British Prime Minister (PM) Boris Johnson has found himself in the middle of another controversy, after a 46-second video emerged of officials joking about a Downing Street party that flouted COVID-19 restrictions. The scandal marks yet another incident of officials from the Johnson administration violating COVID-19 restrictions and lockdowns.
The video, which was first published by ITV, shows senior officials discussing and joking about a Christmas party despite such festivities being banned by the government. It was recorded in December 2020, when the country was struggling to curb the spread of the virus and was allegedly shot just four days after the December 18 Christmas party at Downing Street.
The video confirmed allegations against Johnson, who was already under the scanner for organising and attending three other such Christmas parties last year, all of which are being investigated in an internal probe. This includes a gathering on November 27, a Department of Education meeting on December 10, and a Christmas quiz on December 15.
At the time of the November 27 event, the United Kingdom (UK) was in a national lockdown, with a complete ban on indoor gatherings. Meanwhile, the other two parties, and the party mentioned in the now infamous video, were held as the British government implemented the three-tier system, which was brought in after the lockdown ended on December 2. According to the three-tier system, people were asked not to participate in indoor social gatherings with anyone whom they don’t live with.
Against the backdrop of these controversies, several other reports of violations by Johnson and his officials are now emerging. According to the BBC, there are a total of eight such incidents from November 27 to December 18 where celebrations were held at Downing Street.
However, Johnson and other members of his Conservative Party have maintained that the Christmas party being discussed in the video was never held. The PM has stressed that he “certainly broke no rules.” Likewise, a statement released by Downing Street said that no such celebrations took place that and COVID-19 rules were followed “at all times.” Regarding the December 15 quiz, it was said that the event was a virtual event with staff attending from their desks.
Despite the vehement denial of the multiple allegations, the Christmas Party incident has yielded severe political consequences. For Instance, Allegra Stratton, the now-former spokesperson for Prime Minister Johnson, who featured in the controversial video, has now resigned. In the video, she was recorded saying: “This fictional party was a business meeting and it was not socially distanced.” In addition to Stratton’s resignation, Johnson has also ordered an internal probe into the incidents. However, critics have questioned why Stratton stepped down if the party never took place, arguing that her resignation is an admission of guilt and that she has been made a scapegoat for the wider disregard of COVID-19 restrictions within the Johnson administration.
Johnson’s political standing has also taken a hit within his own party, after a group of Tories voted against his proposal to introduce new COVID-19 restrictions to curb the spread of the Omicron variant. Many Conservative Party members have called the restrictions draconian. However, owing to the support of the opposition Labour Party, the restrictions, which mandate masks and work towards mandating vaccine passports, were passed in the House of Commons.
The slew of parties that took place last winter have been described as emblematic of the Johnson administration’s behaviour during this pandemic. Previously, Johnson’s former aide, Dominic Cummings, for instance, attracted criticism for violating the first lockdown and driving across the country to visit family, despite showing COVID-19 symptoms.
These multiple controversies have driven citizens to question why they were stopped from visiting their ailing and dying relatives when the ruling government was not following its own guidelines and restrictions. The government has thus been accused of implementing restrictions only for the “common folk.”
The UK is currently recording around 60,000 new cases of COVID-19 per day, prompting suggestions that further restrictions may be on the way, particularly in light of the spread of the Omicron variant. However, the reports of several indiscretions by government officials has drawn speculation about how willing citizens will be to abide by these rules.