Can we trust Boris Johnson?

If we can't trust our Prime Minister, who can we trust? It's a question that's been asked in the mainstream UK media, after it was reported that Boris Johnson wasn't always briefed by Theresa May and the Foreign Office during his tenure as Foreign Secretary. It seems that they had their doubts that he could keep information confidential.

Such reticence to divulge sensitive information to politicians is nothing new. Both Harold Wilson and Michael Foot were suspected by MI5 of being Soviet sympathisers if not Soviet spies. Such paranoia must be taken in the context of the Cold War days, and a security service establishment that was deeply suspicious of any left wing socialist government.

So if, as seems likely, Boris wins the race to become our next Prime Minister, should he be trusted with all affairs of the state? My answer may surprise you.


If he wins, he'd be our leader. So why shouldn't he be given all the information required to do his job effectively? If he isn't and something detrimental happens as a result, heads will roll and it won't be his. If he divulges something sensitive, so be it. We may not like it if it happens, but tough. He shouldn't have been elected in the first place.

I remember a cat we had growing up that was very inquisitive about an electric bar fire we sometimes used in the winter. It frequently wanted to sniff it. No matter how many times we told it "No!", it continued to try. One day it achieved its aim, and went through the rest of its life with pin scar tissue on the end of his nose. It never went near the fire again though.

I'm not a fan of Boris or the company he keeps, but I respect the will of the Conservative and Unionist party. If they elect him, he will be our next Prime Minister. If he screws up, no doubt he'll be booted out by either the electorate or his party. 

It's called democracy, and as we all know, it isn't perfect. It doesn't mean getting your way all the time. In a democracy you must accept that occasionally you your side loses. It's awful when it happens, but the alternative is a dictatorship or anarchy.