LONDON — Boris Johnson insisted refurbishing his Downing Street flat was necessary because the heart of the British state “looked like a crack den.”
The former prime minister was questioned about the expensive — and controversial — refurbishment of his living accommodation in office while promoting his new book “Unleashed.”
“The whole thing looked like a crack den to be totally honest with you,” Johnson told LBC. “It needed to be refurbished.”
Johnson faced criticism in 2021 when high-end designer Lulu Lytle’s refurbishment of the Downing Street flat cost at least £112,000. That far exceeded the £30,000 annual grant funded by the taxpayer.
Media reports at the time said the then-PM’s spouse Carrie Johnson had slammed the “John Lewis furniture nightmare” they inherited from Theresa May in 2019.
The funding of the refurb became particularly controversial when it was disclosed that Conservative donor David Brownlow helped cover the costs.
The Conservatives were fined £17,800 by the Electoral Commission for failing to properly declare donations by Brownlow’s company Huntswood Associates used for the works. A government ethics probe cleared Johnson himself of any wrongdoing, but said he had acted “unwisely.”
When pressed on a reported total bill of £200,000 for the works, Johnson told LBC host Nick Ferrari that he didn’t recognize that figure. “It wasn’t as much as that,” he said.
Johnson would not be drawn on whether he liked the new wallpaper, which he denied was gold. “I’m not a great expert on wallpaper,” he added.
Johnson’s book, out this week, has already raised eyebrows in Westminster for its candid revelations, including details of the late Queen Elizabeth II‘s health in her final years; a suggestion Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu bugged his bathroom; and the claim of a one-to-one pep talk with Prince Harry trying to dissuade the royal from leaving Britain.
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