Boris Johnson’s former aide accuses him of lying to UK parliament about boozy lockdown party
- UK prime minister’s narrative of ‘bring your own booze’ gathering at Downing Street called into question
- Allegations of parties have spawned public anger, and prompted calls for Boris Johnson to resign
03:44
Boris Johnson apologises for attending ‘work’ party during Covid-19 lockdown
Boris Johnson’s former top aide Dominic Cummings accused the prime minister of lying to parliament, saying he would “swear under oath” that Johnson both was aware of and allowed a drinks party at Downing Street at the height of lockdown during the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.
By saying Johnson misled lawmakers, Cummings is again upping the ante after a post earlier this month about a party in May 2020 left the prime minister fighting to save his career and apologising to the House of Commons.
The charge is especially sensitive because many Tory MPs have said they are waiting for the result of a government probe into the party – as well as other allegations of pandemic rule-breaking in Downing Street – before deciding whether Johnson has misled them and whether they still back his leadership.
In his statement last week, Johnson said he thought he was attending a “work” gathering and that he only stayed for 25 minutes. His office has also repeatedly said the prime minister was not aware of the event beforehand, and did not receive the widely reported “bring your own booze” email invitation from his principal private secretary Martin Reynolds.
After several newspapers reported over the weekend that Johnson had been urged not to let party go ahead, his spokesman Max Blain reiterated it was “not accurate” to suggest he knew about the May 20 event. “It’s untrue to say that the prime minister was told or warned ahead of that,” he said.