The Metropolitan Police is facing the threat of legal action over allegations it unlawfully failed to investigate Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s alleged participation in three Downing Street lockdown parties.
The Met’s Partygate probe concluded last Thursday with 126 Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) issued for lockdown rule-breaking within government buildings.
The PM had been expected to face multiple fines but was penalised just once, over a surprise 56th birthday party laid on for him in the Cabinet Room by wife Carrie in June 2020.
Lib Dem peer Lord Brian Paddick, together with The Good Law Project, have now written to the force, threatening judicial review unless it reopens the Partygate probe or explains the lack of enforcement action against the Prime Minister.
The letter, published on Wednesday morning, says it is believed Johnson did not even receive a police questionnaire over the gatherings, on November 13 and December 17, 2020 and January 14, 2021.
In the first incident, pictures have emerged of the PM making a speech at the leaving party for his departing director of communications, Lee Cain, with half-drunk bottles of alcohol on the table in front of him.
Others at the gathering were reportedly issued with FPNs by the Met.
The legal letter to the Met refers to “extensive evidence…in the public domain” that the PM was at the three gatherings, and others had been fined for attending them.
They argued the Met must have concluded the events were unlawful under emergency Covid laws, and not “reasonably necessary for work”, asserting: “The Met’s failure to investigate, in particular by not sending a questionnaire to, the Prime Minister is unlawful because it is contrary to well-established public law principles.”
The Met is accused of an “irrational failure”, not consider all the available evidence, treating the PM differently, and overlooking the impact of his presence at the events.
“It would be irrational to conclude that the Prime Minsiter participating as Prime Minister had any reasonable excuse because he would be sending the wrong message to other more junior Number 10 staff”, the letter states.
A response from the Met is demanded within two weeks, with the threat of judicial review pending.
Scotland Yard has been contacted for comment on the letter.
It comes just as civil servant Sue Gray publishes her long-awaited report into rule-breaking parties in Downing Street during the pandemic.
The Good Law Project and Lord Pannick – a former Met Police senior officer – have said they may add to the legal letter now the Gray report is public.
In a statement, the Met Police said it “received a letter before claim on 25th May 2022 and will respond to this letter in due course."
