London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Jul 04, 2025

Sue Gray report paints Johnson as cruise ship captain, in charge but not in control

Sue Gray report paints Johnson as cruise ship captain, in charge but not in control

Analysis: The PM is portrayed as a gilded spectre, stumbling across parties, being amiable to passengers his main task
Perhaps the most accidentally telling line of Boris Johnson’s apology-meets-explanation in response to the Sue Gray report came when he outlined recent personnel moves inside Downing Street: “The entire senior management has changed.”

Aside, of course, from the man at the very top. And while Johnson insisted he took “full responsibility for everything that took place on my watch”, the Gray report eloquently chronicled what has been a refrain of Johnson’s political career – the sense of a man officially in charge, but not necessarily in control.

For many Johnson supporters, this characteristic is portrayed as a strength. He is, they argue, more chairman than chief executive, the visionary and salesman who leaves tedious detail to diligent if less talented underlings.

This way of working was perhaps most beneficial when Johnson was mayor of London, a sometimes ceremonial role with the bulk of the granular decisions devolved to subject-specific deputy mayors.

In central government, things become more difficult. The string of social vignettes set out in Gray’s report portray Johnson less as a central point of power than a sort of gilded spectre, guided between meetings and stumbling across parties, making a brief speech or raising a glass in a toast before being led off again.

If being prime minister is to captain a ship, the Johnson of the Gray report commands a cruise vessel, one where the main task involves being amiable to passengers at the dinner table.

Johnson makes a series of appearances across the 60 pages of the report, attending eight of the 15 gatherings Gray describes, but these are largely cameos, where he arrives sometimes by accident en route to his office and rarely stays for long.

In this context it is perhaps unsurprising that the single event for which Johnson was fined by police, his brief birthday party in June 2020, was organised by aides and completely unknown to the prime minister until he was taken into the cabinet room.

He was, in the famous defence of one minister, ambushed by cake. But at the same time, opponents will argue that a true leader, if presented with a room laden with sandwiches and snacks amid a lockdown during which social events were strictly prohibited, would have walked out rather than meekly join in.

All this, of course, takes place in the context of Downing Street being both Johnson’s family home and workplace.

In one incident Gray does not criticise, and which police chose to not investigate, the prime minister joined officials for what Gray called a continuation of work meetings in the Downing Street garden, bringing down the now famous cheese platter from his own flat.

This was another of Johnson’s defences in his Commons speech after the report: the Downing Street complex covers 5,300 sq metres over five floors, and houses hundreds of staff. That is factually correct. But as Gray’s report makes clear, virtually all the 15 events she chronicles took place in a surprisingly compact suite of offices through which Johnson regularly passes.

As such, the prime minister’s appeal to MPs that he “had no knowledge of subsequent proceedings because I simply wasn’t there, and I have been as surprised and disappointed as anyone”, resembles the father of a teenager telling police he did not realise a noisy party was disrupting the street because he was in an upstairs bedroom.

As with so many things about the saga, this sense of almost irrelevance in Johnson’s role will be interpreted in markedly different ways by opposing sides of the argument.

But even for allies, the sheer extent of detail in the report makes this notably more difficult to defend. Wine was spilled, a staffer was so drunk they were sick, a near-fight took place, karaoke music played. Emails and WhatsApp messages were passed between staff about “wine time Friday”, a warning that social noise should not drown out a press conference, and about having “got away with” holding a drinks party.

This ultimately leaves two choices for those in Johnson’s camp. One is that he misled the country when he said he had no knowledge about parties. The other implies Johnson is so detached, dissociated and peripheral that the office he supposedly leads became the most Covid-rule-breaking address in England while he remained oblivious.

Neither is the ideal place in which a national leader should find themselves.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
DJI Launches Heavy-Duty Coaxial Quadcopter with 80 kg Lift Capacity
U.S. Senate Approves Major Legislation Dubbed the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Largest Healthcare Fraud Takedown in U.S. History Announced by DOJ
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Political Dispute Escalates Between Trump and Musk
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
US Senate Votes to Remove AI Regulation Moratorium from Domestic Policy Bill
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
Jury Deliberations in Diddy Trial Yield Partial Verdict in Serious Criminal Charges
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
King Charles Plans Significant Role for Prince Harry in Coronation
Two Chinese Nationals Arrested for Espionage Activities Against U.S. Navy
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Extreme Heat Wave Sweeps Across Europe, Hitting Record Temperatures
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
Trump Administration Considers Withdrawal of Funding for Hospitals Providing Gender Treatment to Minors
Texas Enacts Law Allowing Gold and Silver Transactions
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
OpenAI Secures Multimillion-Dollar AI Contracts with Pentagon, India, and Grab
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Germany Votes to Suspend Family Reunification for Asylum Seekers
Elon Musk Critiques Senate Budget Proposal Over Job Losses and Strategic Risks
Los Angeles Riots ended with Federal Investigations into Funding
Budapest Pride Parade Draws 200,000 Participants Amid Government Ban
Southern Europe Experiences Extreme Heat
Xiaomi's YU7 SUV Launch Garners Record Pre-Orders Amid Market Challenges
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's Lavish Wedding in Venice
Russia Launches Largest Air Assault on Ukraine Since Invasion
Education Secretary Announces Overhaul of Complaints System Amid Rising Parental Grievances
Massive Anti-Government Protests Erupt in Belgrade
Trump Ends Trade Talks with Canada Over Digital Services Tax
UK Government Softens Welfare Reform Plans Amid Labour Party Rebellion
Labour Faces Rebellion Over Disability Benefit Reforms Ahead of Key Vote
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Host Lavish Wedding in Venice Amid Protests
Trump Asserts Readiness for Further Strikes on Iran Amid Nuclear Tensions
North Korea to Open New Beach Resort to Boost Tourism Economy
UK Labour Party Faces Internal Tensions Over Welfare Reforms
Andrew Cuomo Hints at Potential November Comeback Amid Democratic Primary Results
Curtis Sliwa Champions His Vision for New York City Amid Rising Crime Concerns
Federal Reserve Proposes Changes to Capital Rule Affecting Major Banks
EU TO HUNGARY: LET THEM PRIDE OR PREP FOR SHADE. ORBÁN TO EU: STAY IN YOUR LANE AND FIX YOUR OWN MESS.
Trump Escalates Criticism of Media Over Iran Strike Coverage
Trump Announces Upcoming US-Iran Meeting Amid Controversial Airstrikes
Trump Moves to Reshape Middle East Following Israel-Iran Conflict
Big Four Accounting Firms Fined in Exam Cheating Scandal
NATO Members Agree to 5% Defense Spending Target by 2035
Australia's Star Casino Secures $195 Million Rescue Package Amid Challenges
UK to Enhance Nuclear Capabilities with Acquisition of F-35A Fighter Jets
×