Matter referred on 21 April 2022 (conduct of Rt Hon Boris Johnson): Final Report/Annex 2

by House of Commons Committee of Privileges

Annex 2: Statements by Mr Johnson to the House regarding Covid compliance in No. 10

The table below sets out more than 30 statements made by Mr Johnson to the House of Commons about Covid compliance in No. 10. It is intended as a comprehensive, albeit not exhaustive, record of such statements made by Mr Johnson between December 2021 (when allegations that Covid Rules had been broken in No. 10 first emerged) and May 2022 (when Mr Johnson purported to correct the record following his initial statements), as recorded in Hansard.

Date	Statement
1 December 2021	[Keir Starmer] “As millions of people were locked down last year, was a Christmas party thrown in Downing Street for dozens of people on 18 December?” [Boris Johnson] “What I can tell the right hon. and learned Gentleman is that all guidance was followed completely in No. 10.”
8 December 2021	[Boris Johnson] “May I begin by saying that I understand and share the anger up and down the country at seeing No. 10 staff seeming to make light of lockdown measures? I can understand how infuriating it must be to think that the people who have been setting the rules have not been following the rules, because I was also furious to see that clip. I apologise unreservedly for the offence that it has caused up and down the country, and I apologise for the impression that it gives. I repeat that I have been repeatedly assured since these allegations emerged that there was no party and that no covid rules were broken. That is what I have been repeatedly assured. But I have asked the Cabinet Secretary to establish all the facts and to report back as soon as possible. It goes without saying that if those rules were broken, there will be disciplinary action for all those involved.” [Keir Starmer] “The Prime Minister and the Government spent the week telling the British public that there was no party and that all guidance was followed completely. Millions of people now think the Prime Minister was taking them for fools and that they were lied to; they are right, aren’t they?” [Boris Johnson] “I think the right hon. and learned Gentleman probably missed what I said at the beginning, but I apologise for the impression that has been given that staff in Downing Street take this less than seriously. I am sickened myself and furious about that, but I repeat what I have said to him: I have been repeatedly assured that the rules were not broken” [Keir Starmer] “We have all watched the video of the Prime Minister’s staff, including his personal spokesperson. They knew there was a party, they knew it was against the rules, they knew they could not admit it and they thought it was funny. It is obvious what happened—Ant and Dec are ahead of the Prime Minister on this. The Prime Minister has been caught red-handed; why does he not end the investigation right now by just admitting it?” [Boris Johnson] “Because I have been repeatedly assured that no rules were broken. I understand public anxiety about this and I understand public indignation, but there is a risk of doing a grave injustice to people who were, frankly, obeying the rules. That is why the Cabinet Secretary will be conducting an investigation and that is why there will be the requisite disciplinary action if necessary.” [Ian Blackford] “It is clear that the Prime Minister is desperately clinging on to power, and I have got nothing left to say to a man who we simply cannot trust. It is time for Members in this House to act. If he does not resign, he must be removed.” [Boris Johnson] “I thank the right hon. Gentleman for his vote of confidence, but I can tell him that I am going to get on with the job. I believe that that is the right thing to do. I think it is very, very sad that when the public need to hear clarity from their officials and from politicians, the Opposition parties are trying to muddy the waters about events, or non-events, of a year ago. That is what they are doing today.”
8 December 2021	[Catherine West] “Will the Prime Minister tell the House whether there was a party in Downing Street on 13 November?” [Boris Johnson] “No, but I am sure that whatever happened, the guidance was followed and the rules were followed at all times.”
15 December 2021	[Keir Starmer] “The message from the Government has to be “We know that following the rules won’t be easy this Christmas, but it is necessary.” Can the Prime Minister not see that he has no hope of regaining the moral authority to deliver that difficult message if he cannot be straight with the British public about the rule breaking in Downing Street last Christmas?” [Boris Johnson] “I have repeatedly answered that question before. As the right hon. and learned Gentleman knows, a report is being delivered to me by the Cabinet Secretary into exactly what went on.”
