British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been under pressure for weeks because parties were apparently held at the government headquarters during the lockdowns. New details keep seeping through.
Johnson’s “Partygate” never ends.
(dpa)
New reports of a party call on Downing Street despite strict corona rules mean that British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is struggling to explain. Dozens of employees as well as the head of government and his current wife Carrie Johnson are said to have accepted the invitation from Johnson’s office manager Martin Reynolds and met on May 20, 2020 in the garden of the official residence. 30 to 40 employees should have participated.
“It starts at 6 p.m., bring your own alcohol with you”: The e-mail that the broadcaster ITV now published and which was then sent to around 100 employees leaves little doubt that it was a private event. At that time, only two people were allowed to meet outdoors.
Relatives of corona victims and the opposition are outraged. Despite clear evidence, Johnson had repeatedly denied that the corona rules had been broken on Downing Street. When an internal video from December 2020 showed how close employees of the prime minister were joking about the cover-up of a Christmas party, Johnson emphasized in Parliament: “I can understand how angry it is to think that the people who made the rules, the Failed to follow the rules because I was angry too. “
The «Partygate» affair escalates
Now his words from December 2021 could have consequences for Johnson himself. The e-mail from his office manager was the most serious escalation of the “Partygate” affair to date, the online portal “Politico” wrote on Tuesday. BBC reporter Laura Kuenssberg commented: “There is no escape for No. 10 before the party allegations. ” Long tables were set up for drinks, chips and sausage rolls in the garden of Johnson’s official residence.
Johnson’s hope is now there to finally get rid of the affair, which caused his popularity ratings to collapse at the end of the year, in 2022. The anger within his Conservative Party had only just subsided. Now a cabinet member of the Guardian said: “This is the worst exposure the prime minister has ever seen as a result of this piercing. There is no explanation. There is no way to distance yourself. ” The broadcaster Sky News quoted a member of the government as saying that the event could not be defended.
Do rules only apply to others?
The opposition accuses Johnson of being misled. “Stop lying to the British public,” tweeted Labor Party leader Keir Starmer. His colleague Ed Miliband rhetorically asked on Sky News, referring to Johnson, “How can he get people to follow government health advice after he’s been so blatantly breaking the rules?”
In May 2020, strict corona regulations were in force. Relatives could only follow the funerals of loved ones online. The police warned Jogger by megaphone to keep the distance rules of two meters to other people. Schools, many shops and restaurants were closed. 55 minutes before the start of the alleged garden party, cabinet member Oliver Dowden from Downing Street called on the population to abide by the rules.
“Back then everyone knew that it would be wrong to go to a party,” said Hannah Brady of an organization that represents corona victims, the BBC. “How could those who run the country think it was okay?” Her father died four days before the celebration. In September Johnson told her in the Downing Street garden, where the festival is said to have taken place, that he had done everything to protect her father. “Thinking about it makes me sick,” Brady said.
Police check reports
London police said they would be looking into the reports. The agency has not responded to previous reports of alleged celebrations in Downing Street. Meanwhile, in the Westminster Judicial District alone, more than 2,000 people have been prosecuted for failing to comply with lockdown or quarantine regulations, or for participating in parties.
There was still no real government response. It is an affront that Johnson sent a lower-ranking minister, in the form of Paymaster General Michael Ellis, to parliament to defend him against sharp Labor attacks. Ellis showed understanding for the outrage. However, he repeatedly referred to an ongoing internal investigation that the prime minister had already commissioned after reports of Christmas parties. Political London is now eagerly awaiting the result, but it looks bad for Johnson. For the government member, who was quoted anonymously in the Guardian, it is clear: “His only salvation would be if the public no longer cared about it.”