Calls for force to reopen its investigation into mayor’s lockdown visits
AMID PARTYGATE FINES AND BEERGATE PROBE, THE CITY’S CONSERVATIVES WRITE TO TOP COP OVER ‘HISTORIC BREACHES’
LEICESTER’S Conservative Party has written to police to ask them to carry out a full investigation into claims the city mayor broke lockdown rules.
Leader of the city’s Conservatives, Baroness Verma, has written to the acting chief constable, Rob Nixon, asking for the incident to be re-examined in light of investigations into breaches at Downing Street and by Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer.
A Leicestershire Police spokesman previously told the Mercury they would not be investigating the matter, as it was “a historic breach” of the rules.
Sir Peter, who apologised in June 2020 for travelling to his partner’s home in Groby, said his actions were to support someone who was “in considerable distress” and they were very different to the Partygate scandal.
He said: “I went to support somebody in considerable distress and, obviously, apologised at the time for doing so and the police made it very clear they believed no rules had been broken.
“This is very clearly an attempt to divert attention from the repeated and flagrant breaches at Downing Street parties. It’s clearly a very, very different type of incident.”
In the letter to chief constable Nixon, Baroness
Verma said: “There are currently numerous investigations and inquiries into the breach of Covid rules by the Prime Minister, others at number 10 and the opposition leader, Sir Keir Starmer.
“In the interests of transparency, I would like to request the breach of Covid rules in 2020 by the elected mayor, Sir Peter Soulsby, be re-examined for a full investigation.
“Many, very angry Leicester citizens have raised this with me and others, on numerous occasions, and I believe people from across all communities have demonstrated their anger since the story was revealed, especially when Leicester faced the longest lockdown in the country.
“Given the actions of the Metropolitan Police and
Durham Police, it is important trust in the process of the law be demonstrated to apply to everyone equally.
“Sir Peter Soulsby admitted he had broken Covid rules at a time when there was a stay-at-home ruling by the government and Leicester citizens were expected to abide by the rules.” Baroness Verma added she has requested by way of a Freedom of Information request a copy of Leicestershire Police’s guidance regarding retroactively investigating lockdown breaches.
Sir Peter told the Mercury in 2020 he had not broken lockdown rules, but had only started visiting his partner after guidance allowed people to form social bubbles. However, a neighbour had claimed he had been visiting three or four times a week throughout the lockdown, something the mayor denied. He faced calls to resign at the time from the local Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats.
The call for an investigation comes a week after the news Sir Peter was reselected as Labour’s mayoral candidate for the 2023 elections.
It is important trust in the process of the law be demonstrated to apply to everyone equally
Baroness Verma, left