12 January 2022	[Boris Johnson] “When I went into that garden just after 6 o’clock on 20 May 2020, to thank groups of staff before going back into my office 25 minutes later to continue working, I believed implicitly that this was a work event, but with hindsight, I should have sent everyone back inside. I should have found some other way to thank them, and I should have recognised that even if it could be said technically to fall within the guidance, there would be millions and millions of people who simply would not see it that way” [Keir Starmer] “It started with reports of boozy parties in Downing Street during lockdown. The Prime Minister pretended that he had been assured there were no parties—how that fits with his defence now, I do not know. Then the video landed, blowing the Prime Minister’s first defence out of the water. So then he pretended that he was sickened and furious about the parties. Now it turns out he was at the parties all along. Can the Prime Minister not see why the British public think he is lying through his teeth?” [Boris Johnson] “[…] What he said is wrong in several key respects […] As I have said to the House, I believe that the events in question were within the guidance and were within the rules, and that was certainly the assumption on which I operated”
12 January 2022	[Boris Johnson] “[…] All I ask is that Sue Gray be allowed to complete her inquiry into that day and several others, so that the full facts can be established”. [Keir Starmer] “The Prime Minister’s defence that he did not realise that he was at a party is so ridiculous that it is actually offensive to the British public. He has finally been forced to admit what everyone knew—that when the whole country was locked down, he was hosting boozy parties in Downing Street. Is he now going to do the decent thing and resign?” [Boris Johnson] “[…] I do not think that he should pre-empt the outcome of the inquiry. He will have a further opportunity, I hope, to question me as soon as possible” [Keir Starmer] “[…] Now it turns out he was at the parties all along. Can the Prime Minister not see why the British public think he is lying through his teeth?” [Boris Johnson] “[…] Can I say to him that he should wait—he should wait—before he jumps to conclusions, and a lawyer should respect the inquiry? I hope that he will wait until the facts are established and brought to this House.” [Ian Blackford] “[…] The Prime Minister stands before us accused of betraying the nation’s trust, of treating the public with contempt, of breaking the laws set by his own Government […] Will he Prime Minister finally do the decent thing and resign, or will his Tory MPs be forced to show him the door?” [Boris Johnson] “ […] With the greatest respect to him, I think that he should wait until the inquiry has concluded.” [Chris Bryant] “The Prime Minister did not spot that he was at a social event. That is the excuse, isn’t it? Come off it […] Would it not be absolutely despicable if, in the search for a scapegoat, some junior member of staff ended up losing their job while he kept his?” Boris Johnson] “[…] I really think, with all humility, I must ask him to wait for the result of the inquiry, when he will have abundant opportunity to question me again and to make his party political points again.”
19 January 2022	[Wendy Chamberlain] “Last year, we were told by the Prime Minister that there were no Downing Street parties. Then it turned out that there were parties, but we were assured that no rules were broken. Last week, we heard that rules may have been broken, but that he thought it was a work event. Yesterday, from the man who wrote the rules, we heard, “Well, nobody told me what those rules were.” […] Does the Prime Minister agree that it is now time for him to resign?” Boris Johnson] “No, but as I said to the House last week, I apologise sincerely for any misjudgments that were made. The hon. Lady must contain her impatience and wait for the inquiry next week before drawing any of the conclusions she has just asserted.” [Keir Starmer] “First, the Prime Minister said there were no parties. Then the video landed, blowing that defence out of the water. Next, he said he was sickened and furious when he found out about the parties, until it turned out that he himself was at the Downing Street garden party. Then, last week, he said he did not realise he was at a party and surprise, surprise—no one believed him. So this week he has a new defence: “Nobody warned me that it was against the rules.” That is it—nobody told him! Since the Prime Minister wrote the rules, why on earth does he think his new defence is going to work for him?” [Boris Johnson] “The right hon. and learned Gentleman talks about the rules. Let me repeat what I said to the hon. Member for North East Fife across the aisle earlier on. Of course, we must wait for the outcome of the inquiry, but I renew what I have said.” [Keir Starmer] “Not only did the Prime Minister write the rules, but some of his staff say they did warn him about attending the party on 20 May 2020. I have heard the Prime Minister’s very carefully crafted response to that accusation; it almost sounds like a lawyer wrote it, so I will be equally careful with my question. When did the Prime Minister first become aware that any of his staff had concerns about the 20 May party?” Boris Johnson] “I am grateful to the right hon. and learned Gentleman for repeating the question that he has already asked. We have answered that: it is for the inquiry to come forward with an explanation of what happened, and I am afraid that he simply must wait.” [Keir Starmer] “If the Prime Minister’s new defence were true, it requires him […] to expect us to believe that, while every other person who was invited on 20 May to the party was told it was a social occasion, he alone was told it was a work meeting. It also requires the Prime Minister to ask us to accept that, as he waded through the empty bottles and platters of sandwiches, he did not realise it was a party. Does the Prime Minister realise how ridiculous that sounds?” [Boris Johnson] “I have said what I have said about the events in No. 10 and the right hon. and learned Gentleman will have to wait for the report.” [Ian Blackford] “[…] Over the past two days, we have had more damaging revelations about Downing Street rule breaking, more evidence that Parliament has been misled, and an even longer list of ludicrous—absolutely ludicrous—excuses from the Prime Minister […] Nobody believes him. Will the Prime Minister finally take responsibility and resign? [Boris Johnson] “No, but I thank the right hon. Gentleman for his question again. I remind him that there is an inquiry, which is due to conclude. I believe he is wrong in what he asserts, but we have to wait and see what the inquiry says.”
