Labour chiefs are bracing for 20 members of staff to be questioned over Sir Keir Starmer’s lockdown curry.
The Labour leader was caught on camera drinking a beer in an MP’s office after a day of campaigning for the local elections in Durham in April 2021.
At the time of the event, Covid meant that indoor gatherings would be prohibited except for the purpose of work..
The event is now subject to an investigation by Durham Police, with Sir Keir announcing he will quit if he is issued with a fixed penalty notice.
Sir Keir has maintained that he did not break the rules in Durham and is ‘sure’ the police will come to the same conclusion.
Now Insiders in the labour movement fear up to 20 questionnaires from police could be given starting from next week while additional witnesses are summoned to give statements.
Party chiefs reportedly now fear their defence that the event was work-related could be sunk because beers were only bought because Sir Keir was coming, sources say.
Sir Keir has been called ‘Mr Rules” and claims he never broke Covid laws. He was also pictured wearing a mask in a Cafe Nero at Darlington, on August 13, 2020, during lockdown. The Sun reported.
The regulations at that time required you to wear a face mask if you were eating or drinking.
Loose Woman’s first appearance, Labour Leader John McDonnell said: “I’ve put everything on the table because it’s the right thing to.
After spending the day in Durham campaigning, Labour’s leader was seen drinking a beer at an MP’s desk.
A witness claimed that Sir Keir was present in the coffee shop “for about 15 to 20 mins, without any mask, drink or food.”
It comes as Sir Keir said he has ‘put everything on the line’ by promising to step down if he is fined over alleged Covid rule breaking.
The Labour leader, appearing on Loose women for the first-time, said that he had put all his resources on the line as a matter of principle.
“That is completely opposite to what the Prime Minister says.”
The Opposition Leader was told that it wasn’t up to him whether he has broken the rules. However, he said: “I know I do, but I also knew my instinct. As soon as Durham decided to reopen their investigation, I immediately knew my intention. That is, if they find me wrong, then I will correct the situation and step down.”
Sir Keir said that the probe into beergate by police was a completely different scenario to Downing Street’s investigation.
The question he received was why he didn’t quit when he called previously for Boris Johnson as Prime Minister to resign in order for him to be investigated by police.
He stated, “By that time we knew there was an industrial-scale rule violation in Downing Street.”
“We had seen so many different examples such as the wheelbarrow with booze, and then the suitcases, but it was completely different.
He claimed that trust is “everything” in politics, and that he didn’t think that all politicians were the same.
“The amount of times that I have heard: “You are all the same. You won’t do right.”
“I believe trust in politics is essential. For that honour and for integrity, I will risk everything because I do not believe every politician is the same.
“It is vital that we don’t fall into the trap where everyone thinks all politicians the same. Then people will lose faith in democracy.