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‘Tinpot Despot': Boris Johnson Accused of Pressuring Sue Gray to Alter Her ‘Partygate’ Report
‘Tinpot Despot': Boris Johnson Accused of Pressuring Sue Gray to Alter Her ‘Partygate’ Report
Sputnik International
Speaking in the House of Commons after Wednesday’s publication of Sue Gray’s report into 16 alleged No 10 COVID rule-breaking parties held between 2020 and... 29.05.2022, Sputnik International
2022-05-29T06:00+0000
2022-05-29T06:00+0000
2023-05-28T15:19+0000
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The UK’s Liberal Democrats have accused Downing Street of piling pressure on senior civil servant Sue Gray to change her “Partygate” report as Labour plans to push for a vote on the government’s decision to change the ministerial code of conduct following the report’s publication.“The Privileges Committee must immediately look into the supposed interference into the publication of the Sue Gray report. If the government really did alter the report, the British public should be told the truth,” Chamberlain added.She spoke after the Sunday Times cited unnamed “political and civil service” sources as saying that Gray “was lobbied on Tuesday evening to make changes by three senior civil servants”.According to the Times, Gray was instructed to make the changes - "a move that would have required a senior minister to sign off amendments, signalling publicly that the revisions had been made against her will”.The news outlet also asserted that the senior civil servant contacted up to 30 people and told them she intended to name them in the report, but only 15 people were named in the document, which was released on Wednesday.The newspaper added that details related to the so-called “Abba night” lockdown-busting party – the 13 November 2020 social gathering held in Johnson’s flat, were allegedly altered.A Cabinet Office spokesperson rejected the allegations, telling reporters that the government “did not change the report in terms of substantive content”.Labour has meanwhile signalled its readiness to use an opposition day debate in the Commons next week to prompt Tory MPs to vote against the government’s move to rewrite the ministerial code, which No 10 said was earlier supported by the Committee on Standards in Public Life.The new version of the document stipulates that ministers found to have breached the code of conduct will no longer be expected to resign or face being fired. They instead will have to apologise or have their salary temporarily suspended.She insisted that “serious breaches of the ministerial code must result in resignation, whether they are deliberately misleading parliament, bullying staff, bribery or sexual assault.”“This prime minister simply cannot be trusted to uphold standards in government while his conduct sinks further into the gutter and he gives the green light to corruption. It's time to stop the rot that this prime minister has created at the heart of government and restore standards in public lifem” Rayner pointed out.Sue Gray's 'Partygate' Report The senior civil servant’s full 60-page report, delayed until the conclusion of a Metropolitan Police probe that resulted in 126 small Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) fines being issued, was published late on Wednesday morning.Sue Gray's investigation focused on 16 occasions when government staff allegedly socialised with food and drink at 10 Downing Street in breach of COVID-19 lockdown rules in 2020 and 2021, something that included leaving parties for three members of staff.Gray wrote in the report that “what took place at many of these gatherings and the way in which they developed was not in line with COVID guidance at the time."According to her, “the public have a right to expect the very highest standards of behaviour in such places, and clearly what happened fell well short of this."Gray also argued that she had only limited information about the 13 November 2020 event, because her inquiries had stopped after the Metropolitan Police announced they were investigating it.In a statement to Parliament following the report’s publication, Johnson denied deliberately misleading Parliament when he said he was unaware of rule-breaking at his office, insisting that he had believed the leaving parties and other social gathering at Downing Street were legitimate workplace events.The PM thanked Gray for her report, reiterating his previous apologies to the nation for the scandal.“I take full responsibility for everything that took place on my watch. Sue Gray's report has emphasised that it is up to the political leadership to take ultimate responsibility, and of course I do,” BoJo said.
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‘Tinpot Despot': Boris Johnson Accused of Pressuring Sue Gray to Alter Her ‘Partygate’ Report
06:00 GMT 29.05.2022 (Updated: 15:19 GMT 28.05.2023) Speaking in the House of Commons after Wednesday’s publication of Sue Gray’s report into 16 alleged No 10 COVID rule-breaking parties held between 2020 and 2021, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he had taken “full responsibility” for partying but denied he had ever knowingly misled MPs about the events.
The UK’s Liberal Democrats have accused Downing Street of piling pressure on
senior civil servant Sue Gray to change her “Partygate” report as Labour plans to push for a vote on the government’s decision to change the ministerial code of conduct following the report’s publication.
