The BBC blacklisted a viral video calling out Boris Johnson, it was claimed in 2021, and it is back on the agenda.
It has been revisited as Boris Johnson deliberately misled MPs over Partygate and faced 90-day ban before he quit, a report has found.
Charade
Johnson says the report is “a charade”, and that some of its arguments are “a load of complete tripe”.
He said: “I believed that we were working, and we were: talking for the main about nothing except work, mainly covid. Why would I have set out, in the Chamber, to conceal my knowledge of something illicit, if that account could be so readily contradicted by others? Why would we have had an official photographer if we believed we were breaking the law?
“We didn’t believe that what we were doing was wrong, and after a year of work the Privileges Committee has found not a shred of evidence that we did.
“Their argument can be boiled down to: ‘Look at this picture – that’s Boris Johnson with a glass in his hand. He must have known that the event was illegal. Therefore he lied.
“That is a load of complete tripe. That picture was me, in my place of work, trying to encourage and thank my officials in a way that I believed was crucial for the government and for the country as a whole, and in a way which I believed to be wholly within the rules …
‘This report is a charade. I was wrong to believe in the Committee or its good faith. The terrible truth is that it is not I who has twisted the truth to suit my purposes. It is Harriet Harman and her Committee.”
BBC Blacklisted
The film was created by filmmaker Peter Stefanovic, who has created numerous viral videos, holding the government to account.
The Twitter film compiled by him debunked a series of statements to Parliament by Boris Johnson has clocked up more than 40 million views.
Here is the video, it is a must-watch.
Today Peter shared the video again and wrote: “In 2021 this film was shown on @GMB & raised with Ministers on@SkyNews
Questions were asked about it in Parliament. The public themselves drove it to 45 MILLION VIEWS. @BBCNews @BBCBreakfast
steadfastly refused to report it. Questions must now be asked why. Hang you heads in shame #BBC.”
Byline Times broke the story back in 2021 and wrote: “Which makes the attitude towards it of the BBC all the more baffling. Because the evidence strongly suggests that the national broadcaster has blacklisted the film and its maker across all of its outlets.
“Not that the BBC admits this. If you ask it, you receive a reply pointing out: “A BBC News online article covered Green Party MP Caroline Lucas” calls for a debate “to challenge the Prime Minister’s persistent failure to give accurate information to the House of Commons”.
The journalist, who wrote the Byline Times piece, tweeted today: “This conduct by @bbc looks even worse today. @PeterStefanovi2 was highlighting Johnson lies when they mattered most, and our national broadcaster blacklisted him.”
Related: Watch: Brexit hindered Pandemic response as Boris Johnson claim debunked
