Boris Johnson “waved aside” objections to let the No10 party in May 2020 go ahead, his ex-aide claims.
Dominic Cummings says he and others would swear on oath that top officials warned the event was against the rules. It would mean the PM lied when he told the Commons he thought it was a work event.
Johnson sparked disbelief last week at PMQs when he apologised for the May 20, 2020, event but claimed he “implicitly believed” it was work related.
Downing Street has subsequently denied claims by three separate senior journalists that two officials told Johnson the event was “a party” before it happened.
The PM’s official spokesman said: “Those claims of being forewarned are not true, as we made clear over the weekend”.
Cummings’ latest blog claims the PM’s principal private secretary Martin Reynolds, who sent out an email invite, was told to cancel the garden party by at least two senior officials.
Reynolds then allegedly checked with the PM whether the event could go ahead, and was told that it could.
Cummings claims he challenged Johnson himself.
He wrote: “I said to the PM something like: ‘Martin’s invited the building to a drinks party, this is what I’m talking about, you’ve got to grip this madhouse.’
“The PM waved it aside”.
He added: “Not only me but other eyewitnesses who discussed this at the time would swear under oath this is what happened.” Cummings’ allegations will increase the jitters of Tory MPs who returned to Westminster yesterday.
Senior Tory MP Steve Baker said his constituents were “about 60 to one against the PM” over the No10 parties row.
But the MP added that he would wait for the outcome of an investigation by senior civil servant Sue Gray before taking any action.
Several MPs told our sister paper the Mirror they received hundreds of emails from furious constituents about the PM’s apparent rule-breaking during lockdown.
A No10 spokesman said: “It is untrue that the Prime Minister was warned about the event in advance. As he said earlier this week he believed implicitly that this was a work event.
“He has apologised to the House and is committed to making a further statement once the investigation concludes.”
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