Rayner brands Boris Johnson’s farewell speech “completely deluded”

Angela Rayner has described Boris Johnson as “completely deluded about what’s happened over the last couple of years” as the outgoing Prime Minister likened himself to a “booster rocket that has fulfilled its function” in his farewell speech.

Addressing the public from the steps of Downing Street this morning, following Liz Truss’ victory in the Conservative Party leadership election on Monday, Johnson claimed Brexit, the Covid vaccine rollout and the response to the war in Ukraine as achievements of his administration.

“It was a classic Boris Johnson speech. Completely deluded about what’s happened over the last couple of years and the crisis that people are facing,” Rayner said.

The deputy Labour leader argued that there was no acknowledgement of “the scandal and sleaze that has engulfed his party and his government over the last couple of years”.

She added: “Whether that was him supporting the scandal around Owen Paterson or supporting Chris Pincher with the situation with sexual harassment, whether it was the absolute billions of pounds that was wasted on money that was given to mates through the global pandemic.

“And, of course, the partying that happened when the UK public were told that they had to go into lockdown and had to follow the rules. I think it was completely deluded and it stunk of all the hallmarks of somebody who’s had a privileged background, who thinks that they can just do what they like.”

Johnson was forced to resign earlier this year following numerous scandals. But he compared himself to Cincinnatus today, a Roman statesman who resigned and returned to his farm: “Like Cincinnatus, I am returning to my plough and I will be offering this government nothing but the most fervent support.”

Referring to his ousting after waves of his ministers resigned and refused to serve in his government, Johnson claimed that in this “relay race” of government they had “changed the rules half way through”.

He said he would now “get behind Liz Truss every step of the way”, who it was revealed on Monday had beaten rival Rishi Sunak in a ballot of Tory Party members in the election to determine their next leader and the Prime Minister.

Johnson blamed the war in Ukraine for spiralling energy bills and said his successor “will do everything they can to get through this crisis”. Truss’ campaign said that she will reveal proposals to support households within a week.

Her allies are understood to be discussing a £100bn package that could include freezing energy bills. Labour has been urging the government to freeze bills. It outlined a plan for a freeze until April 2023, last month, that it said could be paid for by expanding the scope of the windfall tax on oil and gas companies.