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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Politics
Andrew Sparrow

No 10 denies claim Boris Johnson lied to standards adviser over flat refurbishment – as it happened

Boris Johnson arrives at University College Hospital in London where his wife Carrie has given birth to her second child.
Boris Johnson arrives at University College Hospital in London where his wife Carrie has given birth to her second child. Photograph: Victoria Jones/PA

Early evening summary

Updated

Voters have right to throw me out, says Johnson in speech celebrating democracy

Boris Johnson has affirmed that voters have the right to throw him out. He made the argument in an online speech for Summit for Democracy hosted by the US president, Joe Biden. In his speech Johnson said:

Out of Athens more than 2,500 years ago, there came a simple and beautiful idea: that people are neither passive nor powerless, but free citizens with a right to participate in the governance of their country.

The idea of democracy has gathered force down the centuries, inspiring billions across the world, and converging on the principles we all share.

We believe that our peoples are entitled to elect and remove their governments through the ballot box, overseen by independent courts and a free media.

We’re only here because our electorates have, at least for the time being, raised us to positions of responsibility for their affairs - but they have every right to cast us down and out again, and we would not wish it any other way.

Boris Johnson arrivinig at University College Hospital in London this afternoon, where he was visiting his wife Carrie following the birth of their second child.
Boris Johnson arrivinig at University College Hospital in London this afternoon, where he was visiting his wife Carrie following the birth of their second child. Photograph: Victoria Jones/PA

The Scottish government says climate change, tackling inequalities, the economy and public services are at the heart of its budget for 2022-23. In its news summary it says:

Record levels of funding will help to restore public services – including a record £18bn for health and social care – and to respond to the pressures created by the pandemic. Significantly, this budget will support the next steps in the single greatest public health reform since the establishment of the NHS – the creation of a new National Care Service.

The budget funds the Scottish government’s priority of tackling child poverty and inequality by targeting over £4 billion in social security payments. This includes £197 million to double the game-changing Scottish child payment from April 2022, and extend it to under 16’s by the end of 2022, helping to lift an estimated 40,000 children out of poverty in 2023-2024.

It prioritises a green recovery and economic transformation by investing at least £2bn in infrastructure initiatives that will support green jobs and accelerate efforts to become a net-zero economy, helping to end Scotland’s contribution to climate change and ensure no-one and no region is left behind as a result.

Kate Forbes, Scotland’s finance secretary, delivering her budget this afternoon.
Kate Forbes, Scotland’s finance secretary, delivering her budget this afternoon. Photograph: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images

People exempt from mask-wearing rules if they're singing, government confirms

Shoppers would be allowed to remove their face coverings in supermarkets if they walked around the store singing, PA Media reports. PA says:

Under plan B, which was enacted by the prime minister yesterday, face coverings will become compulsory in most public indoor venues in England from tomorrow, including cinemas, theatres and places of worship, but not gyms, bars or restaurants.

Masks are already required on public transport and in shops.

Boris Johnson said yesterday that there was an exemption for singing.

This was mainly seen as being applicable to places of worship where a mask should be worn during the service but could be removed to sing carols or hymns.

But officials confirmed today this would also be applicable to other indoor settings.

Asked whether a shopper could therefore remove their mask in Tesco if they were singing, it was confirmed that would be within the rules, as would removing the mask to sing in a theatre.

But officials stressed there needed to be a “reasonable excuse” so singing in the supermarket would be pushing the limits of the law.

Updated

Consultation extended on legislation to ban conversion therapy

The consultation on legislation to ban conversion therapy will be extended by another eight weeks, the government has announced. Mike Freer, the equalities minister, said the extension was “to ensure that the full range of opinions are represented, and that everyone who wants to has a chance to comment on our proposals”.

Pressure for an extension has come from campaigners particularly on the right, and from the Telegraph, who have argued that the proposals as currently set out could inhibit clinicians who question a person’s decision to identify as transgender.

Updated

Women fined £1,100 each for gatherings breaching Covid rules on day of No 10 party

Three women have been fined for attending gatherings in breach of coronavirus rules on the same day as the Christmas party at Downing Street last year, PA Media reports. PA says:

The Metropolitan police has said officers will not investigate the 18 December event, where staff and aides are said to have drunk together, eaten cheese and swapped secret Santa presents.

