Jennifer Arcuri blasts Boris Johnson for casting her aside 'like a gremlin'
2 min read
Jennifer Arcuri has hit out at Boris Johnson as she accused him of casting her aside "like a gremlin" following revelations about their relationship.
The American businesswoman accused Boris Johnson of treating her like a "one-night stand" after he snubbed repeated efforts to contact him when details of their involvement became public earlier this year.
Mr Johnson has faced accusations of misconduct after companies belonging to Ms Arcuri were handed £126,000 in public grants and she was invited on trade missions during his time as London Mayor.
The US tech entrepreneur has repeatedly refused to say whether the pair had an intimate relationship with the Prime Minister, but in an explosive ITV interview, she said she had come under pressure from friends to "admit" the pair had an "affair".
"When the story broke half of the people that reached out told me to categorically deny, deny, deny the other half told me to, admit the, er, affair, fall on the sword, get it over with," she said.
And addressing Mr Johnson directly, she said she was "heartbroken" after claiming he hung up on her after hearing her voice.
"I've been nothing buy loyal, faithful, supportive, and a true confidante of yours. I've kept your secrets, and I've been your friend," she said.
"And I don't understand why you've blocked me and ignored me as if I was some fleeting one-night stand or some girl you picked up at a bar because I wasn't - and you know that.
"And I'm terribly heartbroken by the way you have case me aside like I am some gremlin."
The Prime Minister has denied he acted improperly with Ms Arcuri, saying he handled their relationship with "complete propriety".
But police watchdog the Independent Office of Police Conduct is still deciding whether to investigate Mr Johnson for a potential misconduct in public office offence over the transactions.
A separate Government review into the decision by Mr Johnson to grant a £100,000 fund to Ms Arcuri concluded the transaction was "appropriate".
But during the interview, to be aired on Sunday night, the businesswoman said she had wished Mr Johnson had been more open about their personal relationship during his time in City Hall.
She said: "I didn't know anything about having to declare me.
"Now if you're asking if he had declared me, would I have preferred that to avoid all of this humiliation? Absolutely?"
Responding to the programme, a Conservative Party spokesperson said the decision to refer Mr Johnson to the police watchdog was "vexatious and politically motivated".
PoliticsHome Newsletters
PoliticsHome provides the most comprehensive coverage of UK politics anywhere on the web, offering high quality original reporting and analysis: Subscribe
