Partygate: Khan writes to Met to demand answers on why PM only received one fine
Sadiq Khan has written to the Metropolitan Police to demand a “detailed explanation” of why Boris Johnson was not given a second Covid fine, after pictures yesterday emerged of him drinking at a work event.
The London mayor invoked his powers as London’s police and crime commissioner to ask acting Met commissioner Sir Stephen House about the processes involved in the partygate investigation, which saw 126 people receive fines for breaking Covid rules in Downing Street and Whitehall.
ITV released pictures yesterday of Johnson drinking and toasting with several Downing Street staff members during the November 2020 lockdown.
The photo shows six bottles of alcohol, crisps and the prime ministerial red box on a table and has cast doubt on Johnson’s claims in parliament that he did not knowingly break any Covid rules.
Other people received police fines for attending the event, however Johnson was spared.
Khan today said urgent “clarity” was needed from the Met over why they decided not to give the Prime Minister a fine.
A spokesperson for the mayor said: “Sadiq has today written to the acting Commissioner of the Met to seek a detailed explanation of the factors which were taken into account by investigating officers when decisions were made about whether to take action in individual cases in the Downing Street “partygate” investigation.
“He has asked them to take steps to also reassure Londoners by making this explanation to them directly, because he is concerned that the trust and confidence of Londoners in the police is being further eroded by this lack of clarity.
“The mayor has been clear he cannot and would not intervene in operational decisions, however with the investigation now complete, he has made this request in accordance with the Policing Protocol Order 2011 paragraph 23(g).”
Senior civil servant Sue Gray is expected to release her long-awaited report tomorrow on the Downing Street parties scandal.
There has been speculation around Westminster that the report will include photos that were handed over both to Gray and the Met for their respective investigations.