Hampshire mum who shares a birthday with Boris Johnson ‘disgusted’ by news of Number 10 lockdown celebration
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Number 10 has stated that staff 'gathered briefly' in the Cabinet Room on the afternoon of June 18, 2020 following a meeting.
The statement comes after it was alleged that 30 people attended, shared cake, and sang “happy birthday” to the prime minister, despite social mixing indoors being banned.
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Hide AdDonna Levermore, a single mum who was born exactly a year before Mr Johnson, spent the day at home in Winchester with her 25-year-old daughter Kirsten.
At the time, Kirsten was recovering from a thyroid cancer operation and had a ‘7.5-centimetre gash’ across her neck.
The 58-year-old said: ‘It was terrible, absolutely awful… we’re sitting there holding each other – but hardly holding each other because she was so sore with her stitches… we pulled ourselves through it completely alone,’
‘(Mr Johnson) has infiltrated and spoiled everything – literally stomped all over it… I’m disgusted. He’s tarnished my birthday.
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Hide Ad‘My daughter lost her neck… and this ******* is dancing the fandango.’
Kirsten was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in December 2019 and her operation to remove the cancer was rescheduled six times before she finally underwent surgery on June 9, 2020.
While Kirsten has made a full recovery, Ms Levermore said the news of the celebration at number 10 on the same day is 'cruel'.
‘He is not fit to govern,’ she said.
‘He has absolutely crushed the spirit of people – how are you supposed to believe in anything when this has happened?
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Hide Ad‘He will be remembered in history with the worst of the worst for what he’s done… it’s like dancing on someone’s grave.’
Angus Proud, from Barrowford in Pendle, Lancashire, also shares a birthday with the prime minister and said it was “galling” to hear the allegations.
Mr Proud tweeted a picture on Monday (January 24) of himself enjoying a quiet birthday drink on June 19, 2020, which he spent with his partner.
In the caption, he said: ‘On June 19, 2020, I had a night out(doors) for my birthday. Just the 2 of us,’
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Hide AdMr Proud, 68, stated: ‘I was never a fan of Johnson, but I did think in March and April that year that he got the country on the right path.
‘To find out now that he was leading his own life by his own rules is pretty galling.
‘We had a pleasant enough day, but not the day we could have had.
‘And that’s fine when you know we’re all in it together.
‘But we weren’t, were we?’
Mr Proud said that he “absolutely” believed he was doing the right thing by having a quiet birthday and said: ‘it felt like a national effort to us.’
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Hide AdSEE ALSO: Met Police to investigate alleged lockdown parties in Downing Street, Cressida Dick confirms
Downing Street issued a response to a report from ITV News which suggested up to 30 people attended what it described as a birthday party.
They stated that staff 'gathered briefly' in the Cabinet Room following a meeting but the broadcaster suggested that the prime minister's wife, Carrie Johnson, had organised the surprise get-together complete with a chorus of ‘happy birthday’ on the afternoon of June 19 2020.
At this time, indoor social mixing was banned due to the spread of Covid-19.