Starmer to stand down if he is fined for ‘beergate’
SIR KEIR STARMER has announced he will resign as Labour leader if he is fined by police over “beergate”.
In a move that attempts to put the pressure over Covid rule breaches back on the Prime Minister, who has not stood down despite being fined, Sir Keir said: “The British public deserve politicians who think the rules apply to them.”
He repeated his insistence that no laws were broken, but the announcement is something of a gamble, and places his political future in the hands of Durham Constabulary.
However, there were accusations last night that the move puts the force under “improper” pressure to clear Sir Keir.
In a statement from Labour’s headquarters yesterday, Sir Keir said: “I am absolutely clear that no laws were broken. They were followed at all times.
“I simply had something to eat whilst working late in the evening, as any politician would do days before an election.
“But if the police decide to issue me with a fixed penalty notice I would, of course, do the right thing and step down.
“This matters. It matters because the British public deserve politicians who think the rules apply to them.
“They deserve politicians who hold themselves to the highest standards, and they deserve politicians who put the country first rather than themselves. “They will always get that from me.” Sir Keir made the statement after mounting pressure over allegations that he and his staff broke Covid rules by enjoying a curry and a beer indoors in Durham in April 2021, and accusations of hypocrisy over Labour’s demands for Mr Johnson to resign over “partygate”.
However, Sir Keir said he would only resign if he is issued with a fixed-penalty notice, despite calling for Mr Johnson and Rishi Sunak to step down in January when a police investigation into their conduct was first launched.
He also suggested he would remain in the post if Durham Constabulary concludes that he broke the rules but do not fine him, as the force did over Dominic Cummings’s trip to Barnard Castle.
Angela Rayner, Sir Keir’s deputy, said she would also stand down if she is fined by the police over the incident.
It emerged last night that Sir Keir’s team believes it can prove that he was working until 1am on the night the incident took place.
The Guardian reported that Labour will submit to the police a dossier of Whatsapp messages and documents that “prove” he was working, while detectives are reportedly considering interviewing Sir Keir in person.
The Labour leader took pains to distance himself from Mr Johnson, telling reporters: “Unlike those in Downing Street, I don’t think people who have made the laws can simply breach them.”
He also told how he “agonised” over a decision not to support his father-inlaw in person after the death of
his mother-in-law during lockdown. “We all found following those rules frustrating at times,” he said. “I’m no exception to that.”
The Metropolitan Police’s investigation into the partygate breaches of Covid rules in Downing Street is ongoing, and the Prime Minister is expected to receive further fines.
Sir Keir’s statement followed days of speculation about his future, after Durham police announced an investigation into the “beergate” event on Friday.
Lord Moylan, a Conservative peer, tweeted last night that the force was now under political pressure. He said: “It seems to me it would be highly improper for Sir Keir Starmer to put pressure on Durham police by saying in advance that he would resign if fined.
“Boris Johnson by contrast, despite bullying from Labour, has kept a very proper silence.”
However, Emily Thornberry, one of Labour’s shadow ministers, suggested that the police had been put under pressure over the issue by the Tories. She said: “Anyone standing back and looking at this with an open mind can see that attempts have been made to put pressure on Durham police.”
Sir Keir cleared his diary yesterday, cancelling a speech at a think tank and his attendance at a memorial service for the former MP James Brokenshire, to work with his closest team on a response. While he planned his statement, a new poll showed more than half of the public believe Sir Keir “definitely” or “probably” broke lockdown rules, while almost half of 2019 Labour voters agreed with Sir Keir’s decision that he should stand down if he is fined.
Although allies in the shadow cabinet say the claims against Sir Keir are a “smear”, aides who were present at the event have briefed the media that they believe the rules were broken.