Rishi Sunak has said he won't order Tory MPs to go easy on Boris Johnson when they interrogate him over Partygate lies.
The Commons Privileges Committee is expected to haul the ex-PM in for a grilling next week as part of their probe into whether he deliberately misled Parliament about lockdown boozing in No10.
If he is found to have deliberately lied about what he knew, he could be suspended from the Commons - which could even trigger a by-election in his seat.
Mr Sunak told broadcasters in San Diego yesterday(MON) that he would not try to influence Conservatives on the committee not to impose a large punishment.
"That wouldn't be right," the PM said.
Asked if he was not concerned that a suspension of more than 10 days could trigger a by-election, Mr Sunak added: "This is a matter for Parliament, for the House.
"It's not right for the Government to get involved."
Mr Sunak also defended Mr Johnson's massive earnings since he left Downing Street, with the ex-PM trousering nearly £5m in a matter of months.
Mr Sunak told Sky News: "There's lots of different ways that MPs combine what they're doing in Parliament and the other things that they pursue. It's right there's balance in that."
Asked why he slammed Matt Hancock for going on I'm a Celeb and not Mr Johnson, he said: "There's a difference between being physically unable to fulfil your job in the UK if you're abroad for a long period of time and being able to do all the things alongside it.
"I think most people will appreciate there's a difference there."