31 January 2022	[Boris Johnson] “[…] I want to say sorry. I am sorry for the things we simply did not get right and sorry for the way this matter has been handled. It is no use saying that this or that was within the rules, and it is no use saying that people were working hard—this pandemic was hard for everyone. We asked people across this country to make the most extraordinary sacrifices—not to meet loved ones, not to visit relatives before they died— and I understand the anger that people feel.” [Theresa May] “What the Gray report does show is that No. 10 Downing Street was not observing the regulations they had imposed on members of the public, so either my right hon. Friend had not read the rules, or did not understand what they meant—and others around him—or they did not think the rules applied to No. 10. Which was it?” [Boris Johnson] “No, that is not what the Gray report says. It is not what the Gray report says, but I suggest that my right hon. Friend waits to see the conclusion of the inquiry.” [Ed Davey] “[…] Does the Prime Minister understand? Does he care about the enormous hurt his actions have caused to bereaved families across our country? Will he finally accept that the only decent thing he can do now is to resign?” [Boris Johnson] “I do care deeply about the hurt that is felt across the country about the suggestion that things were going on in No. 10 that were in contravention of the covid rules […] I have apologised several times, but I must say that I think we should wait for the outcome of the inquiry before jumping to the conclusions that the right hon. Gentleman has raised.” [Karl Turner] “We now know that there is a criminal investigation into the party that took place on 13 November 2020 in the Prime Minister’s flat to celebrate the exit of Mr Cummings. On 8 December last year, the Prime Minister came to that Dispatch Box and flatly denied the very idea that any such party had taken place […] He has inadvertently misled the House, so the very least he should do is get to that Dispatch Box and correct the record.” [Boris Johnson] “No. I stand by what I said, and I would simply urge the hon. Member to wait for the outcome of the inquiry. That is what he needs to do.” [Colum Eastwood] “While the Prime Minister was eating birthday cake with his pals, people were standing outside nursing home windows looking in at their loved ones dying. Contrary to what the Prime Minister has said multiple times from that very Dispatch Box, any objective reading of Sue Gray’s update makes it absolutely clear that the rules were broken multiple times in Downing Street […]” [Boris Johnson] “The hon. Gentleman really has to read the report. He has to look at the report, and he must wait—Everything he has said is, I am afraid, not substantiated by the report. He should look at it, and wait for the police inquiry.” [Catherine West] “As the Prime Minister will recall, during Prime Minister’s Question Time on 8 December, I asked “whether there was a party in Downing Street on 13 November”. Now the report says, as one of the bullet points on the first page, that there was “a gathering in the No 10 Downing Street flat” and “a gathering in No 10 Downing Street on the departure of a special adviser”. Did the Prime Minister inadvertently mislead this House?” [Boris Johnson] “I stick by what I said to the hon. Lady, and if she cares about democracy and due process, she should wait until the inquiry has been concluded.”
9 February 2022	[Fabian Hamilton] “In the last few minutes, a photo has emerged of the Prime Minister in Downing Street, on 15 December 2020, surrounded by alcohol, food and people wearing tinsel. It looks a lot like one of the Christmas parties that he told us never happened […] Will the Prime Minister be referring that party to the police, as it is not one of those already being investigated?” [Boris Johnson] “[…] In what the hon. Gentleman has just said I am afraid he is completely in error.”
