Boris Johnson, tonight angry at staff members accused of holding law-breaking parties on Downing Street last year during lockdown, has defended them.
As he addressed the press in the same room in which aides joked last year about an illegal gathering, Prime Minister insists that events were’mischaracterised.
When asked if he was open to a probe by the police into several parties that were investigated in December and November 2020, he replied “Yes.”
This happened after Shaun Bailey, a former Tory London mayoral hopeful, apologized for being photographed at the Conservative Party Headquarters last December. Such gatherings are banned in London.
Johnson stated that he thought you mischaracterised events at this location where people have, to my best knowledge, worked tirelessly for years in collaboration with government officials and other public servants to ensure safety.
Reports that Downing Street had a party in 2020 during Christmas lockdown were the most disturbing. Staff laughed and joked about this incident.
Allegra Ston, Allegra’s ex-press secretary to the PM, was moved by the news and resigned.
“But, we will hear from him about the events and if there are any follow-up questions – I’m sure they will.
If I can say so: I believe the public is able to easily distinguish between the types of reports and these types accounts, as well as the imperative that all of us have come together to combat this disease in the dual pronged fashion that we do.
“I feel that those are the messages I am seeing the public hear very, very loudly and clearly, and respond tremendously.
Reports that Downing Street had a party in 2020 during Christmas lockdown were the most disturbing. Staff laughed and joked about this incident.
Allegra Ston, Allegra’s ex-press secretary to the PM, was moved by the news and resigned.
Last night it was claimed No10 staff who stayed in Downing Street to take part in an alleged ‘lockdown-busting’ Christmas quiz last year were told to ‘go out the back’.
Downing Street is accused of holding four parties that broke Covid restrictions last year, including a quiz attended by dozens of staff and which the Prime Minister helped to host on December 15 – three days before another Christmas party which is being investigated.
Prior to this, No10 insisted that Downing Street had ‘often been required to be at the office to help with the pandemic response’ throughout the numerous lockdowns. Accordingly, ‘those in the office for work might have attended virtually from the desks’.
The Mirror reported that a message from No10’s Head of HR advised those who stayed behind to participate in the quiz to ‘go out of the back’ after they had left.
Also, the paper revealed which team names were used on that night: ‘Professor Quinty’, “Rebels without Claus” and “Hands Face First Place”.
This quiz night was one of six held in Whitehall between November and December 2013, when the Government ordered the public to remain at home to protect the NHS. On December 15, Tier 2 regulations in London stated that there would be no mix of homes indoors except for support bubbles and six outsiders.
He has been assigned to examine alleged gatherings and parties that took place in government buildings under restrictions. His findings could be back as soon as next week.
Professor Chris Whitty, chief medical officer, stated that people can separate the feelings of injustice over breaching lockdown rules from how they act in the public’s best interests.
He said that he was angry about the alleged gatherings under restrictions.
“I am not going to comment on any individual case or the right or wrongs in any other matter. To be completely honest, this is something I’ve never done and it’s not my intention to.
‘What I believe is that most people can separate that from their need to seriously think about what’s right for them, their families and communities as well as their work environments, the country, and all of society.
People take this very seriously. I do not believe they have to be in conflict. People can actually do both.