Boris Johnson Partygate timeline: dates of Downing Street lockdown gatherings as ex-PM faces fresh allegations

Boris Johnson has described new claims that he broke Covid-19 lockdown rules as “bizarre and unacceptable”.
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Boris Johnson is facing fresh allegations that he broke lockdown rules during the coronavirus pandemic.

The Times - which broke the original story - reported that the former Prime Minister’s ministerial diary revealed that friends had visited him at Chequers during the height of the pandemic. The Cabinet Office has referred the allegations to the Metropolitan Police and Thames Valley Police after the visits were revealed during preparations for the upcoming public inquiry into the handling of Covid-19.

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Johnson has described the new claims as “bizarre and unacceptable”. The Uxbridge and South Ruislip MP’s office added that his lawyers had written to police to “explain in detail why the Cabinet Office is entirely wrong in its assertions”, slamming the police referral as “clearly politically motivated attempt to manufacture something out of nothing”.

The Metropolitan and Thames Valley forces have since confirmed they are assessing “potential breaches of the health protection regulations between June 2020 and May 2021.”

It comes just two months after Johnson faced MPs on the Privileges Committee, who, in a hearing that lasted more than three hours, grilled him over what he knew about parties held in Downing Street - and on what he told the House of Commons when news of gatherings began to emerge. The former PM insisted in his evidence that he “hand on heart” did not lie to Parliament, arguing that when he told MPs in the House of Commons “no rules had been broken” at Number 10, he had done so because he genuinely believed that to be the case.

He seemed to get himself into hot water when he argued that all events he attended were “essential” for work purposes - which led to members of the Privileges Committee pointing to alcohol bottles being present. Pictures of Johnson in rooms where people are not adhering to social distancing rules were also shown during the hearing - leading to the MP admitting that the guidance “was not rigidly followed” in Number 10.

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However, he argued that this was down to the building being a “cramped, narrow, 18th century townhouse”, where people “had no choice but to meet day in, day out, seven days a week, in an unrelenting battle against Covid.”

The ‘Partygate’ scandal was first born when it was reported in December 2021 that illegal gatherings had taken place at Number 10, while coronavirus restrictions - put in place by the government - were still in full force. The former Prime Minister, and current Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, were among those who received fines from the Met Police after an investigation concluded that several of these gatherings had breached guidelines.

But as yet more allegations emerge, when exactly did the confirmed ‘parties’ in Downing Street take place - and what were the lockdown rules at the time? Here’s everything we know about ‘Partygate’.

Boris Johnson is facing fresh allegations that he broke lockdown rules during the coronavirus pandemic - claims he has described as “bizarre and unacceptable”. Credit: Kim Mogg / NationalWorldBoris Johnson is facing fresh allegations that he broke lockdown rules during the coronavirus pandemic - claims he has described as “bizarre and unacceptable”. Credit: Kim Mogg / NationalWorld
Boris Johnson is facing fresh allegations that he broke lockdown rules during the coronavirus pandemic - claims he has described as “bizarre and unacceptable”. Credit: Kim Mogg / NationalWorld

Here are the key dates in the 2020 Downing Street garden party scandal:

  • 23 March 2020 - A strict national lockdown is introduced in the UK to combat Covid-19. People were ordered to stay at home and not mix socially. You could only leave your home for an hour per day to exercise or undertake essential tasks, such as buying food.
  • 10 May - People are allowed to go back to work if they are unable to work from home. However, they are told to avoid using public transport.
  • 13 May - People were permitted to leave home to meet one other person outdoors.
  • 15 May - Around 20 staff - including Boris and Carrie Johnson, as well as Dominic Cummings - attend the Downing Street garden for an event that included cheese and wine. It came just hours after a press conference hosted by then-Health Secretary Matt Hancock, who urged the public to “stay at home as much as is possible” and “stick with the rules”. Number 10 denies a social gathering took place and calls it a “work meeting”. The Guardian publishes a photo of the alleged party.
  • 20 May - Emails seen by ITV News in January 2022 show the Prime Minister’s principal private secretary Martin Reynolds invited 100 members of staff to “socially distanced drinks in the No 10 garden”. Reynolds encouraged those attending to “bring your own booze”. Downing Street refuses to comment. 55 minutes before the event is believed to have begun, Cabinet Minister Oliver Dowden tells the public at a press conference to “limit contact with other people” and said: “You can meet one person outside of your household in an outdoor, public place — provided that you stay two meters apart.”
  • 18 June - Gathering in the Cabinet Office, 70 Whitehall, to mark the departure of a No 10 private secretary.
  • 19 June - Gathering in Cabinet room in No 10 Downing Street for Boris Johnson’s birthday. Up to 30 people were there to present the Prime Minister with a cake and sing ‘happy birthday’, according to ITV News. The Government says the gathering was brief and the PM was only there "for less than 10 minutes”. It’s this event Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak are believed to have been fined for.

