Scotland Yard sending letters to party ‘suspects’
‘Give reasonable excuse or be fined’
Scotland Yard has announced that it would start sending letters to Downing Street officials suspected of breaching lockdown rules after receiving a dossier of evidence from Sue Gray.
The Metropolitan Police said those alleged to have broken COVID laws at government parties would be told to provide a “reasonable excuse” or be fined. Those known to have attended events under investigation are expected to receive letters, raising the possibility that Boris Johnson and his closest advisers will be contacted.
The announcement came as the prime minister is preparing to fly to Eastern Europe next week to address mounting fears of a Russian invasion of Ukraine.
But his attempt to focus on the day job — which will include a string of domestic-policy announcements on Brexit and “levelling up” this week — risks being undercut by “partygate.”
Gray, the civil servant looking into the claims, is preparing to publish her report within days despite being told by the Metropolitan Police to leave out scores of key details.
Scotland Yard is insisting that Gray makes only “minimal reference” to the alleged lockdown-breaking parties it is now investigating.
The Daily Telegraph understands Gray has decided to publish her report — with changes in line with Met demands — rather than wait until that investigation is complete.
The developments leave Johnson in limbo, unsure what will be contained in Gray’s report or when it will be released as Tory MPS weigh up whether to oust him.
It came on a day of finger-pointing and confusion about who is to blame for the delay in Gray’s report. Yesterday morning, the Met was accused of a “disproportionate” approach by insisting Gray only reveals “minimal” information about the “partygate” events it is now probing.
Legal experts and MPS argued there was no way any prosecutions launched from the probe could be prejudiced because they involved fines overseen by magistrates, not a jury.
Last night, a statement issued in the name of Commander Catherine Roper, who is overseeing the police investigation, doubled down on the position, arguing it was “in order to protect the integrity of the police investigation.”
But the statement also revealed that relevant “material” had been delivered from the Cabinet Office, under which Gray is conducting her probe, to Scotland Yard.
The statement read: “In order to protect the integrity of the police investigation, as is appropriate in any case, and to be as fair as possible to those who are subject to it, the Met has asked for minimal reference to be made in the Cabinet Office report to the relevant events.
“This will only be necessary until these matters are concluded, and is to give detectives the most reliable picture of what happened at these events.
“We intend to complete our investigations promptly, fairly and proportionately. We have not delayed this report, and the timing of its release is a matter for the Cabinet Office inquiry team.”
The statement also made clear the next steps for those accused of rule-breaking at the alleged events. It read: “Individuals who are identified as having potentially breached these regulations will normally be contacted in writing, and invited to explain their actions including whether they feel they had a reasonable excuse.”
“Following this process, and where there is sufficient evidence that individuals have breached the regulations without reasonable excuse, officers will decide if enforcement action is appropriate. If the decision is to take enforcement action, then a report will be sent to the Criminal Records Office which will issue the fixed penalty notice. Recipients can pay the fixed penalty and the matter will be considered closed.”
It is understood that eight gatherings are being investigated. There was widespread
OFFICERS WILL DECIDE IF ENFORCEMENT ACTION IS APPROPRIATE.
criticism of the Met’s attempt to limit what Gray could release.
Ken Macdonald, the former director of public prosecutions, said the move seemed “disproportionate” in the face of “very powerful” public interest in the report’s swift publication.
Tory MP Sir Roger Gale, who has called for Johnson’s resignation, described it as a “farce” that could buy more time for the “lame duck” prime minister.
Johnson will also hold a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the coming week in new efforts to “avoid bloodshed” in Ukraine. Johnson will urge Putin to “step back” and “engage diplomatically,” as fears grow that Moscow is poised to invade. During a high-level intelligence briefing this week, Johnson tasked British defence and security chiefs with examining fresh military options in Europe.
Armed Forces chiefs set out proposals for new deployments of personnel on NATO’S eastern flank at a crunch meeting in the Ministry of Defence.
Britain already has around 850 troops stationed in Estonia and 150 in Poland under the coalition’s banner.