UK ‘partygate’ investigation finds ‘failures of leadership and judgment’

A new report on the alleged gatherings on United Kingdom government premises while COVID-19 restrictions were in place has found that there were multiple “failures of leadership and judgment,” in a damning blow to Prime Minister Boris Johnson. 

The report released Monday found that the British government gave “little thought” to the situation in the U.K. at the time.

Civil servant Sue Gray wrote in her much-awaited report that “it seems there was too little thought given to what was happening across the country in considering the appropriateness of some of these gatherings, the risks they presented to public health and how they might appear to the public.”

The report added that “some of the gatherings in question represent a serious failure to observe not just the high standards expected of those working at the heart of Government but also of the standards expected of the entire British population at the time.”

Gray, who was charged with investigating the breaches, said she investigated 16 events on 12 different days. She added that she was assisted by a small team of senior civil servants in the Cabinet Office.

The events in question include Boris Johnson’s birthday party, multiple gatherings at 10 Downing Street and a gathering at Johnson’s flat.

The report added “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.”

It also made note of the “excessive consumption of alcohol” and deemed that is not appropriate in a professional workplace at any time. Gray added that steps must be taken to ensure that every U.K. government department has “a clear and robust policy in place covering the consumption of alcohol in the workplace.”

Gray added that some staff wanted to raise concerns about behaviors they witnessed at 10 Downing Street but felt “unable to do so.”

In an appearance at the U.K. House of Commons, Johnson apologized for lockdown lapses and vowed to learn lessons from the incident. 

“It’s no use saying that this or that was within the rules,” Johnson said Monday. “I understand the anger that people feel.”