Boris Johnson, Britain’s first French prime minister?
His chances depend on how French the British have become in their attitude to privacy
“ET ALORS?” So responded François Mitterrand, then president of France, when asked about a child from an extra-marital relationship. His curt “So what?” summed up the way in which the private lives of French politicians are generally off-limits to nosy journalists, and of little concern to French voters. Criticism of François Hollande, another president caught having an affair, focused on the fact that he had turned up to his illicit liaisons on an unpresidential scooter. How Boris Johnson must have wished that similar attitudes prevailed in Britain when an argument with his girlfriend became front-page news on June 21st, after the police were called to her flat in south London.
This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “Monsieur Boris”
Britain June 29th 2019
- The front line of England’s NHS is being reinvented
- Boris Johnson, Britain’s first French prime minister?
- The search for ways to keep the Irish border open after Brexit
- A rare peep at the finances of Britain’s 0.01%
- Seeking students and status, regional universities set up in London
- How Welshmen went from mining coal to pumping iron
- Leaving the EU is straining the union with Scotland
From the June 29th 2019 edition
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How the idea of false consciousness conquered the governing party
The best British companies to work for to get ahead
A new ranking of firms by pay, promotions and hiring practices
How the best British employers find and promote their staff
No degree? Some employers care much less than others
A tiny island fights the scourge of plastic on the beach
A Northern Irish experiment in recycling
A sticking-plaster policy for Britain’s strained courts
Magistrates get more power. Will they get punch-drunk on it?