But prosecutions for breaches of Covid-19 regulations at Westminster magistrates court last week included three women convicted over gatherings on the same day as the alleged festive bash, according to court records first reported by the Evening Standard.

Ami Goto, 23, from Marylebone, and Ebru Sen, 26, from Sittingbourne in Kent, were each fined £1,100 plus £210 costs for a gathering of two or more people in a flat in Holborn when London was under Tier 3 restrictions.

Emilia Petruta-Cristea, 24, was also fined £1,100 and ordered to pay £210 costs over a gathering at her home in Wanstead.

The cases were dealt with behind closed doors by a magistrate sitting under the single justice procedure.

Updated

GPs have begun offering booster vaccines to patients under 40 against official NHS guidance, my colleague Andrew Gregory reports.

Covid-19 case rates in London, eastern England and the south-east have climbed to their highest level since the start of the year, PA Media reports. PA says:

A total of 648.5 new cases per 100,000 people were recorded in the south-east in the week to 5 December, the highest rate for the region since the week to 3 January.

Eastern England is at 552.4 cases per 100,000, the highest since the week to 10 January, while London’s rate stands at 461.1, the highest since the week ending 17 January.

The south-east has recorded the highest regional rate in England in the three most recent weeks, suggesting it is one of the main areas of the UK driving the current spike in cases.

The figures, from the Health Security Agency, show rates are rising in all regions along with most age groups.

There is a link to the new UKHSA Covid surveillance report here.

UK records 249 new confirmed Omicron cases, taking total to 817

The UK Health Security Agency has said there are now 817 confirmed cases of Omicron in the UK. That is an increase of 249 - or 44% - from yesterday.

Sir Ernest Ryder, a former appeal court judge, will lead a review of the House of Commons standards system in the wake of the Owen Paterson row, the Commons standards committee has announced.

According to the committee, Ryder will consider whether the current system for dealing with misconduct allegations against MP is compatible with fairness and natural justice, including “whether greater clarity can be achieved about the roles of the [parliamentary commissioner for standards] and the committee, and setting out potential options for formalising appeal or introducing additional elements of appeal into the system”.

The UK has recorded 50,867 new coronavirus cases, and 148 further deaths, according to today’s update to the government’s dashboard. The total number of new cases over the past seven days is up 8% on the total for the previous week. Deaths are up 0.7% week on week.

Covid dashboard
Covid dashboard. Photograph: Gov.UK

Updated

Brexit backer Gisela Stuart named as civil servant commissioner

Boris Johnson has picked the prominent Brexit campaigner Gisela Stuart for a senior role in charge of regulating appointments to the civil service, my colleague Aubrey Allegretti reports.

Labour urges standards commissioner to investigate PM over flat refurbishment

Angela Rayner, Labour’s deputy leader, has written to Kathryn Stone, the parliamentary commissioner for standards, saying the latest revelations about Boris Johnson and the refurbishment of his Downing Street flat strengthened the case for a standards investigation.

Here’s an extract from the letter.

Revelations in the Electoral Commission’s report call into question the conduct of the prime minister in relation to the ministerial code. It is clear that the prime minister misled the public, along with the independent adviser, when he told Lord Geidt during his investigation that he was unaware of the Lord Brownlow donations until February 2021. Today’s investigation report reveals that the prime minister messaged Lord Brownlow via WhatsApp on 29 November 2020, asking him to authorise more money towards the refurbishment works on the residence. This shows that the prime minister is in flagrant breach of both the members’ code of conduct and the ministerial code.

The ministerial code clearly states: ‘Ministers should be as open as possible with parliament and the public’. This has not happened.

The members’ code of conduct incorporates the seven ‘Nolan principles’ for standards of public life: selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership.

Angela Rayner.
Angela Rayner. Photograph: Matthew Horwood/Getty Images

Updated

How strong is evidence PM lied to standards adviser over flat refurbishment?

The opposition parties are today accusing Boris Johnson of lying to Lord Geidt, his independent adviser on ministerial standards, over what he knew about the funding for the expensive refurbishment of his Downing Street flat. No 10 rejects that claim and says Johnson has not lied to Geidt, or the public, about this. (See 1.03pm.) The evidence may not be 100% conclusive, but the new version of the story that has emerged is different from the one published by Lord Geidt.

