Boris Johnson told a full House of Commons on Wednesday afternoon that it was time to “move forward” after the “partygate” now that Sue Gray’s investigation into the break-up of the blockade on Downing Street was over.
The Prime Minister’s deputies seemed to be listening to this advice, with the feeling of a riot that was withdrawn after the publication of Gray’s long-awaited report.
But questions about whether the general public has advanced can be answered next month in two critical by-elections in Devon and West Yorkshire, both in seats previously held by Johnson’s Conservative party.
Downing Street was apprehensive as Johnson waited for Gray’s report, long touted as a document that could mean the end of his term as prime minister. Reports attributed to those informed of Gray’s thinking suggested that he would be so “condemnatory” that Johnson would have to resign.
Johnson on Wednesday even declined to deny that he had tried to dissuade the senior official from publishing his final report earlier this month.
But once the 37-page document, along with the photographs, reached Johnson’s inbox, the mood of high-level conservative circles became a relief.
Although Gray criticized leadership failures for the illegal party culture on Downing Street while the country was under strict Covid blockade rules, he did not personally name Johnson.
Nor, inexplicably for many in Westminster, did Gray complete his investigation into the so-called “Abba party”, which took place on Johnson’s flat in Downing Street on the night of the departure of former chief minister Dominic. Cummings in November 2020. Some government aides described it as “a whitewash.”
For months, the number 10 has been preparing for a reaction from Conservative MPs after the report was published, and was nervously looking at whether 54 were sending letters stating that they no longer had confidence in the Prime Minister, prompting a vote on the their leadership.
Boris Johnson at a meeting in Downing Street on 13 November 2020 © Government of the United Kingdom
But when it ended on Wednesday it was difficult to discern a new impetus among rebel Conservative MPs. Johnson, dubbed the “fat piglet” by former Prime Minister David Cameron, seemed to have escaped again.
Gray painted a wild picture of life on Downing Street when the rest of the UK was under strict blockade rules: loud meetings, drunken fights, overdrinking, red wine spilled on a wall, a broken baby swing, and a contemptuous attitude towards cleaners. and security personnel.
Page by page, the report exposed not only how illegal parties were being conducted, but also that senior officials knew they would be bending or breaking the rules.
Downing Street staff discussed how to hide the drink inside the building, and an official told people not to “walk around shaking bottles of wine” in case they saw them.
Martin Reynolds, Johnson’s former private secretary, spoke with a colleague about how staff “seem to have gotten away with it” at an alcohol party at the Downing Street Garden.
The report revealed details of a dizzying series of rallies. At one o’clock on June 18, 2020, there was “alcohol, food and music” with a karaoke machine provided by Helen MacNamara, the mandarin responsible for Whitehall’s ethics.
“There was excessive alcohol consumption by some people,” the report said. “One person was ill. There was a small altercation between two other people.” The last staff member left this meeting at 3:13 p.m.
Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak at a meeting in the Downing Street Cabinet Room for the Prime Minister’s Birthday on June 19, 2020 © UK Government
Representing the report of a bacchanalian culture at number 10 while millions of people were largely locked in their homes could still be politically detrimental to Johnson in the long run. But some of his conclusions were useful to the Prime Minister.
For example, Gray confirmed that Johnson was not aware of the meeting to celebrate his 56th birthday on June 19, 2020, for which he received a fixed penalty notice.
Gray also ruled that “it was not appropriate or proportionate” to investigate the November 13, 2020 meeting, the so-called Abba party, in Johnson’s private apartment because metropolitan police had begun work on their own investigation.
When the Prime Minister stood in the mailbox to make a statement on the report after its publication, he was initially contrite. But that soon changed. He attacked Sir Keir Starmer, the leader of the opposition, calling him “Sir Beer Korma” because of allegations that he had also breached Covid’s blockade laws.
Johnson also reiterated previous claims that he did not know the scope of the parties on Downing Street. At a later press conference he insisted that he had only learned a few details by reading Gray’s report that morning.
Many Conservative MPs backed their leader, echoing his comments that it was time to “move forward” and focus on more pressing issues, such as the cost of living crisis.
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At a closed-door meeting of back bank MPs on Wednesday evening, Johnson was joking, telling them that Britain would not have won World War II if alcohol had been banned at number 10 in the 1940s.
However, later banker Jonathan Gullis said the prime minister “set the right tone” with sincere apologies to his colleagues.
“The meeting was relatively quiet, but there was a growing sense of tiredness over the issue,” another Conservative MP said.
There has been criticism from a small number of Conservative MPs, but most have already made public their dislike of Johnson in recent months. Among them, Tobias Ellwood, who warned that the Conservative Party would lose the next general election if it continued in its current trajectory.
A new rebel was Julian Sturdy, a Member of Parliament who called for Johnson’s resignation. press release.
But despite the dissent, the rebels do not have a consistent philosophy or an obvious candidate to replace Johnson.
As one Conservative MP said, the latest revelations did not have a “silver bullet” to fatally undermine Johnson’s prospects.
“There are several MPs who are privately opposed to Johnson, but the question is whether they are well organized? Are they managing to coordinate in any noticeable way?” Said a senior Conservative.
“It takes a long time to remove a prime minister.”