London: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson apologised Monday for lockdown-flouting parties in Downing Street – but insisted that he and his government can be trusted. Johnson told lawmakers in the House of Commons that he would make changes to the way the government is run in the wake of the ‘partygate’ scandal. He said: “I get it and I will fix it.”
Johnson spoke after senior civil servant Sue Gray found that gatherings by the prime minister and his staff represent a ‘serious failure’ to observe the standards expected of government. Senior civil servant Gray concluded that ‘there were failures of leadership and judgment’ in the government and ‘some of the events should not have been allowed to take place’.
“Against the backdrop of the pandemic, when the government was asking citizens to accept far-reaching restrictions on their lives, some of the behavior surrounding these gatherings is difficult to justify,” Gray said.
The strongly worded findings are a blow to Boris Johnson. He has previously said the rules were followed at all times. Gray’s findings on 12 other events in 2020 and 2021 have been withheld at the request of the police. They launched a criminal investigation into the most serious alleged breaches of coronavirus rules. The cuts have led opponents to accuse Johnson of a whitewash.
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Johnson was due to make a statement on the findings in the House of Commons later Monday.
Among the events under investigation by police are a June 2020 birthday party for Johnson and two gatherings held on the eve of Prince Philip’s funeral in April 2021.
Allegations that the prime minister and his staff flouted restrictions imposed on the country to curb the spread of the coronavirus have caused public anger, led some Conservative lawmakers to call for Johnson’s resignation and triggered intense infighting inside the governing party.
Johnson has denied personal wrongdoing and said he has ‘absolutely no intention’ of resigning. But Johnson’s grip on power has been weakened by allegations that he and his staff flouted restrictions they imposed on the country in 2020 and 2021 to curb the spread of the coronavirus with ‘bring your own booze’ office parties, birthday celebrations and ‘wine time Fridays’.
Publication of Gray’s report was delayed when the Metropolitan Police force launched its own investigation last week into the most serious alleged breaches of coronavirus rules. The force said it had asked for Gray’s report to make only ‘minimal reference’ to the events being investigated by detectives ‘to avoid any prejudice to our investigation’.
Johnson’s opponents accused the government of trying to water down a report that could trigger an attempt to oust the prime minister by his own party. Some Conservative lawmakers have said they will push for a no-confidence vote if Gray finds Johnson was at fault or lied to Parliament about his actions.
The circumscribed and partial report may give Johnson at least a temporary reprieve from calls for his ouster. “It’s a mess,” said Will Walden, a former Johnson aide. “It’s probably bad for democracy, but inadvertently good for the PM,” he added.
It’s unclear whether Gray’s full findings will be published once the police investigation is finished. Johnson’s spokesman, Max Blain, said the prime minister’s office would discuss with police and Gray’s team ‘what is suitable’ to publish.
Johnson could be interviewed by detectives as part of their probe and may face a fine if he is found to have breached the law.