LONDON (Reuters) -Britain’s Boris Johnson said on Wednesday he would seek to be reelected prime minister at the next election and could not think of any circumstances under which he would resign.
Opposition parties and some of Johnson’s own Conservative lawmakers have said the prime minister must go, after police fined him for breaking his own stringent coronavirus lockdown rules.
Johnson apologised to parliament on Tuesday, saying he did not know a gathering in his Downing Street office to celebrate his birthday had been against the rules.
Opponents say he repeatedly lied to parliament last year when he said all guidelines had been followed.
The prime minister flew to India on Wednesday for a two-day visit. Asked by reporters on the plane whether he will fight the next election, Johnson replied, “Of course.”
Asked if he saw any circumstances where he could resign, he said: “Not a lot springs to mind at the moment.”
Johnson has said it is time to focus on other pressing international and domestic issues.
“The best thing we can all do is to focus on things that can really change and improve the lives of voters and stop talking about politicians,” he told reporters.
Lawmakers will on Thursday vote on a motion put forward by the opposition Labour Party which, if passed, would refer Johnson to parliament’s Committee of Privileges to consider whether his conduct amounted to contempt of the House of Commons.
But the government is seeking to delay the decision until after the police investigation into lockdown breaches has concluded, and a long-awaited report into the matter by a senior civil servant has been published.
(Reporting by Andrew MacAskill; Writing by Kylie MacLellan; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)
