Hello. Partygate now has much, much worse for Boris Johnson. It would be surprising if the number of Tory MPs who conclude that they will have a better chance of re-election in the next election under a different leader has not increased overnight, or if Tories already lean towards that view. don’t feel a little safer this morning.
It wasn’t like partygate wasn’t very damaging, and even potentially career threatening, in the first place. But the latest revelations, starting with a blog post by Dominic Cummings on Friday that said there was a lockdown break party in Downing Street on May 20 last year (“Me and at least one other Spad [in writing so Sue Gray can dig up the original email and the warning] said this seemed to be against the rules and shouldn’t happen ”), followed by the Sunday Times suggesting Boris Johnson was there, and culminating with ITV’s Paul Brand posting the email invitation sent by the top private secretary of Johnson, Martin Reynolds – they’ve taken this to a new level. Here’s our overnight story that sums up the situation.
Why is this so much worse? There are at least three reasons.
1) No 10 has been able to half-defend the previous partygate accusations by stating that they were essentially work meetings that involved having a drink at the end of the day. For some events, such as the Christmas party on December 18, this defense was highly unlikely. But it doesn’t work at all in light of Reynolds’ email invitation sent to staff before May 20. Reynolds wrote:
Hello everyone, After what has been an incredibly busy period, we thought it would be nice to make the most of the beautiful weather and have some socially-distanced drinks in Garden # 10 tonight. Join us starting at 6pm and bring your own drink!
Even Lord Geidt would have to conclude that it was a party invitation, not a business invitation.
2) Boris Johnson was almost certainly there himself. Witnesses have told reporters he attended, and he and No 10 have declined multiple invitations to deny it. That means another key defense deployed so far in response to partygate – that Johnson didn’t know what staff might have been doing in what is a relatively large office complex – is no longer sustainable.
3) The Metropolitan Police, which has done everything possible to avoid being drawn into previous complaints, seem more likely to investigate this.
Eduardo Argar, the health minister, has been doing the morning round of interviews on behalf of No. 10. He refused to explain what happened, sticking to Monday’s No. 10 line that these were all matters for investigation. partygate senior Sue Gray was hosting. But official said “appropriate disciplinary action” should be taken if Gray discovers rules have been violated, and that he can understand why people are “upset and angry” at the reports.
But Labor said Johnson had to explain himself now rather than just waiting for Gray’s investigation to conclude. Angela Reyner, the deputy leader of the party, said:
Boris Johnson’s detours and distractions are no longer sustainable.
Sue Gray is a highly respected civil servant who will conduct research at the highest level.
But the truth is out now. Boris Johnson not only knew about the parties, he attended them and lied.
It is time for the Prime Minister to stop hiding behind the Whitehall investigations and finally come clean.
Rayner refers to the many times Johnson told MPs in the House of Commons that the rules were not broken (although, generally, Johnson spoke in response to questions about Christmas holidays, rather than partying at any time) .
Ed miliband, the shadow Minister of Climate Change, made a similar argument on the Today show. He said:
It’s all very well that we have the Sue Gray investigation, but the prime minister can’t run and he can’t hide. You have to respond. If I went to a party, I know I went to the party. You have to explain – were you at the party?
How can he possibly justify all the things he said in the House of Commons – that he didn’t break the rules, that he didn’t do anything wrong? He’s going to have to answer.
It speaks of a rotten culture at the heart of this government and the rotten culture begins with the person in charge.
And this is from Wes streeting, the shadow health secretary.
Wes Streeting MP
(@wesstreeting)Ministers should not be on the air defending Boris Johnson, much less a minister from the Department of Health.
Let the Prime Minister do his own dirty work.
Johnson has done incalculable damage to confidence in the government’s sanitary measures. Unforgivable.
Here is the agenda for the day.
9.30 am: Boris Johnson chair furniture.
10 am: Lord Evans, Chairman of the Committee on Standards in Public Life, testifies before the House of Commons Committee on Public Service and Constitutional Affairs on Governance Standards in light of the Greensill case.
11.30 am: Downing Street holds a briefing in the lobby.
12:00: The Department of Education publishes student attendance figures.
12:00: Eluned Morgan, the Welsh government minister for health, conducts a Covid briefing.
After 12:45: MPs are beginning to debate a Labor motion calling for a reduction in VAT on fuel and setting aside parliamentary time for a bill implementing this to be debated.
14:20: Nicola Sturgeon, Prime Minister of Scotland, gives a statement to the Scottish Parliament on Covid.
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George is Digismak’s reported cum editor with 13 years of experience in Journalism