In the report published in May Geidt clears Johnson of the charge of not properly registering the donations that funded the flat refurbishment. He says Johnson did not know that Lord Brownlow, a Tory donor, had paid the money personally until media reports emerged, in February 2021

Johnson had asked Brownlow in June 2020 to chair a trust that would raise money to fund work on the private residence at Downing residence. But this idea was subsequently unviable for legal reasons.

Geidt says:

For the credibility of this inquiry, I have tested the assertions of Lord Brownlow and the relevant political and government officials that at no point in the eight months until late February 2021, as media reports were emerging, was the prime minister made aware of either the fact or the method of the costs of refurbishing the apartment having been paid. I have spoken to these individuals in person; they have confirmed to me that these assertions are correct. In particular, Lord Brownlow behaved in a confidential manner consistent with his own experience of blind trusts. I have also spoken in similar terms to the prime minister who confirms that he knew nothing about such payments until immediately prior to media reports in February 2021.

Geidt’s main complaint about Johnson is that he seemed remarkably blasé about who was paying for the work. Geidt says:

The prime minister – unwisely, in my view – allowed the refurbishment of the apartment at No 11 Downing Street to proceed without more rigorous regard for how this would be funded ...

Under normal circumstances, a prime minister might reasonably be expected to be curious about the arrangements, and especially the financial arrangements that led to the refurbishment of his apartment at Downing Street. In the middle of a pandemic, the current prime minister simply accepted that the Trust would be capable of satisfactorily resolving the situation without further interrogation.

But the Electoral Commission report out today suggests that Johnson was much more involved than Geidt realises. It says that on 29 November 2020 Johnson messaged Brownlow via WhatsApp to ask if more work on the flat could go ahead.

Lord Brownlow via WhatsApp asking him to authorise further, at that stage unspecified, refurbishment works on the residence. Lord Brownlow agreed to do so, and also explained that the proposed trust had not yet been set up but that he knew where the funding was coming from.

The Electoral Commission report also said that Brownlow told a senior Tory official on 30 November he would be paying the money himself, and that on 6 December 2020 he told the PM he had approved further works.

Geidt did not seem to be aware of 29 November WhatsApp messages and No 10 would not say today if he had been shown them.

In response to claims that the new evidence showed the PM lied to Geidt, No 10 said that Johnson knew that Brownlow was chair of the trust funding the refurbishment - but that he did not know Brownlow was putting up the money himself.

When a journalist put it to him that the WhatsApp message implied Johnson knew “exactly what was going on”, the PM’s spokesman said:

He was not aware of the details of the underlying donor. That’s what Lord Geidt means ...

As you can see, Lord Brownlow did not make a decision about personally covering costs until after that [conversation].

When it was put to him that, given Brownlow told the PM on 29 November that he knew “where the funding was coming from”, it seems strange that the PM did not ask from where, the spokesman replied:

Lord Brownlow was chair of the blind trust, and acted in accordance with his experience of managing blind trusts in that way. The prime minister’s discussions with Lord Brownlow were done without him knowing the underlying donor.

There is no hard evidence that on 29 November Brownlow did say that he would be paying the bill personally, and so in that respect the Downing Street account holds up - although to many it may stretch credulity.

But the very fact that this WhatsApp conversation took place does contradict the claim in the Geidt report that Johnson “knew nothing about such payments until immediately prior to media reports in February 2021”.

At the very least it is clear Geidt was not told the full story.

Updated

No 10 says PM's call for 'national conversation' about Covid way forward not reference to mandatory vaccination

Here are the main points from the Downing Street lobby briefing not related to the Electoral Commission report.

I think he was making a broader point on the intention to keep developing further mitigations against coronavirus and any subsequent mutations, be that polyvalent vaccinations or further therapeutics, like the antivirals that we’re rolling out.

We recognise how challenging this is, and disheartening for the public to see us having to introduce further restrictions, albeit at a relatively limited level. And so we will do everything possible to continue to be at the cutting edge of this work.

The spokesman also said Johnson does not want to see “a society and culture where we force people to get vaccinated”.

