London (CNN) British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was fighting to save his flailing premiership on Monday after a damning investigation uncovered multiple parties, a culture of excessive drinking and a "failure of leadership" in his government while the rest of the country was living under strict Covid-19 lockdown rules.
The long-awaited report by senior civil servant Sue Gray condemned "a serious failure" to observe government standards, and said a string of mass gatherings were "difficult to justify" while millions were unable to meet their friends and relatives.
It also revealed that police are investigating at least 12 events - including at least two Johnson attended, and a third held in his flat that he previously told lawmakers did not happen.
Gray's report was heavily neutered due to a simultaneous police investigation, but its general findings were strong enough to leave Johnson's leadership on the precipice. He insisted in Parliament that he "will fix it" and pledged a number of relatively modest reforms of his operation, but faced calls from all quarters that he should resign and publicly lost the support of more of his own backbenchers.
"There were failures of leadership and judgment by different parts of No 10 and the Cabinet Office at different times," the report said. "Some of the events should not have been allowed to take place. Other events should not have been allowed to develop as they did."
"At least 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," she wrote.
Johnson initially denied a party had taken place in Downing Street, but commissioned the report after a string of media stories revealed several gatherings had. A separate police investigation was launched last week, which prevented Gray from including details in her findings.
Facing furious MPs on Monday after the stripped-down report was published, Johnson said: "I'm sorry for the things we just did not get right." He then attempted to draw a line under the scandal, saying he is "getting on with the job."
But in a bruising appearance in the House of Commons that lasted almost two hours he was skewered by lawmakers from all sides. Labour leader Keir Starmer called Johnson "a man without shame," urged him to resign, and told MPs: "There can be no doubt that the Prime Minister himself is now subject to criminal investigation."
In a dramatic intervention, Johnson's predecessor as Prime Minister and fellow Conservative Theresa May addressed him and said: "Either (he) had not read the rules, or did not understand what they meant, or they did not think the rules applied to Number 10. Which was it?" And the leader of the Scottish National Party was removed from Parliament for saying the Prime Minister had lied to the chamber.
Johnson appeared defensive and off point; at one stage he attacked Starmer - a former chief prosecutor in England - for failing to prosecute a notorious pedophile, a critique that was dismissed by leading lawyers. He repeatedly ducked questions about which events he had attended and when, saying lawmakers should wait for the police inquiry to conclude.
It remains to be seen whether he will last until then; if enough Conservative MPs trigger a vote of no-confidence, they will have the chance to oust him from office.
And there was still more bad news for Johnson on Monday, when the Metropolitan Police revealed that officers investigating "Partygate" have been handed more than 300 photographs and 500 pages of information to review.
"I'm deeply concerned by these events," Conservative backbencher Andrew Mitchell said in Parliament. "He no longer enjoys my support."
You must be logged in to post a comment.