Theresa May has no patience for Boris Johnson's flouting of COVID-19 restrictions

Theresa May, who served as prime minister of the United Kingdom before current PM Boris Johnson, lit into her successor and fellow Conservative on Monday over his flouting of the U.K.'s COVID restrictions, CNN reported.
"The COVID regulations imposed significant restrictions on the freedoms of members of the public. They had a right to expect their prime minister to have read the rules, to understand the meaning of the rules — and, indeed, those around him to have done so, too — and to set an example in following those rules," May said in the House of Commons.
May served as prime minister from 2016 to 2019 and continues to serve as a backbench member of Parliament.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Earlier Monday, British civil servant Sue Gray released an update on her investigation into drunken parties and other gatherings held by Johnson and his staff while COVID-19 restrictions were still in effect.
The controversial gatherings that have been revealed in recent weeks include two held by Downing Street staff the night before Prince Philip's funeral, at which Queen Elizabeth II sat alone due to social distancing requirements.
The Week contributor Joel Mathis wrote last week that Johnson "appears to be on the cusp of losing his office" over the scandal.
"What the Gray report does show," May continued, "is that No. 10 Downing Street was not observing the regulations they had imposed on members of the public. So either my right honorable friend [Johnson] had not read the rules or didn't understand what they meant — and others around him — or they didn't think the rules applied to No. 10."
"Which was it?" May concluded emphatically to shouts of acclamation.
In response, Johnson stammeringly suggested that May wait "to see the conclusion of the inquiry."
May has been critical of Johnson in the past. Last month, she wrote that his stance in Brexit negotiations and his decision to renege on foreign aid commitments had cost Britain its position of "global moral leadership," The Guardian reported.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Grayson Quay was the weekend editor at TheWeek.com. His writing has also been published in National Review, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Modern Age, The American Conservative, The Spectator World, and other outlets. Grayson earned his M.A. from Georgetown University in 2019.
-
Thai fish pie with crispy turmeric potatoes recipe
The Week Recommends Tasty twist on the Lancashire hot pot is given a golden glow
-
Palestine Action: protesters or terrorists?
Talking Point Damaging RAF equipment at Brize Norton blurs line between activism and sabotage, but proscription is a drastic step
-
Trump's strikes on Iran: a 'spectacular success'?
In Depth Military humiliations 'expose the brittleness' of Tehran's ageing regime, but risk reinforcing its commitment to its nuclear program
-
Canadian man dies in ICE custody
Speed Read A Canadian citizen with permanent US residency died at a federal detention center in Miami
-
GOP races to revise megabill after Senate rulings
Speed Read A Senate parliamentarian ruled that several changes to Medicaid included in Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill" were not permissible
-
Supreme Court lets states ax Planned Parenthood funds
Speed Read The court ruled that Planned Parenthood cannot sue South Carolina over the state's effort to deny it funding
-
Trump plans Iran talks, insists nuke threat gone
Speed Read 'The war is done' and 'we destroyed the nuclear,' said President Trump
-
Trump embraces NATO after budget vow, charm offensive
Speed Read The president reversed course on his longstanding skepticism of the trans-Atlantic military alliance
-
Trump judge pick told DOJ to defy courts, lawyer says
Speed Read Emil Bove, a top Justice Department official nominated by Trump for a lifetime seat, stands accused of encouraging government lawyers to mislead the courts and defy judicial orders
-
Mamdani upsets Cuomo in NYC mayoral primary
Speed Read Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani beat out Andrew Cuomo in New York City's Democratic mayoral primary
-
Supreme Court clears third-country deportations
Speed Read The court allowed Trump to temporarily resume deporting migrants to countries they aren't from