19 April 2022	[Boris Johnson] “[…] On 12 April, I received a fixed penalty notice relating to an event in Downing Street on 19 June 2020 […] Let me also say—not by way of mitigation or excuse, but purely because it explains my previous words in this House—that it did not occur to me, then or subsequently, that a gathering in the Cabinet Room just before a vital meeting on covid strategy could amount to a breach of the rules. I repeat: that was my mistake and I apologise for it unreservedly.” [Stephen Timms] “[…] Does the Prime Minister recognise that there is a very serious problem for the long term in leaving a lawbreaker in charge of the lawmakers?” [Boris Johnson] “I have said what I have said. I apologise and want to say again to the House that when I spoke before in this Chamber about events in Downing Street, I spoke in good faith.” [Andy McDonald] “Truth and honesty matter, and the Prime Minister has repeatedly told the House that all guidance and all rules were observed. That is not true. He also told the House that there were no parties; indeed, his Chancellor also said that he had not attended a party. Neither of those things are true. So, for once in his privileged, entitled life, will he do the decent thing, come to the Dispatch Box, and correct the record? […]” [Boris Johnson] “I want to repeat what I have said about the event in question […] I thought it was within the rules and it has turned out not to be the case. As for other events, I’m afraid I am going to have to stick by what I have said previously and await—I hope he will allow me—the conclusion of the investigation.”
25 May 2022	[Boris Johnson] “Those staff working in Downing Street were permitted to continue attending their office for the purpose of work, and the exemption under the regulations applied to their work because of the nature of their jobs, reporting directly to the Prime Minister […] The exemption under which those staff were present in Downing Street includes circumstances where officials and advisers were leaving the Government, and it was appropriate to recognise them and to thank them for the work that they have done. […] I briefly attended such gatherings to thank them for their service—which I believe is one of the essential duties of leadership, and is particularly important when people need to feel that their contributions have been appreciated—and to keep morale as high as possible. […] It is clear from what Sue Gray has had to say that some of these gatherings then went on far longer than was necessary. They were clearly in breach of the rules, and they fell foul of the rules […] I had no knowledge of subsequent proceedings, because I simply was not there, and I have been as surprised and disappointed as anyone else in this House as the revelations have unfolded”. [Boris Johnson] “I am happy to set on the record now that when I came to this House and said in all sincerity that the rules and guidance had been followed at all times, it was what I believed to be true. It was certainly the case when I was present at gatherings to wish staff farewell—the House will note that my attendance at these moments, brief as it was, has not been found to be outside the rules—but clearly this was not the case for some of those gatherings after I had left, and at other gatherings when I was not even in the building. So I would like to correct the record—to take this opportunity, not in any sense to absolve myself of responsibility, which I take and have always taken, but simply to explain why I spoke as I did in this House.” [Sir Robert Buckland] “[…] The rules of this House make clear that anyone who comes here and deliberately lies and misleads the House should leave their position, resign or apologise. My right hon. Friend has been asked many times about specific incidents and events that Sue Gray has outlined. Has he on any occasion come to the House in response to specific questions about specific events, and deliberately lied to us?” [Boris Johnson] “No, Mr Speaker, for the reason I have given: that at the time when I spoke to this House, I believed that what I was doing was attending work events, and, with the exception of the event in the Cabinet Room, that is a view that has been vindicated by the investigation.” [Dame Angela Eagle] “My hon. Friend the Member for Hornsey and Wood Green asked the Prime Minister a point-blank question on the Floor of this House when he was at the Dispatch Box. She asked him if he had been to a party on 13 November in 10 Downing Street. He said he had not and that no party had happened. There are four pictures of it featured in the Sue Gray report. Will the Prime Minister account now, on the Floor of the House, for his answer to that very specific question?” [Boris Johnson] “Yes of course, and I tried to do it in what I said earlier. The answer is that it is part of my job to say thank you to people who work in Government, and that is what I was doing. I believed it was a work event and, indeed, there has been no fine issued to me as a result of my attendance at that event, because that is what I was doing.” [John Baron] “[…] Given the extent of rule breaking in No. 10, does my right hon. Friend believe that what he has said to the House since about there being no rule breaking passes the test of reasonableness?” [Boris Johnson] “[…] I believed that I was attending work events—those are the ones of which I had knowledge—and with the exception of what took place in the Cabinet Room in June 2020, that view has been sustained by the investigation.”