  • No 10 has confirmed that, under the new Covid pass system, lateral flow tests can be used to show someone is Covid-free, even if they are taken at home. As PA Media reports:

There will be no fine for anyone faking a coronavirus test result but there would be fines for businesses who did not check Covid passes properly, starting at £1,000 - halved if paid within 14 days - rising to £2,000, £4,000, then £10,000 for subsequent offences.

There would also be penalties for people who provide fake Covid passes.

A text message or email from the NHS could also be used to prove Covid-19 status, as well as the official Covid pass.

The spokesman said that so far the public had been taking it “seriously and being responsible” with this method of testing.

  • The new Covid measures announced last night will be reviewed on 5 January, and the legislation will last until 25 January, No 10 said. If they need to be extended, there will be a fresh vote.
  • The spokesman said, if the restrictions could be removed before 25 January, they would be. He said:

The PM’s message to all MPs would be the very moment we get any information on characteristics that change that picture for the better then we would, of course, act and remove at the very earliest possible opportunity.

  • The spokesman said there would be “severe” consequences for the NHS without the new measures announced last night. Asked if he had a message for Tory MPs planning to vote against them, he said:

I’m not going to comment on decisions or motivations when MPs are voting, that wouldn’t be for me. But I simply would make the point that we do know, and the advice that we have received, is without action - given the incredibly fast growth rate of this variant - the consequences, in terms of hospitalisations and deaths, could be severe.

Given we know that boosters do provide a level of protection - and potentially a significant level of protection - it is only responsible to provide that extra time to get more people protected.

  • The spokesman said Johnson would be spending more time with his family following the birth of his new baby - but he stopped short of saying the PM would be taking paternity leave. The spokesman said the PM had a “unique role” and that he had to balance his family role with leading the country.
10 Downing Street.
10 Downing Street. Photograph: Rex/Shutterstock

Updated

Rees-Mogg defends joking about lockdown-busting parties as MP says he should resign

Jacob Rees-Mogg has defended making a joke about Christmas parties and Covid regulations amid calls for him to resign.

As PA Media reports, the Commons leader was filmed recently at a thinktank reception saying he hoped the event he was attending would not be “investigated by the police in a year’s time” - a reference to the No 10 partying controversy.

At business questions earlier, the shadow Commons leader, Thangam Debbonaire, said it is a “very bad look indeed for a group of male politicians to let a female staffer take the rap”, and asked Rees-Mogg if he would apologise for making a joke about parties.

Debbonaire said that judging by Rees-Mogg’s comments in a video of him speaking at an Institute of Economic Affairs event, “it does rather seem that he also thinks it’s all been a bit of a joke”. She went on:

Would he also agree that it really is a very bad look indeed for a group of male politicians to let a female staffer take the rap for the mess?

She laughed, he laughed. She’s apologised and resigned. What’s he going to do?

Rees-Mogg said:

What I was saying was how nice it was to be free of restrictions so that we can have parties this year.

That was what I was being pleased about, as opposed, in comparison to last year. And this has got better because of what the government has done.

Richard Burgon (Lab) said Rees-Mogg should resign. He told the minister:

The prime minister’s former spokesperson has resigned after being caught on video laughing and joking about a rule-breaking Downing Street party.

The leader of the house also this week has been caught on video laughing and joking about rule-breaking whilst giving a speech at a lectern.

She resigned. Surely the leader of the house should resign too, or isn’t it another case of ministers in this government believing it’s one rule for them and another rule for everyone else?

Jacob Rees-Mogg
Jacob Rees-Mogg. Photograph: WIktor Szymanowicz/NurPhoto/Rex/Shutterstock

Updated

Paul Givan, the DUP first minister of Northern Ireland, and Michelle O’Neill, the Sinn Féin deputy first minister, have both said the No 10 Christmas party controversy has damaged the public health message in Northern Ireland.

On a joint visit to a vaccination centre in Lisburn, Givan said:

I think it has done damage and what I would say to people is ‘look beyond the political drama of what’s going on at Downing Street’.

And O’Neill said:

There’s no doubt that it undermines the public health message but what we’re focused on here today is just to drive home that message that what we have in place here (in terms of restrictions) is enough if two things happen - if we have strong enforcement and if the public adhere.

