Partygate report: Every excuse Boris Johnson made for Downing Street lockdown breaches plus live updates as Sue Gray's report is finally released

Penny Mordaunt, Portsmouth North MP and trade minister, branded the partygate fiasco ‘shameful’.

She said: ‘I’m reading the full report today, but it is disappointing to hear its headline conclusions.

‘As well as the deviation from the rules when others were making huge sacrifices, I am angry that those who blocked reasonable requests to relax restrictions - when the clinical evidenced clearly supported this - were at the same time ignoring the rules.

‘I am also saddened to hear that cleaning and security staff were abused and junior staff not lead in the way you would expect. It is incredibly sad and shameful.’

Councillor Sean Woodward, Conservative leader of Fareham Borough Council, said the culture of alcohol abuse in the government needed to stop. He added: ‘There was a culture at Number 10 Downing Street and at the cabinet office that was clearly out of control and poorly run. ‘There was a culture of alcohol use and it has no place in the workplace. It is wrong. It doesn’t matter in or out of the pandemic. Things need to change. ‘Boris Johnson has to tidy up the operation. This is the heart of government. This is where every decision is taken and you can’t have a load of beer and wine swilling all over the place. ‘The eyes have got to be on the ball and Boris Johnson and his staff’s eyes were clearly off the ball on this occasion.’ Cllr Woodward said that he was ‘pleased’ the PM vowed to take action over the scandal but hinted that it was unlikely Mr Johnson would resign. ‘A week is a long time in politics; two years to the next general election is an even longer time,’ he added. ‘You never know what’s coming down the track. Who would have dreamt when this stuff blew up there would have been a war. ‘Whatever people think of Boris Johnson’s poor control of Downing Street, I don’t think there would be anyone who has said behaved poorly over Ukraine. He has behaved like a true statesmen. ‘A person like Boris Johnson is a man of many parts. Some of them people probably don’t like with some justification but some will have immense admiration for him. He is a mercurial character.’

Sue Gray abandoned her investigation into the “Abba party” held in Boris Johnson’s flat despite finding that alcohol was present on the evening Dominic Cummings was forced out of Downing Street.

The senior civil servant found that the Prime Minister did attend the mid-lockdown gathering along with five special advisers but halted her work having only collected “limited” information when the Metropolitan Police began their investigation.

There was no mention in her report of The Winner Takes It All and other Abba songs reportedly heard blaring from the Downing Street residence after the departure of Mr Cummings as chief adviser was announced following a bitter power struggle.

Carrie Johnson, the Prime Minister’s wife, was reportedly at the event in the flat during England’s second national lockdown on November 13 2020.

Flick Drummond, MP for Meon Valley, said: ‘: I am very unhappy about what went on at Downing Street but there is very little direct criticism of the PM in the Gray report. ‘I am pleased Boris Johnson has taken full responsibility for what happened and he has apologised again, even though it is clear he only attended many of these gatherings for a short time at the start. The one he was fined for he knew nothing about until it happened, the report has concluded, and it lasted only nine minutes. ‘However, what occurred simply wasn’t good enough and I am pleased the Downing Street operation has now been substantially changed. This sort of behaviour from officials and the descriptions of raucous parties is unacceptable. I hope everyone has learned their lesson. ‘We now need to move on with the Prime Minister at the helm. There are many pressing issues to focus on both at home and abroad.’

Councillor Gerald Vernon-Jackson, leader of Portsmouth City Council: ‘I’m horrified that when people couldn’t go and see their parents and loved ones in care homes or be with the family members as they died the prime minister and his mates were having parties. ‘His behaviour is appalling and he doesn’t deserve to remain as prime minister. He has tried every way to wriggle out of his responsibility. ‘It has been all about saying “the rules don’t apply to us even when we’re caught. We’re not like ordinary people, others might have restrictions but it doesn’t apply to us”. You can’t have governments like that. That’s the sort of government Putin has. I don’t think we can believe a word he says.’ He added: ‘The prime minister said no rules were broken. It is absolutely obvious that partying until 4am was clearly not allowed when we were all being told to stay at home for the good of the country to stop us spreading Covid. The prime minister lives in a flat at Number10. How can he not have known this was going on? ‘There is rot at the centre of our government and the stench of it is becoming really powerful.’

Royal Navy captain Steve Higham caught up in Downing Street fiasco hands over command of HMS Prince of Wales

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Boris Johnson told MPs: “I am confident with the changes and new structures that are now in place, that we are humbled by the experience and we have learned our lesson.

“And I want to conclude by saying that I, I am humbled and I have learned a lesson and I want to conclude by saying that whatever the failings – of Number 10 and the Cabinet Office throughout this very difficult period, for which I take full responsibility.

“I continue to believe that the civil and advisers in question, hundreds of them, thousands of them, some of whom are the very people who’ve received fines, are good, hard working people, motivated by the highest calling to do the very best for our country and I will always be proud of what they achieved, including procuring essential life saving PPE, creating the biggest testing programme in Europe and helping to enable the development and distribution of the vaccine which got this country through the worst pandemic of a century.”

Boris Johnson also told MPs: “I’m happy to set on the record now that when I came to this House and said, in all sincerity, that the rules and guidance had been followed at all times, it was what I believed to be true.

“It was certainly the case that when I was present at gatherings to wish staff a farewell, and the House will note that my attendance at these moments – brief as it was – has not been found to be outside the rules.

“But clearly this was not the case for some of those gatherings after I had left and at other gatherings when I was not even in the building.

“So I would like to correct the record, to take this opportunity, not in any sense to absolve myself of responsibility – which I take and have always taken – but simply to explain why I spoke as I did in this House.”

Prime Minister Boris Johnson told the Commons: “But since these investigations have now come to an end, this is my first opportunity to set out some of the context and to explain both my understanding of what happened and also to explain what I had previously said to this House.

“And it’s important to set out that over a period of about 600 days, gatherings on a total of eight dates have been found to be in breach of the regulations in a building that is 5,300 metres square across five floors, excluding the flats.”

He added: “Hundreds of staff are entitled to work and in the Cabinet Office, which has thousands of officials, and now is the biggest it has been in any point in its 100-year history. That is itself one of the reasons why the Government is now looking for change and reform.

“Those staff working in Downing Street were permitted to continue attending their office for the purpose of work and the exemption under the regulations applied to their work because of the nature of their jobs, reporting directly to the Prime Minister.”