Statement from Compassion in Politics on Downing Street parties

2022-01-13 13:19:00 +0000

Jennifer Nadel, Co-Director of Compassion in Politics, said:

"That officials and Ministers deemed it acceptable to organise parties during a national lockdown, sought to cover them up, and lied about their occurrence demonstrates that our politics has completely lost its moral compass. The public are understandably feeling dejected, dispirited, and utterly disrespected by this latest episode in a long-running saga of unethical behaviour.

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"There is a solution: to inject our politics with a serious dose of integrity, compassion, and honesty. To restore faith in the system of governance, oversight of ministerial behaviour must as a priority be taken out of the hands of the government. We cannot allow Ministers to mark their own homework. We urgently need a new law to prevent rogue politicians from lying to the public and to sufficiently penalise those who do. And we need all politicians, no matter their party, to step up and stand up for the values of respect, decency, and compassion. We can create a new culture in our politics but only when those who work within it are prepared to lead by example."