UK releases new ‘Partygate’ report and ratchets up pressure on Boris

Guarulhos, S.P. (Volsapress) – The much-anticipated report by Sue Gray, a British government official, on parties held during the Covid pandemic – some of which Prime Minister Boris Johnson attended – was released on Wednesday (25th). The case, known as “Partygate”, opened a crisis in the conservative politician’s management.

The 60-page document says, among other things, that the two parties contradicted guidelines regarding the health crisis at the time. In all, 83 government officials are reported to have participated in events that violated coronavirus containment guidelines, says Gray, who has been a civil servant since the 1970s.

“The events investigated have involved government leaders; many low-ranking civil servants believe their participation is permitted, once superiors are present,” followed the report handed to Boris, who is expected to comment on the matter. almost.

Among the events attended by the prime minister, a birthday party on June 19, 2020 that lasted 20-30 minutes, says Gray, was unknown to Boris. He said that “the prime minister did not know in advance, and this was not part of his official memoirs for the day.” However, the politician was fined for the occasion.

Already at a party the day before, the eighteenth, “there was an excessive consumption of alcohol by some people, and two people got sick,” says another excerpt from the report. Gray said he had already recommended that rules for alcohol consumption be enforced in the workplace, but stressed that he did not have the authority to suggest disciplinary action.

He also said he had identified an administrative problem in Downing Street, the seat of government, with no clear lines of leadership and “several examples of lack of respect for security and cleaners”. But he added that the changes had already been made: “I hope this embodies a welcoming culture so that all levels feel comfortable speaking.”

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But the contents of the document do not seem to reveal everything that happened in the British government headquarters. In total, 13 events were investigated, and Gray says he collaborated with many of the people who provided the information. However, part of the results appeared only through the work of the press.

“This is disappointing,” he said. “The partial way in which the facts have been brought to our attention reveals the possibility that events that were not the subject of an investigation may have occurred.”

Finally, the report’s author said she was convinced that the cases analyzed did not reflect the prevailing culture in the civil service, but demanded that citizens be respected. “The public has the right to expect the highest standards of behavior in these places, and what happened was clearly much lower than that.”

Another internal government report, led by Sue Gray, was released in January. The abridged document was 12 pages long, but it did say there was a driving problem in Downing Street. Since there was police intervention, which limited Gray’s performance – as the employee herself said – a new report, this more powerful, was issued, which was commissioned.

In all, Greater London Police issued 126 fines related to these events. In addition to Boris, his wife Carrie, and the Minister of Finance, Rishi Sunak, joined the list of fines. The scandal had electoral repercussions on the Conservative Party, which lost ground in regional elections earlier this month.