From Misleading Parliament to Redacted Photos: Inquiry Reveals Details Into BoJo Partygate Scandal

The former British prime minister may have repeatedly misled Parliament by saying the infamous meetings he took part in were within the COVID-19 regulations, according to a preliminary report by a committee inquiry, published on March 3 in connection with the so-called "Partygate" scandal.

"The Committee wrote to the Government on 14 July [2022], in the same terms as it wrote to Mr Johnson on that date, to request relevant materials in its possession. The Government responded to our request by providing, on 24 August, documents which were so heavily redacted as to render them devoid of any evidential value. Some material had been redacted even though it was already in the public domain," the inquiry stated.

In the report, the Privileges Committee lashed out at Johnson over his response to allegations of violating the COVID-19 preventive measures during the regular illegal gatherings at 10 Downing Street. At the time, Johnson described the event at Number 10 as "probably the most unsociable meeting in the UK."

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"Regulations consistently imposed restrictions on gatherings between people from different households with a limited number of exceptions. These exceptions included where a gathering was “essential” for work purposes under regulations in force before 1 June 2020, or “reasonably necessary” for work purposes," the report reveals.

But the preliminary report pointed out that "the attendees included individuals who were not work colleagues of Mr Johnson" and that "a cake and alcohol were provided," which doesn't appear consistent with a necessary work meeting during the pandemic.

As further evidence of wrongdoing, a seven-member cross-party committee provided previously unseen photographs of the prime minister taking part in the parties during the pandemic.

Boris Johnson under fresh scrutiny after new party pictures emerge

The Partygate scandal was a series of regular closed events over a period from May 2020 to April 2021 held at 10 Downing Street by then-UK PM Boris Johnson. The parties became known to the public and several investigations were initiated against Johnson, first by the Metropolitan Police, then by the aforementioned committee. The investigation is currently ongoing.