A crisis of confidence

Although often a controversial and polarizing figure, Britain’s flamboyant Conservative prime minister Boris Johnson is currently facing the greatest crisis of his time in office, indeed of his political career. Johnson’s approval ratings have sunk to an all-time low following a flood of revelations over the past few weeks. The sensational news has included the fact that he or members of his staff held office parties while the rest of the country was in COVID-19 lockdown, and he is now facing calls to resign from within his own party. Johnson’s fall from grace is an object lesson in the perils of governing through a pandemic, and a wake-up call for political leaders throughout the democratic world.

Most countries have faced significant political tensions throughout the pandemic, as governments have been vilified for acting too slowly and indecisively to address the crisis, for overreacting and curtailing too many civil liberties, or sometimes both. And to be sure, COVID-19 has presented a once-in-a-generation challenge for political leaders, and there have been no easy answers. Up until now, Johnson and his Conservative majority government have weathered the various waves of the crisis comparatively well, with the British public proving remarkably resilient in the face of enormous demands of collective sacrifice over nearly two years. Despite restrictions far stricter and longer-lasting than most Americans have had to endure, Johnson has been criticized more often for doing too little to stop the virus than for being too strict. But, especially after successfully steering Britain through the Omicron wave without the additional lockdowns many feared, it had begun to look like he might emerge from the long pandemic with new political strength.

But Johnson is learning the hard way that politics is as much about perception as it is about policy—and more about integrity than expertise. Proud citizens of a habitually rule-following society, Brits were ready and willing to comply with strict social-distancing rules for months, as long as their leaders showed a similar commitment to making the same sacrifices. With growing signs that Johnson and his subordinates were unwilling to practice what they preached, the weary British public is understandably proving quite unforgiving.

By late last year, opinion polls showed a deep cynicism had set in, with only 42 percent of Brits expressing confidence that political leaders would follow their own COVID rules. Then, in mid-December, a trickle of ugly rumors about parties during lockdowns at No. 10 Downing Street turned into a flood of bad news for the prime minister. Over the ensuing month, evidence emerged of 10 potential violations that had occurred during periods of strict restrictions between March 2020 and May 2021—including parties on the eve of Prince Philip’s funeral last April and a wine-and-cheese gathering of at least 25 members of his staff that the prime minister himself had attended. This last revelation prompted an abject apology to the House of Commons from the ordinarily cocky Johnson on Jan. 12, and the political storm has yet to abate.

One can almost feel sorry for Johnson. After all, the parties in question were not mindless recreations but seem to have all been well-intentioned efforts to thank or honor hard-working staff members during a uniquely stressful time. Several took place outdoors and may have even technically followed the letter of the laws that were in effect at the time. And over the course of a nearly two-year pandemic, perhaps nobody can be quite perfect.

Still, if extraordinary challenges, like COVID, demand extraordinary sacrifices by ordinary citizens, then they also demand an extraordinarily high bar of integrity and consistency from the leaders enacting such policies. There was a time when rulers were expected to be above the law, claiming privileges and exceptions for themselves that the common people could never enjoy. Today, however, we are blessed to live in a world where those who govern are expected to lead by example. Indeed, how else could they be justified in limiting freedoms by law if they do not know what it is like to submit to such limits themselves?

Boris Johnson’s track record during COVID may have been pretty good, but “pretty good” is not good enough during a time of such extreme collective self-sacrifice and widespread suffering. And “pretty good” falls pretty flat when hypocrisy is revealed, much less dishonesty.

But what began as the appearance of hypocrisy now looks like an attempt to pull the wool over the eyes of the British people. If Johnson somehow survives the current crisis of confidence, he will have his work cut out of him in reestablishing any sense of public trust in his leadership. His crisis serves as a warning to all leaders. Trust is far more easily lost than gained.