Paul Givan and Michelle O’Neill (centre) during a visit to Lisburn Primary and Community Care Centre in Lisburn, County Antrim, today.
Paul Givan and Michelle O’Neill (centre) during a visit to Lisburn Primary and Community Care Centre in Lisburn, County Antrim, today. Photograph: Jonathan McCambridge/PA

Updated

Nicola Sturgeon has urged the public to continue their compliance with Covid protections regardless of their anger over the Downing Street Christmas party row.

Sturgeon was taking questions at FMQs ahead of the Scottish budget statement later this afternoon, and after Douglas Ross distanced himself from Boris Johnson, saying he should resign if he had misled the Commons. She said:

People can be angry at politicians, but it is important that people comply with these protections for their own safety, for the safety of loved ones and for the country as a whole.

She added that the Omicron variant posed “a very serious challenge” and that she would be briefing other party leaders on its nature and scale later this afternoon.

It’s rapidly spreading, it poses a real difficulty for us, but one of the ways in which we can help slow transmission is to comply with all these protections and I would appeal to people across the country to do so.

No 10 denies claim Johnson lied to his standards adviser over flat refurbishment

The Downing Street lobby briefing has just ended. It was particularly long because there were extensive questions on Covid and on the No 10 flat refurbishment.

On the latter, Downing Street does not accept that Boris Johnson lied to Lord Geidt, the independent adviser on ministers’ interests (sometimes referred to as the independent adviser on ministerial standards), about the flat refurbishment. In fact, the spokesman specifically rejected the charge.

Asked to explain the discrepancy between the Geidt report (pdf), which says Johnson told him he did not know Lord Brownlow had paid the flat refurbishment bills until “immediately prior to media reports in February 2021”, and the Electoral Commission report, which said that on 29 November 2020 Johnson messaged Brownlow via WhatsApp “asking him to authorise further, at that stage unspecified, refurbishment works”, the spokesman implied the WhatsApp conversation did not cover the full detail of how the money was being paid, and that this was why lying was not involved.

The spokesman said:

As as set out Lord Geidt’s report, the prime minister was not aware of the details of the underlying donor until immediately prior to media reports in February 2020, when he immediately saw the necessary advice about his interests, and as a consequence settled the amount himself. That was on 8 March.

Lord Brownlow was appointed by the PM as chair of the trust on 23 June and Lord Geidt’s report notes that Lord Brownlow behaved in a confidential manner, consistent with his own experience with blind trusts.

And despite the prime minister and Lord Brownlow having some limited contact during the following three months, the record shows no evidence that the prime minister had been informed by Lord Brownlow that he had personally settled the total costs.

As you’ve seen, the Electoral Commission report shows Lord Brownlow’s decision to cover the refurbishment costs personally came a day after his message to the prime minister.

Asked specifically if the PM had lied to Lord Geidt, the spokesman said: “No.” He also said that Johnson had not lied to the public about this affair.

I will post more from the briefing soon.

Updated

Dominic Cummings, the PM’s former chief adviser, has joined those accusing Boris Johnson of lying to Lord Geidt over the funding of the Downing Street refurbishment. Cummings has repeatedly accused Johnson of flouting the law over this issue, and he has implied before that this is one of the scandals most likely to bring Johnson down.

Tom Bradby, the ITV presenter and former political editor, claims that Lord Geidt, the independent adviser on ministers’ interests, could bring down the PM if declares publicly that he has been lied to by Boris Johnson.

The SNP has also accused Boris Johnson of lying to Lord Geidt, the independent adviser on ministers’ interests, in the light of the new evidence today from the Electoral Commission. (See 11.02am.) Ian Blackford, the SNP leader at Westminister, said:

Not only did [Johnson] breach electoral law – he lied about it too. In May he told Lord Geidt that he did not know who was behind plans to refurbish the flat until Feb 2021 – but the Electoral Commission has said Boris Johnson contacted Lord Brownlow in November 2020 asking for more cash for the refurbishment. Boris Johnson lies as easily as he breathes.

Minister refuses to say who at No 10 reassured PM there was no party

Michael Ellis, the paymaster general and Cabinet Office minister, faced a barrage of criticism from opposition MPs when he was responding to the UQ earlier about the inquiry into the Downing Street parties. Here are some more points and quotes from the exchanges.

