London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Aug 30, 2025

PMQs: PM under fire over No 10 lockdown Christmas parties

PMQs: PM under fire over No 10 lockdown Christmas parties

Boris Johnson says no Covid rules were broken after reports Christmas parties were held in Downing Street at the height of last year's lockdown.

The BBC has spoken to a source who attended a Downing Street gathering on 18 December, as first reported in the Mirror newspaper.

They said "several dozen" people were at the event, where party games were played and food and drink served.

The PM did not deny parties were held but said "all guidance was followed".

The source at the 18 December gathering said it had gone on past midnight, and that the "mood was down", with concern building about the new Kent variant of coronavirus.

Downing Street was asked for a comment about the source's claim but declined to add to what it had said earlier about all guidelines being followed.

London was placed under Tier 3 lockdown restrictions on 14 December last year, after which time people were not allowed to mix indoors with anyone outside their household or support bubble.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer accused the prime minister of hypocrisy for flouting the rules he had ordered the rest of the country to follow.

At Prime Minister's Questions, Sir Keir said: "Does the prime minister really expect the country to believe that while people were banned from seeing their loved ones at Christmas last year, it was fine for him and his friends to throw a boozy party in Downing Street?"

He accused the PM of "taking the British public for fools".

Mr Johnson said all Covid rules had been followed in Downing Street and he took a swipe at Sir Keir's reported disagreements with Labour's deputy leader Angela Rayner.

"Can I recommend to (him) that he does the same with his own Christmas party, which is advertised for 15 December, to which unaccountably he's failed to invite the deputy leader," said the PM.

'Potential illegality'


The SNP's Westminster leader, Ian Blackford, accused the prime minister of hosting an event that broke lockdown rules.

"The prime minister might be denying it but I've spoken to the Mirror newspaper this morning and they are confirming what happened, and they have legal advice on potential illegality," he said.

"At a time when public health messaging is so vital, how are people possibly expected to trust a prime minister when he thinks it's one rule for him and one rule for everybody else?"

The prime minister said: "He's talking total nonsense. I think he would have been better off, frankly, saying something about the victims of storm Arwen in Scotland."

According to the Mirror, the official No 10 staff Christmas party was cancelled last year, but an unofficial party, which the PM did not attend, took place on 18 December.

The prime minister also gave a speech at a "packed leaving do" for an aide on 27 November, when the country was in its second lockdown and socialising was banned, the paper said.

Mr Johnson has urged people not to cancel their Christmas parties this year, despite the emergence of the Omicron variant of coronavirus.

The PM has urged people to get a booster jab and follow new, tighter restrictions, with face masks once again being required on public transport and in shops in England.


Watch: Keir Starmer asks if No 10 held a Christmas party while the rest of the country was in lockdown


Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Corporate America Cuts Middle Management as Bosses Take On Triple the Workload
Parents Sue OpenAI After Teen’s Death, Alleging ChatGPT Encouraged Suicide
Amazon Faces Lawsuit Over 'Buy' Label on Digital Streaming Content
Federal Reserve Independence Questioned Amid Trump’s Push to Reshape Central Bank
British Politics Faces Tumultuous Autumn After Summer of Rebellions and Rising Farage Momentum
US Appeals Court Rules Against Most Trump-Era Tariffs
UK Sought Broad Access to Apple Users’ Data, Court Filing Reveals
UK Bank Shares Dive Over Potential Tax on Sector
Germany’s Auto Industry Sheds 51,500 Jobs in First Half of 2025 Amid Deepening Crisis
Bruce Willis Relocated Due to Advanced Dementia
French and Korean Nuclear Majors Clash As EU Launches Foreign Subsidy Probe
EU Stands Firm on Digital Rules as Trump Warns of Retaliation
Getting Ready for the 3rd Time in Its History, Germany Approves Voluntary Military Service for Teenagers
Argentine President Javier Milei Evacuated After Stones Thrown During Campaign Event
Denmark Confronts U.S. Diplomat Over Covert Trump-Linked Influence in Greenland
Starmer Should Back Away from ECHR, Says Jack Straw
Trump Demands RICO Charges Against George Soros and Son for Funding Violent Protests
Taylor Swift Announces Engagement to NFL Star Travis Kelce
France May Need IMF Bailout, Warns Finance Minister
Chinese AI Chipmaker Cambricon Posts Record Profit as Beijing Pushes Pivot from Nvidia
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
Ukraine Finally Allows Young Men Aged Eighteen to Twenty-Two to Leave the Country
The Porn Remains, Privacy Disappears: How Britain Broke the Internet in Ten Days
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Welcome to The Definition of Insanity: Germany Edition
Just a reminder, this is Michael Jackson's daughter, Paris.
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
A new faith called Robotheism claims artificial intelligence isn’t just smart but actually God itself
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner Purchases Third Property Amid Housing Tax Reforms Debate
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Italian Facebook Group Sharing Intimate Images Without Consent Shut Down Amid Police Investigation
Dutch Foreign Minister Resigns Amid Deadlock Over Israel Sanctions
Trump and Allies Send Messages of Support to Ukraine on Independence Day Amid Ongoing Conflict
China Reels as Telegram Chat Group Shares Hidden-Camera Footage of Women and Children
Sam Nicoresti becomes first transgender comedian to win Edinburgh Comedy Award
Builders uncover historic human remains in Lancashire house renovation
Australia Wants to Tax Your Empty Bedrooms
MotoGP Cameraman Narrowly Avoids Pedro Acosta Crash at Hungarian Grand Prix
FBI Investigates John Bolton Over Classified Documents in High-Profile Raids
Report reveals OpenAI pitched national ChatGPT Plus subscription to UK ministers
×