Johnson was rebuilt – on trial for the crime

Published: 28 April 2021 K.L. 12.19
Updated: 28 April 2021 K.L. 13.23

Photo: Matt Dunham / AB / DT

A gardener on Downing Street in London where the Prime Minister’s House is located on Tuesday.

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How was the money paid to renovate the house of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom? The country’s Election Commission suspects the scandal and has now launched a formal investigation against Boris Johnson.

“We have come to the conclusion that there are reasonable grounds to suspect that one or more crimes may have taken place,” the commission wrote, adding that a formal inquiry should be held into what happened in London.

Johnson has been accused of using party money to pay for the renovation of his 11 Downing Street home in central London. The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom keeps his official headquarters at House No. 10 next door, but behind the old facades, the properties are now intertwined.

The reconstruction was spearheaded by his partner Gary Symonds and is said to have cost several million pounds (millions of kroner).

The British government claims that Johnson paid from his own pocket. But after first borrowing from the Conservative Party, it is suspected that he did so only at one point. There are allegations that Johnson may have been victimized by donors if the funds had come from there.

The issue is problematic for Johnson, who is campaigning ahead of local and regional elections around the UK next week.

Published: 28 April 2021 K.L. 12.19