Here’s a timeline of the key events in the Downing Street Christmas party scandal:

  • 13 November 2020 - Gathering in No 10 Downing Street flat and a gathering in No 10 Downing Street on the departure of a special adviser. Boris Johnson was said to have started this party in the Sunday Times on 17 April. Photos have since emerged of Mr Johnson raising a glass at this gathering.
  • 27 November - Gathering in No 10 Downing Street on the departure of a special adviser.
  • 10 December - London is in tier two of the Government’s three-tier Covid-19 system. Social mixing between households is banned indoors but the Department for Education holds a Christmas party in its cafe. The department apologises for event when it is revealed by the Daily Mirror.
  • 15 December - Gathering at No 10 Downing Street for an online Christmas quiz.
  • 16 December - A new Covid-19 variant (Alpha, or the ‘Kent variant’) sees London move to tier three restrictions - the highest level at the time. The rules ban different households from mixing indoors and say people should remain at home.
(graphic: Mark Hall)(graphic: Mark Hall)
(graphic: Mark Hall)
  • 17 December - Sue Gray’s report details a gathering in the Cabinet Office for an online Christmas quiz, for the Cabinet Secretary’s private office and departures of senior officials.
  • 18 December - Downing Street staff are believed to have held a Christmas party, with reports that dozens of people were at the event. Some attendees were said to have worn festive jumpers and exchanged Secret Santa gifts.
  • 22 December - The Prime Minister’s then-press secretary Allegra Stratton is filmed at a mock press conference answering questions about a Downing Street Christmas party. The footage did not emerge until 7 December 2021.
  • 4 January 2021 - Boris Johnson announces a third national lockdown after a rapid rise in Covid cases threatens to overwhelm the NHS.
  • 14 January - Gathering at No 10 Downing Street to mark the departure of two No 10 private secretaries.
  • 16 April - Two separate gatherings take place at No 10 Downing Street on the departure of two No 10 officials.

How the Downing Street Christmas party allegations emerged:

  • 1 December 2021 - The Daily Mirror breaks the story that numerous 2020 Christmas parties took place, claiming “officials knocked back glasses of wine during a Christmas quiz and a Secret Santa while the rest of the country was forced to stay at home”. At PMQs that day, the Prime Minister insists that “all guidance was followed completely”.
  • 2 December - Business Minister George Freeman says: “I can absolutely assure you that No 10 staff followed the guidance”.
  • 3 December - Tory chairman Oliver Dowden says: “I have been assured by what the Prime Minister has said, which is that the rules at all times were obeyed in Downing Street”.
  • 4 December - The Metropolitan Police says it is considering opening an investigation into the Downing Street Christmas party and an earlier gathering in November 2020.
  • 5 December - Deputy PM Dominic Raab insists he did not know the truth of reports based on “unsubstantiated claims all on the basis of anonymous sources” and claimed police “don’t normally look back and investigate things that have taken place a year ago.”
A photograph obtained by ITV News of the Prime Minister raising a glass at a leaving party on 13th November 2020. A photograph obtained by ITV News of the Prime Minister raising a glass at a leaving party on 13th November 2020.
A photograph obtained by ITV News of the Prime Minister raising a glass at a leaving party on 13th November 2020.
  • 6 December - Policing Minister Kit Malthouse says: “I asked the question: ‘Were all the regulations complied with?’ I was reassured they were, I have to take that at face value. That’s absolutely what I’m sure is the case; it’s for others if they want to decide to take it further”.
  • 7 December - Mr Johnson says: “I am satisfied myself that the guidelines were followed at all times.” However, later that day the footage from 2020 of Allegra Stratton joking about the alleged party is leaked to ITV News.
  • Downing Street continues to deny that the party took place, saying: “There was no Christmas party. Covid rules have been followed at all times”.
  • 8 December - At a raucous PMQs, the PM apologises for the video clip but not for the party itself. He said he’d been assured that there was no party and no Covid rules were broken. Mr Johnson promises to launch an internal review into what happened in December 2020. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer says the allegations have undermined the PM’s credibility. The SNP becomes the first opposition party to call for Mr Johnson’s resignation.
  • The Met Police announces it will not carry out an investigation due to an “absence of evidence” to launch a investigation into the claims. It had previously said that Covid breaches would not be investigated “retroactively”.
  • 11 December - Allegations of a 25 November 2020 gathering emerge in The Times. According to the report, around two dozen civil servants who worked on the Autumn Spending Review attended drinks. The Treasury says there were “impromptu drinks around desks” and that the Chancellor Rishi Sunak was not in attendance.
Photo dated 19/06/20 issued by the House of Commons showing then prime minister Boris Johnson at a gathering celebrating his birthday. Credit: PAPhoto dated 19/06/20 issued by the House of Commons showing then prime minister Boris Johnson at a gathering celebrating his birthday. Credit: PA
Photo dated 19/06/20 issued by the House of Commons showing then prime minister Boris Johnson at a gathering celebrating his birthday. Credit: PA
  • 12 December - Boris Johnson is pictured hosting a Downing Street Christmas quiz on 15 December 2020. Downing Street said the Prime Minister had “briefly” taken part “virtually” in the quiz. He was pictured in close proximity to two colleagues despite social mixing restrictions being in place.
  • 15 December - Former Conservative London mayoral candidate Shaun Bailey resigns from his role in the London Assembly, after images emerge of a “raucous” party which took place at Conservative Party headquarters on 14 December 2020.
  • 25 January 2022 - The Met announces it will open an investigation into the Downing Street parties. Part of the investigation sees questionnaires given to Boris Johnson, Rishi Sunak and dozens of others.
  • 31 January - Sue Gray publishes a redacted report into the Partygate scandal. It describes "failures of leadership and judgment by different parts of No 10 and the Cabinet Office" and says "some of the events should not have been allowed to take place".
  • 5 February - Five key Downing Street aides resign, including chief of staff Dan Rosenfield, principal private secretary Martin Reynolds, and director of communications Jack Doyle. All three had been implicated in Partygate.
  • 29 March - Police issue 20 fixed penalty notices but do not say how many people have been given them, nor who these people are. Cabinet Office says: “It would not be appropriate to comment [on them] while the Met Police’s investigation is ongoing.”
  • 12 April - Police issue a further 30 fines. A 10 Downing Street spokesperson confirms Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak are among those to have received FPNs. The PM’s wife, Carrie Johnson, also reveals she’s been fined.

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