Boris Johnson is facing calls to “come clean” about an alleged Christmas party at No 10 during lockdown restrictions last year as the Government refused to send a minister to defend its position on television.
Leaked footage from No 10’s £2.6 million press briefing room emerged on Monday night which showed former press secretary Allegra Stratton laughing as she appeared to rehearse answers to questions over a lockdown-busting Christmas party.
The video, which is reported to be from December 22 last year, refers to a party on “Friday” – which would have been December 18, the same day The Daily Mirror reported there was a staff party where games were played, food and drinks were served, and revelries went on past midnight.
No 10 initially did not say the reports were inaccurate but said all rules had been followed, before later denying any party had taken place.
Jackie Green, whose 86-year-old mother Beryl Harris died alone in hospital on December 18 last year after contracting coronavirus, described the attitude of the Prime Minister’s aides in the now infamous video as “totally reprehensible”.
She said: “I couldn’t quite comprehend what I was watching, I had to watch it several times to sink in.
“I was absolutely appalled that members of the Government could laugh and joke about a party when people were losing their loved ones.
“Even if they haven’t lost loved ones, they could get severely affected by Covid.
“To put it mildly, it was inappropriate. It was totally reprehensible behaviour.”
Ms Green said because her mother had been shielding they had not seen each other since February 2020.
The 86-year-old was admitted to hospital with anaemia where she caught Covid, Ms Green said, but was due to be released on December 17 after her condition improved.
However, she quickly deteriorated and died the next day.
Ms Green, who lives in south east London, said she resisted the temptation to break the rules and travel to Warwickshire to see her mother.
She said: “I felt it was very important to abide by those rules. In retrospect, I wish I hadn’t.
“For me, it would have been an extremely valid reason to break the rules, whereas, obviously, a party is not even in the same area as your parent dying.
“But I did choose to follow the rules and at the time I thought it was the right thing to do.”
Ms Green added: “If I’d have had a party, the police would have been knocking on my door, quite rightly so.
“The flippancy with which that subject (the alleged Downing Street Christmas party) was dealt with was absolutely appalling.”
She said the clip sent two messages to the public: “One is that the Government think they are above their own rules, and can behave in any manner in which they please.
“And also, it’s saying ‘we don’t actually care about you’.
“Some people placed their confidence in this Government when they voted them in – that confidence turns out to be severely misplaced.
“It’s astonishing – just when you think that things can’t get any worse, something else happens.”
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Were you following the rules and left loved ones to be alone? Did a loved one die and you couldn't be by their side? Do you wish you hadn't followed the rules last year after the recent allegations? Let us know your thoughts and stories.
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