Was Boris Johnson the worst Prime Minister of the last century?
This article appeared in the Guardian on 5th September.
The general view is that Johnson was the worst PM since Lloyd George (PM 1916-1922) because like him Johnson ignored or subverted democratic practices and indeed laws and did what suited him personally.
Johnson is certainly guilty of this. One can think of the illegal proroguing of Parliament to force through a hard Brexit or the breaking of his own Covid laws with Partygate. Parliamentary democracy is very far from perfect but Johnson’s various efforts to undermine or ignore it, made it even worse.
Even so there are many other contenders for the worst PM of the last century. A few are noted below.
David Cameron. Blundered into an unnecessary vote on the EU and then resigned when he lost it
Tony Blair. Took Britain into an unpopular war in Iraq that saw millions die
John Major. Privatised the railways
Margaret Thatcher. Laid waste to manufacturing industry and jobs
Ted Heath. Proclaimed a 3 day working week in 1974 called an Election and lost it
Anthony Eden. Involved Britain in the Suez debacle in 1956
Ramsay MacDonald. Split the Labour Party in 1931 and ushered in the hungry thirties
Johnson’s hard Brexit while it has hardly had a beneficial impact in most areas can hardly be compared to the energy and climate crisis and the Tories unwillingness to grapple with them. Johnson was just too lazy and self-obsessed to be the worst PM in a century. Lloyd George was also self-obsessed, he was certainly not lazy
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