The Tories v Johnson

The Conservative Party has ordered an inquiry into the row surrounding Boris Johnson’s article in this newspaper about the burka ban in Europe. To what purpose? Everyone knows what the former foreign secretary said; the words do not need to be established since they are not disputed. Moreover, his meaning was clear: he supported religious tolerance and was opposed to the bans on Islamic dress for women brought in by several EU countries. But he also questioned whether burkas or niqabs, which cover the face or the complete body, were oppressive forms of garb designed to subjugate women. Many Muslim women think they are. Indeed, many Muslim countries are now outlawing this sort of dress which Western liberals believe should be defended. Mr Johnson described the dress as ridiculous or like a letter box. He was not making a pejorative comment about the wearer, but the outfit itself.

Mr Johnson has let it be known he is not going to be forced by this hue-and-cry into apologising. But the party says the inquiry is a requirement under the rules because complaints have been made. That is an invitation to anyone to lodge objections to any Tory MP in the hope of triggering internal disciplinary measures. The Tory hierarchy responded in a knee-jerk way to the initial criticism of Mr Johnson from those who want to shut down any discussion of an important cultural matter. They are now in a quandary: either they back down or Mr Johnson does. What is the point of triggering a civil war in the party in this way? Their opponents have achieved precisely what they set out to achieve – pitching Tories against each other while distracting attention from Labour’s far more toxic anti-semitism woes.