British Prime Minister Boris Johnson delayed an investigation into claims of Islamophobia in the U.K. government by a Conservative member of Parliament until the next prime minister is in office.
Johnson told the Commons Liaison Committee in a letter Tuesday that the inquiry must be delayed after his ethics adviser, who had been tasked with the effort, had resigned his post last month in protest of multiple scandals rocking his administration. Johnson instructed Christopher Geidt to conduct the investigation in January, a Downing Street spokesperson said.
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“The investigation therefore remains outstanding and should be a matter for a new independent adviser function, as soon as appointed by my successor,” Johnson said, according to the Independent.
The statement came after the committee requested a follow-up response to Johnson’s testimony earlier this month.
The complaint was raised by Conservative MP Nusrat Ghani, who claimed in an interview with the Sunday Times in January that she was told by a government whip that her “Muslimness” made her colleagues uncomfortable. Commons leader Mark Spencer was identified as the whip in question but denied the statements.
“To ensure other Whips are not drawn into this matter, I am identifying myself as the person Nusrat Ghani MP has made claims about this evening,” Spencer tweeted in January. “These accusations are completely false and I consider them to be defamatory. I have never used those words attributed to me.”
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The responsibility will now fall to Johnson’s successor, who will either be former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak or Foreign Secretary Liz Truss.
Both candidates have been selected by the Conservative Party leadership to compete in an election on Sept. 5. Sunak said he would appoint someone to fill the ethics adviser on standards should he be elected, according to Business Insider.
