Boris apologises over ‘Partygate’

London, Jan. 31 British Prime Minister Boris Johnson apologised on Monday for lockdown-flouting parties in Downing Street but insisted that he and his government can be trusted.

Johnson told lawmakers in the House of Commons that he would make changes to the way the government is run in the wake of the partygate scandal. “I get it and I will fix it, he said.

He spoke after senior civil servant Sue Gray found that gatherings by the prime minister and his staff when Britain was under Coronavirus restrictions represent a serious failure to observe the standards expected of government.

Gray published findings on four gatherings in 2020 and 2021, and police are investigating a further dozen events.

Johnson has rebuffed calls to resign from opposition politicians and some of his own Conservative lawmakers.

In her report, Gray concluded that failures of leadership and judgment allowed events to occur that “should not have been allowed to take place.” “Against the backdrop of the pandemic, when the government was asking citizens to accept far-reaching restrictions on their lives, some of the behavior surrounding these gatherings is difficult to justify”, Gray said.

Gray's glimpse inside a 10 Downing St. marked by excessive alcohol consumption and staff afraid to speak out about workplace problems are a blow to Johnson who has previously said the rules were followed at all times and come despite the fact that Gray's conclusions relate to just four of the 16 events she investigated.

Her findings on 12 other events in 2020 and 2021 have been withheld at the request of the police, who have launched a criminal investigation into the most serious alleged breaches of Covid rules. —