I do not believe that anything I saw in the short period of time that I was at the gathering was contrary to the Rules or Guidance.[1]
87. We note that although Mr Johnson in his evidence frequently comments on how relatively brief his attendance at gatherings was, the issue is not the duration of his attendance but whether he was there for long enough to observe the nature of the gathering, the number of other people present, and whether any mitigations were in place if social distancing could not be observed.
88. Mr Johnson observed that he did not receive a Fixed Penalty Notice in relation to this event, and stated that “[i]nsofar as others did receive a Fixed Penalty Notice in relation to this event, I can only assume that it related to conduct after my departure, and that the event escalated into something different in nature to what I had seen”.[2] Mr Johnson repeats this assumption more generally in his written submission to the Committee, where he states “I did not know that any of the events that I had attended later escalated beyond what was lawful after I left”.[3]
89. An alternative explanation for his not having received a FPN is that an individual person may have had a reasonable excuse for their participation in a gathering that was not (and never was) reasonably necessary for work purposes. Mr Johnson is aware that some individuals may not have received FPNs in respect of gatherings that nonetheless breached the Covid Rules as he states in his written evidence that he is aware that other attendees at the 19 June 2020 gathering did not receive FPNs despite his having received one.[4] The fact Mr Johnson did not receive an FPN for an individual event therefore does not exclude the possibility that he could have made an assessment that the gathering overall was not compliant with the Rules.
90. Mr Johnson also added that no one at the time had raised any concerns with him about whether the event on 14 January 2021 complied with the Rules or Guidance, and that “no one advised me before or after the event that it was against the Rules or Guidance to thank departing staff”.[5] In his written evidence, he also states more generally that the evidence received by the Committee contains “not a single document that indicates that I received any warning or advice that any event broke or may have broken the Rules or Guidance”.[6]
91. However, we consider that Mr Johnson’s personal knowledge of the gatherings, in particular what he saw while he was present at them, means that he would not have needed to be reliant on advice to satisfactorily assess their nature. We also note that Mr Johnson made repeated statements to the House and the public highlighting the responsibility of everyone in the UK to understand and follow the Covid measures in place; for example:
- On 13 May 2020, Mr Johnson told the House: “We are working together as a country to obey the social distancing rules, which everybody understands. The
- ↑ Rt Hon Boris Johnson (BJS0002), para 67
- ↑ Rt Hon Boris Johnson (BJS0002), para 68
- ↑ Rt Hon Boris Johnson (BJS0002), para 37
- ↑ Rt Hon Boris Johnson (BJS0002), para 38
- ↑ Rt Hon Boris Johnson (BJS0002), para 69
- ↑ Rt Hon Boris Johnson (BJS0002), para 5. We address the question of advice Mr Johnson may have received from his Principal Private Secretary Martin Reynolds relating to possible non-compliance with the Guidance in paragraphs 147 and 161 below; see also paragraphs 103 to 108.
