Victoria Borwick, who was a deputy to Boris Johnson when he was Mayor of London, wondered if £ 30,000 a year is enough to renovate his apartment. (Sky-News / Getty Images)
A former Conservative MP has suggested that £ 30,000 a year in tax dollars is insufficient to renovate Boris Johnson’s Downing Street apartment.
Victoria Borwick, who was one of Johnson’s deputies when he was Mayor of London, said questions should be asked about “only” getting £ 30,000 a year to renovate the apartment at 11 Downing Street.
Borwick, who was a MP for Kensington between 2015 and 2017, told Sky News Breakfast it was “one of the interesting debates we should have”.
The prime minister’s scandal continues a week after his former chief adviser Dominic Cummings accused Johnson of wanting donors to “secretly” pay for renovations in a “possibly illegal” move.
Look: There’s nothing to see here, Johnson insists in the midst of a home renovation
A prime minister is entitled to £ 30,000 in taxpayers’ money a year to finance renovations, but the cost of Johnson’s project is said to have increased well beyond that. Some reports have suggested it cost £ 200,000.
Borwick said on Friday of the dispute: “There are a number of requests that the [Electoral Commission] and the others are going to run and of course they have to look at the way all of these things are funded.
“If we only give someone £ 30,000 a year to renovate, which seems like a lot of money to most of us… but if Boris is Prime Minister for a long time, that would potentially give him the opportunity to spend £ 300,000.
“So I think these amounts are pretty important considering you are decorating a house that is receiving international visitors, and obviously there has to be a better way to fund that.
“I think this is one of the interesting debates we should have. He cannot be the first to decorate and not necessarily know the total costs in advance. “
When asked if she thought the £ 30,000 annual tax allowance was not enough, she seemed to backtrack, “I think it’s a lot of money, but then again, if you’re doing a renovation where you’re hoping to be To be anywhere for a long time you have to look back and say, ‘Well, you spent that money 10 years ago, it will look a lot more sensible.’ “
The story goes on
The government is on record that Johnson paid the cost of the renovation but refused to say how it was originally funded.
The electoral commission announced on Wednesday that it would formally examine how the redevelopment was initially financed.
Boris Johnson faces questions about the home renovation scandal on Friday’s questions from the Prime Minister. (UK Parliament / Jessica Taylor via Reuters)
The watchdog investigating the Tory Party said there were “reasonable suspicions that a crime or crimes may have occurred”.
While the scandal has been in full coverage for a week, Home Secretary Victoria Atkins told the same program on Friday that it is not being “caught quite as much” in public as it is in Westminster.
Backbench MP Dehenna Davison also said on ITV’s Peston Show Wednesday that ten times more citizens are contacting her about bees than the housing redevelopment series.
Continue reading:
The government urges homeowners with psychological concerns caused by the disguise scandal to turn to Samaritans
David Haye on working class children left behind by coronavirus: “It would have devastated me”
Atkins and Davison’s opinions appear to be borne out by the polls.
A YouGov poll “Westminster Voting Intent” published Thursday found Johnson’s Tories at 44%, no change from the previous week, and Labor at 33%, 1% less than the previous week.
Labor MP Jon Cruddas, who also appeared in Peston earlier this week, admitted that he was not “flooded” with emails on the matter but insisted it would “detonate” a major problem for the Prime Minister could.
Watch: Sir Keir Starmer continues to criticize PM’s home renovations