Labour has stepped up calls for Boris Johnson to resign, asking how he can look the Queen in the eye after Downing Street staff held parties in the building on the eve of Prince Philip’s funeral.
Emily Thornberry, the shadow attorney general, said Johnson was overseeing a “culture” that enabled boozy parties to be held at No 10 while the country was in coronavirus lockdown
She called on him to resign and apologise to the Queen.
Speaking to Sky News, she said: “We are waiting for the prime minister to look into his heart and soul and decide whether or not he has a scrap of human decency in him.
“Because if he does he will resign.
"How the hell can he possibly expect to go before Her Majesty again at a weekly audience and be able to look her in the eye and pretend everything is alright?"
She added: "The one thing she should be saying to Her Majesty is: ‘I’m profoundly sorry and I resign’.”
The move came as a number of Conservative MPs added their names to calls do the Prime Minister to face a vote of no-confidence following the latest revelations about rule-breaking gatherings in Downing Street.
Around 30 people were drinking alcohol and dancing until the early hours in Downing Street on the eve of Prince Philip’s funeral.
The next day, Queen Elizabeth sat alone the funeral of her husband of 73 years, in line with social distancing rules.
Tory MPs now fear a stream of more damaging revelations, either from the PM’s former chief adviser Dominic Cummings or elsewhere, if Johnson stays in post.
Conservative MP Sir Roger Gale has described parties in Downing Street during periods when coronavirus restrictions were in place as “wholly unacceptable”, adding that he does not hold the Prime Minister responsible for the events but for overseeing “a culture” of bending the rules.
In the wake of revelations MP Andrew Bridgen said the Prime Minister's position had become "untenable".
In a Telegraph op-ed published on Thursday evening, Bridgen said there is currently "a moral vacuum at the heart of our government".
The Tory MP went on to say: "I'm calling on the Prime Minister to stand down, there is time yet to do the right thing.
"In years to come, Boris will be remembered as delivering Brexit and guiding us through a pandemic.
"His legacy shouldn't become one mired in sleaze but rather one of knowing when the time is right to leave the stage.
"If Boris truly loves our country, our democracy and our party he should go now with some semblance of grace."
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