Tory minister Lord Zac Goldsmith resigns as MP after Boris Johnson interference report

Lord Zac Goldsmith has resigned as a Tory minister following the Privileges Committee naming him in a report on Thursday as one of 10 politicians who were part of a campaign to interfere with their inquiry into Boris Johnson’s partygate.

Mr Goldsmith was named alongside the likes of Nadine Dorries and Jacob Rees-Mogg by Harriet Harman who created security concerns to their investigation by applying ‘co-ordinated and improper pressure’.

The now former Tory minister quit his environmental role stating that the government is ‘hostile’ to the issue while also criticising prime minister Rishi Sunak by suggesting that he is ‘simply uninterested’.

While Lord Goldsmith’s decision to step down comes after the ally report was published by the Privileges Committee, the 48-year-old also mentioned in his resignation letter that he posted on Twitter that the government’s ‘apathy’ in the face of environmental challenges is behind his departure.

He said: “More worrying, the UK has visibly stepped off the world stage and withdrawn our leadership on climate and nature.

“Too often we are simply absent from key international fora. Only last week you [Mr Sunak] seemingly chose to attend the party of a media baron rather than attend a critically important environment summit in Paris that ordinarily the UK would have co-led."