Leaked photos show Boris Johnson drinking at lockdown-breaching leaving party
- Pictures of Boris Johnson raising a glass at an aide's leaving do were published by ITV News.
- The prime minister, who repeatedly said no rules were broken, is seen toasting colleagues.
Photos of Boris Johnson raising a glass at a party during one of England's coronavirus lockdowns were published on Monday, heaping fresh pressure on the prime minister ahead of the full partygate report.
In images published by ITV News, Johnson is pictured apparently joining a toast at a leaving party on November 13, 2020, with bottles of alcohol and party food on the table in front of him.
The series of photographs shows a ministerial red box on a chair by the table, on which are two bottles of sparkling wine, four other wine bottles and half a bottle of gin.
The rules at the time allowed a maximum of two people from different households to mix indoors.
Johnson has received a single fine from the police following their investigation into multiple lockdown-breaking incidents. In total, 126 fines were handed out.
A full report by Sue Gray, a senior civil servant, is expected to be published imminently, which MPs believe could be more damaging for the prime minister. Many Tories have already called for him to quit.
Parliament's Privileges Committee is also due to begin an investigation into whether he knowingly misled MPs by denying knowledge of the parties. That would be a breach of the ministerial code – usually a resigning matter.
Johnson repeatedly insisted that he was unaware of any lockdown breaches and that he had been assured "that there was no party and that no Covid rules were broken".
He also said that "all the evidence I can see is that people in this building have stayed within the rules."
Angela Rayner, Labour's deputy leader, said: "Boris Johnson said repeatedly that he knew nothing about law-breaking – there's no doubt now, he lied. Boris Johnson made the rules, and then broke them.
"The Prime Minister has demeaned his office. The British people deserve better. While Labour has a plan for tackling the cost-of-living crisis, Tory MPs are too busy defending the indefensible actions of Boris Johnson."
A Number 10 spokesman told Insider: "The Cabinet Office and the Met Police have had access to all information relevant to their investigations, including photographs.
"The Met have concluded their investigation and Sue Gray will publish her report in the coming days, at which point the Prime Minister will address Parliament in full."