PM Accused Of Lying After No 10 Team Filmed Joking About Party

Leaked footage suggests Downing Street did host event during lockdown despite repeated denials

- Peter Walker, Aubrey Allegretti, Jamie Grierson

Boris Johnson is facing accusations of lying after senior No 10 officials were filmed joking about a lockdown Christmas party that Downing Street insists did not take place.

Johnson and his aides have repeatedly denied that the event, reportedly held for staff at No 10 in December last year, broke Covid rules or took place at all.

In the leaked video of a mock televised press briefing, an adviser to Johnson is seen joking with Allegra Stratton, the prime minister’s then press secretary, about “a Downing Street Christmas party on Friday night”.

The footage, obtained by ITV, was shot on 22 December 2020. The previous Friday was 18 December, the date on which multiple sources have said there was a staff party inside Downing Street, which would have contravened strict Covid regulations in place at the time.

It shows Stratton, the prime ministerial adviser Ed Oldfield and other staff making a series of jokes about a party, including references to “cheese and wine”, lack of social distancing and making the excuse it was a business meeting.

Quizzed in the leaked footage, Stratton laughingly says: “This is recorded... This fictional party was a business meeting and it was not socially distanced.”

Johnson has repeatedly said no Covid rules were broken, while his spokesman denied earlier yesterday that any event at Downing Street had taken place. Asked about the video, Downing Street insisted it had not changed its view, saying: “There was no Christmas party. Covid rules have been followed at all times.” Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, said Johnson had not been truthful: “To lie and to laugh about those lies is shameful. The prime minister now needs to come clean and apologise.”