Surely no other prime minister in the history of the UK could have survived the slings and arrows of Partygate.
But Boris Johnson is still fighting his corner.
He is still attempting to justify the unjustifiable even though the facts are clear and damning.
The Prime Minister broke the law – the first sitting resident of 10 Downing Street to do so – and has been fined as a result.
That alone should have been enough for him to resign.
But, throughout Partygate, Mr Johnson has sought to play down his involvement, to evade questioning and avoid scrutiny.
In doing so, he has played the public – many of whom have suffered tremendous personal loss, tragedy and hardship during the Covid pandemic – for fools.
The strength of the prime minister’s brass neck might be admirable if it were not such a serious situation.
There really is no conclusion other than the PM should have fallen on his sword by now.
But it is clear Mr Johnson has no intention of relinquishing office.
Boris Johnson has become a distraction
Tomorrow, MPs will vote on whether Parliament was misled by the Prime Minister.
That is a welcome development, and the outcome is important.
But in a time of crisis both nationally and internationally, the idea that more parliamentary time is being lost to a subject that should never have arisen in the first place is another black mark for the PM.
The terrible events in Ukraine were yesterday sidelined in Parliament by Partygate.
The cost of living crisis – which is weighing so heavily on households across the UK – was similarly relegated to a sideshow.
That, like partying through a national lockdown, is unforgivable.
If Boris Johnson understands that he should do the decent thing.
And if he doesn’t understand it, he is not the right person for the job and should step aside regardless.
