Peter Oborne’s file of Boris Johnson’s lies is published

9th November 2019 / United Kingdom

Peter Oborne deserves credit. He is the former chief political commentator of The Daily Telegraph, author of The Rise of Political Lying and The Triumph of the Political Class. He used to write a political column for the Daily Mail until two weeks ago when he turned on them and the Boris Johnson government to reveal them as the political chancers that they are.

He sat as a Commissioner for the Citizens Commission on Islam, Participation and Public Life and won the Press Awards Columnist of the Year in 2012 and again in 2016.

His recent exposé of the unquestioning mainstream media swallowing and spewing out government propaganda was telling and made such an impact that broadcast anchors and the headline making journalists have realised their reputations have been sullied by their slavish behaviour. The BBC and Sky News did not escape.

Now Peter Oborne goes one step further and publishes a lengthy file of Boris Johnson’s lies with a searchable database, providing facts and the verdict of Johnson’s deceptions. This is an election where more than anything – this Conservative government is characterised by two things – Brexit and the the lies surrounding it.

The mission statement of Peter Oborne and his colleagues – Richard Assheton, Adam Bychawski, Charlie Peters, Michael Prodger, Dai Richards and William Wickstead reads as follows:

TRUTH is important in politics. Never more so than today, when huge issues are at stake affecting the lives of every voter and the future of the nation and the world.

Political deceit is a form of theft. When people or businesses get money by deceit they face criminal charges. When politicians win power by deceit they can do vastly more harm, but face no penalty at all.

Our rulers expect us to comply with their laws and decrees, to pay the taxes they devise, to make the sacrifices they exhort on us, even sometimes to die in war.

In a democratic society, such obedience has to be earned. When our rulers use lies and misrepresentation they fray the bonds of loyalty we owe to the state.

Our rulers also ask us constantly to resist extremism from any part of the political or social spectrum. But when our rulers themselves peddle falsehood and fantasy they are no better than the extremists. They make any kind of extremism more plausible.