BORIS COURT DEBT
MYSTERY £535 COUNTY JUDGMENT AGAINST PRIME MINISTER
BORIS JOHNSON is facing trouble over his haphazard finances after being issued with a county court judgment for an unpaid debt of £535.
Documents show the prime minister – said to be ‘worried about money’ on his £161,401 salary and facing investigations over who paid for a lavish flat refurb – got the judgment six months ago but seems still not to have paid the bill. Having a CCJ could stop him obtaining loans, would remain on his credit history for six years – and could even see bailiffs turn up at No.10.
Last night, the PM’s spokesman called the claim ‘totally without merit’, adding: ‘An application will be made for an order to set aside the default judgment, to strike out the claim.’ Asked if it was to do with a £200,000 makeover ordered by his fiancée Carrie Symonds, the spokesman said: ‘I can confirm that
it is nothing to do with the refurbishment of the Downing Street estate.’
Asked if the public should be concerned about the finances of the PM – who is also officially First Lord of the Treasury – a spokeswoman added: ‘You should not be concerned, no.’
The county court’s online database shows an ‘unsatisfied record’ of a £535 debt was registered to him at his home address of 10 Downing Street on October 26. The claimant, who applied online, would have had to provide evidence for their £60 county court claim.
The judgment was revealed by Private Eye magazine and seemed at first to leave No.10 at a loss.
It declined to say if Mr Johnson was challenging it because he had paid, or whether he disputed the bill, or even if he believed it was a prank.
And it was not clear why he did not act sooner to address the issue – or if he ignored bills and follow-up letters.
Mr Johnson’s legal challenge could cost him another £255. The PM has faced a series of sleaze allegations in recent weeks – although it seemed not to dent his party’s performance in last week’s local elections and Hartlepool by-election.
A probe began this week into the funding of a £15,000 Mustique holiday he and Carrie took in December 2019.
The Electoral Commission is already investigating how the Downing Street refurb was funded, finding ‘reasonable grounds’ to suspect offences. No.10 insists Mr Johnson has now financed the work himself, though there were reports of an initial loan. Ms Symonds is said to have demanded the overhaul by interior designer pal Lulu Lytle to remove the ‘John Lewis nightmare’ left by predecessor Theresa May – but friends say Mr Johnson complained about the £840-a-roll gold wallpaper she chose. His former chief aide Dominic Cummings claimed last month that he warned the PM ‘plans to have donors secretly pay for the renovation were unethical, foolish, possibly illegal and almost certainly broke the rules on proper disclosure of political donations’.
Mr Johnson once earned around £250,000 a year from a column in The Daily Telegraph – but called it ‘chicken feed’ when challenged over a conflict of interest when he was mayor of London. He also earned fortunes from books, speeches and journalism but had to cut down when he became PM.
His finances are also thought to have taken a significant hit after his divorce last year from second wife Marina, mother to four of his six children.
And he faces the expense of starting a new family with latest addition Wilfred, his one-year-old son with Carrie.
Hours after the PM’s financial woes emerged, Citizens Advice helpfully tweeted: ‘You might have a county court judgment against you if you owe someone money and a court ruled that you have to pay it back.
‘Your credit rating could be affected but in some cases you might be able to get it set aside.
‘Use our advice to find out more.’