Labour activists ordered to say nothing about Beergate
LABOUR has told activists in Durham to keep quiet about the Beergate scandal that has plunged Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership into crisis.
Members have been instructed not to speak publicly about his beer and curry ‘party’ during lockdown.
Durham Constabulary announced last week that it was launching a probe into the gathering on April 30 last year after receiving ‘significant new information’. At the time, indoor socialising was banned.
The move followed revelations in the Mail about what happened when Sir Keir gathered with MPs and officials in Durham Miners Hall.
Sir Keir has said he will ‘do the right thing and step down’ if police issue him with a fixed penalty notice. But he has not said if he will quit if police find he breached lockdown laws but sticks to its policy of not issuing Covid fines retrospectively.
In an email to members, Chris Turner, secretary of the Labour Party in Durham, said: ‘If you are contacted by a journalist, I would advise you make no response.’