image source,Reuters
Boris Johnson admitted in Parliament on January 12 that he did attend a reception at 10 Downing Street Gardens on May 20, 2020.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has once again been caught up in the “partygate” scandal.
This time, the media broke the news alleging that as many as 100 people received emails during the first phase of the British lockdown in 2020, inviting them to “bring their own drinks” to the garden at No. 10 Downing Street, the Prime Minister’s Office.
The allegations come after Prime Minister Boris Johnson was accused of drinking and partying with staff at 10 Downing Street in violation of anti-epidemic regulations. Now, the investigation into those gatherings has not been completed, and he faces new allegations.
British tabloids on Wednesday (January 12) expressed anger on the front pages of the headlines, including the tabloid “Daily Mail” with a pun to ask: Is the Prime Minister’s party over?
The Inside Story of the Latest “Bring Your Own Beverage” Party Door
ITV has revealed an email sent to Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s private secretary, Martin Reynolds.
The email was sent to 100 people in Downing Street, inviting them to “drink with social distancing in the gardens of No. 10 (Prime Minister’s Office) tonight”.
About 30 people are believed to have attended the drinking party on May 20, 2020. Two witnesses told the BBC they saw both Prime Minister Johnson and his wife Carrie present at the gathering.
Johnson said on the 12th in parliament that he had gone to the party to “thank the staff” and left after “25 minutes”, and he expressed “heartfelt apology”.
What are the lockdown measures in the UK on May 20, 2020?
During the new crown epidemic, the United Kingdom has various regulations and legal restrictions on behavior that may spread the virus.
Daily Mail front page headline pun: Is the Prime Minister’s party over?
Legal restrictions will be punished once found to be violated, and violations may even be prosecuted. But Stuart Nolan of the Law Society explained that unless there is a legal backing, law enforcement won’t enforce it through fines or court action.
In terms of anti-epidemic regulations, on the day that No. 10 Downing Street Garden was accused of partying and drinking (May 20, 2020), Oliver Dowden, the British government minister responsible for digital, culture, media and sports, presided over the meeting. The government’s televised briefing on COVID-19.
He told the British public that day: “You can only meet one person outside your family in the open air, and you must maintain a two-meter distance.”
This is the day’s epidemic prevention regulations, which means that any party with dozens of people is illegal.
In addition, there are a series of legal restrictions on the day.
No one is allowed to leave or go outside the residence without a reasonable reason, except for work (for those who cannot work from home), fitness and shopping for food/medicine.
Breach of these restrictions can see police in England fined £100 for first offenders and double the fine for each offender, up to a maximum of £3,200.
British barrister Adam Wagner said it would be difficult to interpret the Downing Street gathering as not breaking the rules.
“If you are doing something that is not necessary for your job, then you have no reasonable reason to be outside your home and you may be criminally liable.”
But Wagner said the prime minister and his wife lived in Downing Street, so technically they didn’t leave their home for the party.
The law at the time also prohibited gatherings of more than two people in public, unless all gatherers were members of the same household or the gathering was necessary for work. However, lawyers point out that Downing Street is not a public place.
image source,PA Media
Covid-19 has killed more than 150,000 people in the UK. The public is extremely angry at the Prime Minister’s “double standard” approach of asking the whole people to abide by the anti-epidemic regulations, while he gathers to drink.
What other allegations of illegal gatherings does the Prime Minister face?
Several other gatherings were also alleged to have been held in Downing Street during the UK’s 2020 lockdown.
On November 27, 2020, Downing Street was accused of hosting a farewell party for a departing staff member. At that time, the whole country was in a state of lockdown, and any indoor gatherings with other families were strictly prohibited except when necessary for work.
On December 15, 2020, Downing Street was accused of hosting a quiz party with prizes. At the time, London was in the second stage of its anti-epidemic measures, which prohibited more than two people who did not live together from meeting indoors unless there was an essential work reason.
On December 18, 2020, in a funny video of a news conference that was exposed, Downing Street was accused of hosting a Christmas party. According to the regulations at the time, any Christmas dinners were not allowed.
How does Johnson respond to all the allegations?
Prime Minister Boris Johnson told MPs in Parliament that “10 Downing Street strictly complies with all COVID-19 regulations” when he was initially accused of illegal Christmas gatherings.
A video of the press conference that was later released indirectly confirmed the aftermath of the dinner, and Johnson said he fully understood the public’s anger.
“It goes without saying that if someone breaks the rules, they will be disciplined.”
Johnson said he was “certainly not breaking any of the rules”, while Number 10 said the prime minister had “briefly attended a quiz party via video link” to thank staff for staying on the job during the pandemic.
When a photo emerged showing the Prime Minister and Mrs. 10 Downing Street gardens with staff on a table with bottles and cheese on May 15, 2020, Johnson said the photo showed “everyone at work”, while This is allowed by the pandemic regulations.
Prime Minister Johnson admitted in Parliament on January 12 that he attended the gathering on May 20, 2020. He was “deeply apologetic” for this, but he only attended for 25 minutes and thought it was a “work arrangement”.
image source,PA Media
“There is a lot of pressure” inside and outside the party
Prime Minister Johnson has been repeatedly accused of breaking the rules during the nationwide lockdown, which has caused huge damage to the image of his government.
After the “Bring Your Own Beverage” party was exposed, the leader of Britain’s main opposition Labour Party publicly stated that the Prime Minister should “resign for the sake of dignity”.
However, public opinion was extremely angry at the Prime Minister’s “only state officials are allowed to set fires, and people are not allowed to light the lights”.
Within Johnson’s Conservative Party, many MPs were also extremely dissatisfied with the leader’s treatment of the law as a child’s play, and some MPs called on him to clarify and apologize.
BBC political affairs correspondent Nick Eardley said it was the most meaningful apology I’ve heard from Johnson so far.
“It is extremely important that the Prime Minister himself admitted in Parliament that he attended a ‘bring your own drink’ party at 10 Downing Street Gardens. Conservative backbenchers were very quiet as the Prime Minister continued to explain and apologise. The text message said the Prime Minister’s defence was ‘too weak to justify’.”
BBC political affairs editor Laura Kuensburg believes the partygate controversy will not end there. Johnson did apologize, but he also said he wasn’t technically breaking the rules. Such a statement may “buy him some time”, but at the end of the day, he is asking the Conservative Party to wait until the investigation is over before making a decision.