Michael Gove has defended Boris Johnson over his controversial Jimmy Savile comments today, saying he has nothing to apologise for.
Victims of prolific sex offender Savile have called on the prime minister to withdraw a baseless slur he made against Sir Keir Starmer in the Commons on Monday.
Johnson attacked the Labour leader during a debate on the partygate scandal, accusing him of “failing to prosecute Jimmy Savile” while he was director of public prosecutions.
Conservative MPs have called on the beleaguered prime minister to withdraw the comment - including former cabinet minister Julian Smith who said it was an indefensible accusation to make. Tory MP Sir Bob Neill agreed, saying: “This suggestion is baseless and unworthy.”
But in an interview with The Sun released overnight, Johnson controversially doubled down, saying: “As far I’m aware, it’s fairly accurate.”
And today one of Johnson’s most senior cabinet ministers Michael Gove went one step further saying the PM has nothing to apologise for.
Asked by Sky News presenter Kay Burley if the PM had “anything to apologise for”, the Levelling Up Secretary replied simply: “No.”
He added: “I think this is a uniquely sensitive issue and it does need to be handled with care, and I listen with enormous respect to those who act for victims of the actions of a terrible, terrible criminal.
“But – and it’s not a subject that I want to dwell on because it is uniquely sensitive – it is the case that the CPS apologised for the handling of this case and what happened in 2009, and I think we should acknowledge that an apology was given at the time and respect that.”
He added: “Keir Starmer acknowledged that mistakes had been made by the organisation of which he was head, to his credit. He was very clear about those mistakes.”
However, victims of Savile accused Johnson of using their experiences to climb out of a “political hole”.
Richard Scorer, head of abuse and public inquiries at law firm Slater and Gordon, said his clients were “appalled and disgusted” at baseless comments made by the PM.
Starmer said Johnson’s claim was a “ridiculous slur peddled by right-wing trolls”.
“It’s obviously not true. But he does it because he doesn’t understand honesty and integrity,” Starmer added.
Meanwhile, Commons speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle rebuked the PM but stopped short of demanding an apology.
Hoyle said he was disappointed about the state of the discourse, but added: “I am far from satisfied that the comments in question were appropriate on this occasion.
“I want to see more compassionate, reasonable politics in this house and these sort of comments can only inflame opinions.”
Two other cabinet ministers have rowed in to defend Johnson including deputy prime minister Dominic Raab who said it was part of the “cut and thrust of parliamentary debates and exchanges” but said he was not prepared to repeat the allegation.
The culture secretary Nadine Dorries also told Channel 4 News: “I have no idea of the background of Keir Starmer...the prime minister tells the truth.”
Factchecking organisation Full Fact looked into the claim in June 2020 and found: “Starmer was head of the [Crown Prosecution Service] when the decision was made not to prosecute Savile but he was not the reviewing lawyer for the case.”