Back Boris Johnson Afrikaans Boris Johnson ALS Boris Johnson ANG بوريس جونسون Arabic بوريس جونسون ARZ Boris Johnson AST Boris Conson Azerbaijani بوریس جانسون AZB Boris Johnson BAT-SMG Борыс Джонсан Byelorussian
Boris Johnson | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Official portrait, 2019 | |
| Prime Minister of the United Kingdom | |
| Assumed office 24 July 2019 | |
| Monarch | Elizabeth II |
| Preceded by | Theresa May |
| Commonwealth Chair-in-Office | |
| Assumed office 24 July 2019 | |
| Head | Elizabeth II |
| Preceded by | Theresa May |
| Leader of the Conservative Party | |
| Assumed office 23 July 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Theresa May |
| Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs | |
| In office 13 July 2016 – 9 July 2018 | |
| Prime Minister | Theresa May |
| Preceded by | Philip Hammond |
| Succeeded by | Jeremy Hunt |
| Mayor of London | |
| In office 4 May 2008 – 9 May 2016 | |
| Preceded by | Ken Livingstone |
| Succeeded by | Sadiq Khan |
| Member of Parliament for Uxbridge and South Ruislip | |
| Assumed office 7 May 2015 | |
| Preceded by | John Randall |
| Majority | 7,210 (15.0%)[1] |
| Member of Parliament for Henley | |
| In office 7 June 2001 – 4 June 2008 | |
| Preceded by | Michael Heseltine |
| Succeeded by | John Howell |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson 19 June 1964 New York City, US |
| Citizenship |
|
| Political party | Conservative |
| Spouse(s) | |
| Domestic partner | Carrie Symonds (2018–present; engaged) |
| Children | At least 6[a] |
| Parents | |
| Relatives |
|
| Residence | 10 Downing Street |
| Education | Eton College |
| Alma mater | Balliol College, Oxford |
| Signature |  |
| Website | Boris Johnson website |
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (/ˈfɛfəl/;[6] born 19 June 1964) is a British politician and writer who has been Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party since July 2019. He was Foreign Secretary from 2016 to 2018 and Mayor of London from 2008 to 2016. Johnson has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Uxbridge and South Ruislip since 2015 and was previously MP for Henley from 2001 to 2008. He has been described as adhering to the ideology of one-nation and national conservatism.[7]
Johnson was educated at Eton College and studied Classics at Balliol College, Oxford. He was elected President of the Oxford Union in 1986. In 1989, he became the Brussels correspondent, and later political columnist, for The Daily Telegraph, where his articles exerted a strong Eurosceptic influence on the British right. He was editor of The Spectator magazine from 1999 to 2005. After being elected to Parliament in 2001, Johnson was a shadow minister under Conservative leaders Michael Howard and David Cameron. In 2008, he was elected Mayor of London and resigned from the House of Commons; he was re-elected as mayor in 2012. During his mayoralty, Johnson oversaw the 2012 Summer Olympics, introduced the New Routemaster buses, a cycle hire scheme and the Thames cable car, and banned alcohol consumption on much of London's public transport.
In the 2015 election, Johnson was elected MP for Uxbridge and South Ruislip; he stepped down as mayor the following year, during which he became a prominent figure in the successful Vote Leave campaign for Brexit in the 2016 EU membership referendum. He was appointed foreign secretary by Theresa May after the referendum; he resigned the position two years later in protest at May's approach to Brexit and the Chequers Agreement. After May resigned in 2019, he was elected Conservative leader and appointed prime minister. His September 2019 prorogation of Parliament was ruled unlawful by the Supreme Court.[b] In the 2019 election, Johnson led the Conservative Party to its biggest parliamentary victory since 1987, winning 43.6% of the vote – the largest share of any party since 1979. The United Kingdom withdrew from the EU under the terms of a revised Brexit withdrawal agreement, entering into a transition period and trade negotiations leading to the EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement. Since February 2020, Johnson has led the United Kingdom's ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic.[8]
Supporters of Johnson have praised him as optimistic, humorous and entertaining, with an appeal stretching beyond traditional Conservative voters. Conversely, his critics have accused him of elitism, cronyism, and prejudice. His actions that are viewed by supporters as pragmatic tend to be viewed by opponents as opportunistic.
- ^ "Uxbridge & South Ruislip". BBC News. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
- ^ Croucher, Shane (23 July 2019). "Britain's new prime minister was a U.S. citizen for decades—until the IRS caught up with him". Newsweek. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Guardian200429was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
Independent291119was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
Guardian291119was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Boris Johnson". Who Do You Think You Are?. 20 August 2008. BBC.
- ^ "It's One Nation under Boris Johnson's populist groove". The Times. 15 December 2019. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
- ^ "PM to update UK on 'steps to defeat' coronavirus". BBC News. 30 April 2020. Retrieved 6 October 2020.
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).