in an angry attack by a Commons committee.
In a letter to the Mayor, the Commons Home Affairs Committee said Mr Johnson showed a lack of preparation, respect and courtesy after being asked to tell MPs when and what he knew about the Tory frontbencher's arrest in a leak inquiry.
The committee warned it will summon Mr Johnson to appear again unless he gives "prompt clarification" of the time he was told about the MP's detention and of his conversations with Tory leader David Cameron about the investigation.
The demand, understood to follow several heated telephone calls between Mr Johnson and the committee chairman Keith Vaz, follows an appearance by the Mayor before the MPs last week.
During the hearing, investigating events surrounding Mr Green's arrest, the Mayor said he had been told about it by Mr Cameron at a service in Southwark Cathedral on 27 November.
Crucially, that conversation took place after Mr Green had been arrested.
Immediately after the session, Mr Johnson conceded he had also spoken to Mr Cameron earlier in the day over the phone and had been told then of Mr Green's arrest.
He suggested this conversation at about 1pm, just under an hour before Mr Green's arrest, had followed information given to Mr Cameron by Sir Paul Stephenson, the new Met Commissioner who was then acting head of the force.
That clashes with evidence yesterday by Met Assistant Commissioner Bob Quick, who is heading the inquiry, who told the committee no outside official was told of the arrest until after it had happened.
To add to the confusion, it is understood that Mr Johnson has since offered two further accounts of what he knew about Mr Green's arrest, prompting Mr Vaz to demand an accurate account.
Mr Vaz wrote to Mr Johnson saying the committee has "deep concerns" about his evidence and adding: "You have given no fewer than four different accounts of the communications you had with David Cameron regarding the arrest of Damian Green MP.
"The disparities between the evidence you gave us and your subsequent communications have led my committee to express concerns about your apparent level of preparation to give formal evidence to a select committee...
"We are also concerned about the level of respect and courtesy you have shown the committee in providing evidence and especially in your subsequent communications.
"The committee are unanimously resolved in their decision to request you now provide a prompt written clarification of the actual times of the calls made to David Cameron on the day of Damian Green's arrest, with some indication of the basis on which you can now be confident of your evidence."
The committee is Labour dominated but contains several Tory and Lib Dem MPs.
Mr Green and Home Office civil servant Chris Galley remain on bail as police continue their investigation into allegations they conspired to commit misconduct in public office.
Reader views (17)
All I can say is I am glad he isn't our mayor. I feel sorry for you lot in London.
- Steve, Gloucestershire, 12/02/2009 09:37
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No Peter Thurgood, it's no just Labour supporters saying this. I am a conservative voter who thinks Johnson is an embarrassment. Not only does he not know to whom he was speaking, and when, or what about, he doesn't even understand who to whom he should NOT be speaking, given his MPA role. Add to this his tendency to shoot from the lip on numerous occasions, usually based on ignorance and prejudice, and you can only conclude, as I reluctantly have, that he is not a fit and proper person to represent London.
- Mike, London, 11/02/2009 21:31
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The correct response to the incident was for the speaker to resign (or be forced to do so). This stuff is irrelevant.
- Nigel, London, 11/02/2009 16:59
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Here we go again, all the stones are being turned over to let the usual Labour rent-a- mob, crawl out, and spout their bile on here, trying to make us all believe that Boris, and not the Met, is to blame for this fiasco.
Isn't it pathetic, that every time anyone connected with Labour, are in the hot seat, they manage to spin it around to the Tories.
Who gives a damn if Boris forgot exact details or times, at the time of the original question?
The people at fault here are the police, not Boris! So crawl back in your holes boys and girls, you are not fooling anyone.
- Peter Thurgood, London UK, 11/02/2009 16:42
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If Boris Johnson has been caught lying as well as perverted the integrity of the investigation by talking to his friend Green prior to the police investigation, he should be impeached from office.
- Victor3, London, 11/02/2009 16:35
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The story changes seem minor to me, can any of the critics remember all their conversations at the end of a busy day?
And Boris is keeping his manifesto promises on the C-Charge.
- Jim, London, 11/02/2009 15:30
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How can you trust someone who can't keep his election pledges either. Don't let him have a second term as Mayor of London
- Richard, London UK, 11/02/2009 14:32
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The fact he is running London is scary! He is not an 'amiable buffon' but a very dangerous person. Last week we had the changing story about tube drivers not working on Monday. Now, worse, we have inconsistency about a criminal investigation that he should not even be commenting on. Photo opportuntities, sound bites - he is a prime example of what a politician should not be!
- Michael, London, 11/02/2009 13:28
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Being an honourable man I'm sure that Boris will instantly resign and retire from Public Life.
- B Basset, Luton England, 11/02/2009 13:18
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I can't help laughing at the irony of the mayor being hauled over the coals by Keith Vaz of all people. Doesn't anybody remember Vaz's record?
- Js, London, 11/02/2009 13:15
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Well Boris is certainly giving us a foretaste of what a Cameron Prime Ministership would be like.
- T Leadbetter, Harwich England, 11/02/2009 13:01
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"The committee is LABOUR DOMINATED but contains several Tory and Lib Dem MPs."
Say no more....
- Anil Chatterjee, Manchester, 11/02/2009 12:57
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Boris has been a disaster as mayor so far, sacking most of the people he has appointed, getting fined and now being shown to have behaved dishonestly , if he is an example of how a cameron government will be run then god help us all
- James, west glamorgan, 11/02/2009 12:50
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Four different stories. They can't all be true so the man must be lying.
- Mick, London, England, 11/02/2009 11:56
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Regardless of your political persuasion, it is easy to agree that it is completely inappropriate for someone who is chair of the Metropolitan Police Association (i.e. Boris) to discuss the details of an ongoing criminal investigation (i.e. Damien Green), especially with the suspect themselves or close friends or colleagues of the suspect.
This throws the entire integrity of an investigation out of the window and is another case of Boris failing to understand the implications of what he says or does.
- Mark Lee, Vauxhall, 11/02/2009 11:44
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If he isn't capable of remembering how or which side to part his own hair, little wonder he's prone to memory lapses as the mayor.
- Barrie, essex UK, 11/02/2009 11:38
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Boris Johnson is a politician. Why the surprise he has changed his story on a number of occasions? Politicians would refer to it as 'adapting to changing circumstances' or 'a flexible attitude'. As the story of this lot further unfolds, watch for further changes!
- Royg, Solihull, ENGLAND, 11/02/2009 11:07
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