Boris Johnson apologises to UK MPs over partygate fine

British prime minister attempts to convince Parliament that there are bigger issues to focus on than the coronavirus lockdown parties

Boris Johnson offered a “wholehearted apology” to the House of Commons after being fined over the partygate scandal that has shook confidence in his leadership.

“Let me begin in all humility by saying that on April 12 I received a fixed penalty notice relating to an event in Downing Street on June 19 2020," he said on his 1,000th day in office.

“I paid the fine immediately and I offered the British people a full apology, and I take this opportunity on the first available sitting day to repeat my wholehearted apology to the House.”

Mr Johnson also focused on the crisis in Ukraine where he said the government was sending artillery as the nature of the conflict changed with the launch of a new Russian offensive.

Last week Mr Johnson was fined by the Metropolitan Police for attending a birthday party in his honour in the Cabinet room in June 2020, while coronavirus restrictions were in place.

He was then accused at the weekend of not only attending a leaving party for his former communications chief Lee Cain on November 13, 2020, but instigating the occasion.

No 10 Downing Street declined to comment on the claims.

Sir Lindsay Hoyle, Speaker of the House of Commons, on Tuesday approved an application from opposition MPs allowing them to table a motion for debate about whether the prime minister misled Parliament when he claimed Covid rules were followed within Downing Street.

“Scheduling the debate for Thursday will, I hope, give members an opportunity to consider the motion and the response to it," he said. “The motion will appear on Thursday’s order paper to be taken after any urgent questions or statements. Hopefully there won’t be any. I hope this is helpful to the House.”

The Daily Telegraph quoted a Downing Street source as saying he will “offer a full-throated apology and recognise the strength of feeling” among MPs on partygate, but is unlikely to go into too much detail on the matter.

“He will obviously give an update on the fine because there is a clear need to do that, but it is difficult to pre-empt the findings of an ongoing police investigation publicly,” the source said.

The newspaper said he would instead talk about Ukraine and the Rwanda deal, while The Times previously reported he would also touch on the cost-of-living crisis and a trip to India focusing on defence and trade.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has apologised for breaking the law after he was fined over the lockdown partygate scandal but he rejected calls to resign. PA

Members of the media gather on Downing Street after police in London issued 50 fines in relation to parties and gatherings held at government buildings during Covid lockdowns. Getty Images

The prime minister, pictured with a birthday cake baked for him by school staff at Bovingdon Primary Academy in Hemel Hempstead, said it ‘didn't occur’ to him that a gathering on June 19, 2020 to mark his 56th birthday broke coronavirus rules. AFP

Chancellor Rishi Sunak (L) was also fined for attending lockdown parties held in and around Downing Street. AFP

Mr Johnson is the first sitting prime minister to be censured for breaking the law, sparking calls from all sides of Parliament, including some in his own party, to step down. Reuters

A lone protester demonstrates outside No 10 Downing Street in London. EPA

Before the war broke out in Ukraine, Mr Johnson appeared vulnerable to the partygate controversy. He has been praised for his response to the conflict, which may offer him some protection from critics, and he visited Kyiv last weekend in what he called a show of support for the country. AFP

Boris Johnson and his wife Carrie applaud for key health workers outside No 10 Downing Street in May 2020. Getty Images

Boris Johnson makes a statement in the House of Commons in January, on Sue Gray's report regarding the alleged Downing Street parties during lockdown. Reuters

A journalist highlights sections of the report by civil servant Sue Gray into parties held at Downing Street. AFP

Mr Johnson is understood to have been present at six of at least 12 events being investigated. One occurred on the eve of Prince Philip’s funeral, at which Queen Elizabeth II had to grieve away from other mourners because of social distancing protocols. Getty Images

Mr Johnson then spoke to a meeting of the entire Conservative parliamentary party on Tuesday evening.

On Monday, a senior Conservative suggested a “war cabinet” could be established in place of a leadership contest to avoid detracting attention from the crisis in Ukraine if Mr Johnson stepped down or was deposed.

Sir Roger Gale said the “interim administration” could be led by the Deputy Prime Minister, Dominic Raab, who briefly took the reins in 2020 when Mr Johnson was in hospital with Covid-19.

Mr Gale previously submitted a letter of no confidence in the prime minister, which remains “on the table” but has since said it is not the right time for a leadership election given the situation in Ukraine.

He said he was now keen to establish if it might be possible to put a contest on hold if Mr Johnson resigned or was forced out of his job.

Meanwhile, former archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams said that without asking for repentance and forgiveness, Mr Johnson’s position was not sustainable.

His comments follow a thinly veiled reference to standards in politics by one of the Church of England’s most senior clergymen, the Archbishop of York.

Using his Easter sermon on Sunday, Stephen Cottrell urged people to ask themselves in which sort of country they wanted to live.

“Do we want to be known for the robustness of our democracy, where those in public life live to the highest standards, and where we can trust those who lead us to behave with integrity and honour?” he said.

Dr Williams on Monday told Times Radio: “Because I don’t believe that we should rule out the possibility of, to put it in religious terms, repentance and forgiveness, then it’s perfectly possible for somebody to say, ‘Yes, I got that badly wrong. I accept the consequence. I accept that this has damaged trust. I’m asking for another chance.’

“But otherwise, I don’t see it’s a sustainable position myself.”

Asked if he would recommend that Mr Johnson confess in church over the issue, he said: “Yes, of course. Yes.

"A breach of the law, which has damaging consequences for society, which damages trust, which damages the integrity and credibility not only of an individual but of the government, yes, it seems to be perfectly appropriate for the confessional."