Tuesday, 19 Nov 2024

Boris Johnson could face fresh criminal inquiry over Jennifer Arcuri 'affair'

Boris Johnson could again face a criminal investigation after American businesswoman Jennifer Arcuri offered to hand her diaries to officials.

The entrepreneur agreed to let the Greater London Authority’s (GLA) ethics watchdog inspect entries detailing her affair with the Prime Minister while he was the capital’s mayor.

She has also agreed to be questioned for the first time over their relationship, the Observer reports.

Ms Arcuri’s links with the PM came under public scrutiny last year over allegations she received favourable treatment for her business ventures during his eight-year stint as mayor.

She alleged earlier this year in the Sunday Mirror that she and Johnson had a four-year romantic relationship when he was running the capital.

Johnson avoided a criminal investigation after the police watchdog found no evidence he had influenced the payment of thousands of pounds of public money to Ms Arcuri, or secured her participation in foreign trade trips that he led.

However, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said it ‘would have been wise’ for the former mayor to have declared their ‘close association’ as a conflict of interest.

The GLA’s oversight committee is investigating whether he conducted himself in a way that is expected of people in public office.

But Ms Arcuri now agreeing to be interviewed and to share her diary notes, telephone calls and conversations, could open the door to a criminal probe again.

Last week a government spokesman told the Observer: ‘As mayor, Boris Johnson followed all the legal requirements in the Greater London Authority’s code of conduct at the time.’

The GLA says it had received a complaint from Labour’s deputy leader Angela Rayner, after some of Ms Arcuri’s diary extracts were published by the newspaper last week.

A spokesman said: ‘The GLA’s monitoring officer has received a complaint from Angela Rayner MP relating to the conduct of Boris Johnson (when he was mayor of London and occupant of the mayor’s office for policing and crime) and has recorded it in line with the GLA’s procedures.

‘Recording a complaint does not mean that there has been any assessment or consideration of the merits of the complaint or that the complaint has any substance at this stage of the process.

‘The monitoring officer is seeking further information in order to assess the complaint.’

Johnson has previously said his dealings with Ms Arcuri were ‘done with complete propriety’ and previously welcomed the IOPC findings, as he criticised the ‘vexatious claims’ against him.

Previously, the PM’s press secretary said there was ‘no case to answer’ following the conclusion of the police watchdog.

She said: ‘This work has been done – public time, money and effort has been spent looking into whether or not there’s any wrongdoing and it was found that the Prime Minister, the then London mayor, has no case to answer.

The GLA’s monitoring officer will now review the complaint to see whether it is a ‘serious complaint’, and therefore whether it can be referred back to the IOPC.

Ms Rayner tweeted: ‘If Boris Johnson made promises of support to Jennifer Arcuri because of his personal relationship with Ms Arcuri it is vital that the GLA refers this new evidence to the IOPC and that the IOPC reviews its decision to rule out a criminal investigation.

‘We need a full investigation into whether the processes behind the public funding for Ms Arcuri’s business and her presence on publicly-funded trade visits was the result of misconduct in public office by Boris Johnson.’

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].

For more stories like this, check our news page.

Source: Read Full Article

Related Posts