Referring to the Sunday Times’ report on Gray’s findings, Liberal Democrat Chief Whip Wendy Chamberlain said that it “looks like another disgraceful attempt by Boris Johnson and the Conservatives to cover up for their lies and law-breaking”.
“The Privileges Committee must immediately look into the supposed interference into the publication of the Sue Gray report. If the government really did alter the report, the British public should be told the truth,” Chamberlain added.
She spoke after the Sunday Times cited unnamed “political and civil service” sources as saying that Gray “was lobbied on Tuesday evening to make changes by three senior civil servants”.
The newspaper claimed that “they urged her not to publish the names of some of those who had attended the 12 law-breaking parties. Other changes were also requested to passages in the report that made reference to Carrie Johnson, the prime minister's wife.”
According to the Times, Gray was instructed to make the changes - "a move that would have required a senior minister to sign off amendments, signalling publicly that the revisions had been made against her will”.
The news outlet also asserted that the senior civil servant contacted up to 30 people and told them she intended to name them in the report, but only 15 people were named in the document, which was released on Wednesday.
The newspaper added that details related to the so-called “Abba night” lockdown-busting party – the 13 November 2020 social gathering held in Johnson’s flat, were allegedly altered.
A Cabinet Office spokesperson rejected the allegations, telling reporters that the government “did not change the report in terms of substantive content”.
“The key point that we would say about anything [that suggests] previous copy was substantively edited - it was never shared with Number 10 in advance,” the spokesperson argued, insisting that Gray investigated all events under the terms of reference.
Labour has meanwhile signalled its readiness to use an opposition day debate in the Commons next week to prompt Tory MPs to vote against the government’s move to rewrite the ministerial code, which No 10 said was earlier supported by the Committee on Standards in Public Life.
The new version of the document stipulates that ministers found to have breached the code of conduct will no longer be expected to resign or face being fired. They instead will have to apologise or have their salary temporarily suspended.
Labour Deputy Leader Angela Rayner accused BoJo of “behaving like a tinpot despot” and “trampling all over the principles of public life”. She claimed that “many decent Conservative MPs are deeply uncomfortable with Johnson's behaviour and they now have the chance to stop his sinister attempts at watering down standards and integrity in our democracy”.
She insisted that “serious breaches of the ministerial code must result in resignation, whether they are deliberately misleading parliament, bullying staff, bribery or sexual assault.”
“This prime minister simply cannot be trusted to uphold standards in government while his conduct sinks further into the gutter and he gives the green light to corruption. It's time to stop the rot that this prime minister has created at the heart of government and restore standards in public lifem” Rayner pointed out.
Sue Gray's 'Partygate' Report
The senior civil servant’s full 60-page report, delayed until the conclusion of a Metropolitan Police probe that resulted in
126 small Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) fines being issued, was published late on Wednesday morning.
Sue Gray's investigation focused on 16 occasions when government staff allegedly socialised with food and drink at 10 Downing Street in breach of COVID-19 lockdown rules in 2020 and 2021, something that included leaving parties for three members of staff.
Gray wrote in the report that “what took place at many of these gatherings and the way in which they developed was not in line with COVID guidance at the time."
“There were failures of leadership and judgement by different parts of No 10 and the Cabinet Office at different times. Some of the events should not have been allowed to take place. Other events should not have been allowed to develop as they did,” she added.
According to her, “the public have a right to expect the very highest standards of behaviour in such places, and clearly what happened fell well short of this."
She also stressed that “the excessive consumption of alcohol is not appropriate in a professional workplace at any time” and that “steps must be taken to ensure that every Government Department has a clear and robust policy in place covering the consumption of alcohol in the workplace.”
Gray also argued that she had only limited information about the 13 November 2020 event, because her inquiries had stopped after the Metropolitan Police announced they were investigating it.
In a statement to Parliament following the report’s publication, Johnson denied deliberately misleading Parliament when he said he was unaware of rule-breaking at his office, insisting that he had believed the leaving parties and other social gathering at Downing Street were legitimate workplace events.
The PM thanked Gray for her report, reiterating his previous apologies to the nation for the scandal.
“I take full responsibility for everything that took place on my watch. Sue Gray's report has emphasised that it is up to the political leadership to take ultimate responsibility, and of course I do,” BoJo said.