  • Ellis refused to say who the Downing Street person was who gave Boris Johnson an assurance that no rules were broken at the No 10 events. At PMQs Johnson said he had had been “repeatedly assured ... that there was no party and that no Covid rules were broken”. The Conservative MP Peter Bone said he wanted to know who this person was, but Ellis said he did not have an answer.
  • Ellis insisted more than once that Johnson was a man “of honour and integrity”. He said he could say this because he had known the PM for many years.
  • The Conservative MP Desmond Swayne said it would be possible for a PM not to know about a party in Downing Street. He said:

Would it be helpful if there were a greater understanding of the fact that Number 10 is not a house, it is a front door behind which there is a suit of modern offices and meeting rooms, across three floors and it is perfectly possible to be in the rafters above Number 11, completely isolated from what else is happening in the building?

Ellis replied: “It is certainly true as a matter of geography that Number 10 Downing Street is a very large property with a multitude of offices and many, many people working inside it. In that sense, of course, geographically, he is absolutely correct.”

  • Many MPs expressed outraged about rule-breaking at No 10. The Conservative MP Bob Blackman said:

One of the key issues here is those that are making draconian rules not only have to live by the letter of the rules but by the spirit of the rules as well.

Philip Hollobone (Con) said:

My constituents are very angry indeed about reports of Christmas parties in Downing Street during what was a very large second wave of Covid, and the behaviour was totally inappropriate and possibly criminal.

And Labour’s Afzal Khan said:

Everyone experiences bereavement differently but for those of us who have lost loved ones during the pandemic there is a sentiment that increasingly unites us - and that is anger.

I am angry that while my mum lay dying in hospital, I could not hold her hand. I’m angry that I had to bury my father-in-law and mother-in-law two days apart.

Above all I’m angry that members of this government could be so flippant, so callous and so arrogant as to host not one, not two, not three but seven parties and then lie about it.

Michael Ellis.
Michael Ellis. Photograph: Tayfun Salcı/Zuma Press Wire/Rex/Shutterstock

Updated

Dominic Cummings, the PM’s former chief adviser, claims that the leaving do on 27 November in Downing Street (see 10.46am) wasn’t a party. Instead he wants the media to focus on a “victory party” reportedly held by the PM’s wife, Carrie, on the day Cummings left No 10.

The leaving do was for Cleo Watson, a close ally of Cummings’. Carrie Johnson, on the other hand, is someone he clashed with repeatedly at No 10, and who was given credit by many for forcing him out of government.

Labour says Johnson must explain 'why he lied to public' about refurbishment of his flat

Angela Rayner, the deputy Labour leader, has said Boris Johnson must now explain “why he lied to the British public” about the refurbishment of his Downing Street flat. (See 11.02am.) In a statement she said:

Boris Johnson’s sleaze is corroding the office of prime minister.

The Paterson scandal, illicit Christmas parties in Number 10 and now dodgy payments from a multimillionaire Conservative party donor to fund his luxury Downing Street refurb.

It is one rule for them, and one rule for the rest of us, and Boris Johnson is at the heart of it.

It is right that the Electoral Commission has fined the Conservative party but the prime minister must now explain why he lied to the British public saying he did not know who was behind the Number 11 flat refurb - all the while he was messaging the donor asking for more money.

Boris Johnson has taken the British public for fools. He has not only broken the law but made a mockery of the standards we expect from our prime ministers.

Jacob Rees-Mogg, the leader of the Commons, has just announced that the Christmas recess will start - as expected - on Thursday next week. Earlier there were rumours the recess might be brought forward (see 10.06am), but if that was a serious plan, it seems to have been quashed.

Ofsted cancels further inspections until new year

Ofsted has said it will cancel its inspections of schools, colleges and nurseries in England for the remainder of 2021. An email from Ofsted to headteachers this morning – reported by Schools Week– said:

Early years settings, schools and colleges will be using the final days of term to put in place these measures and consider contingency measures for January.

In order to do that contingency planning, the secretary of state for education and her majesty’s chief inspector have agreed that early years settings, schools and colleges will not be inspected next week unless there are safeguarding concerns.

Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, said:

Ofsted inspections are the very last thing schools need given the current level of disruption due to Covid, and the pressure school leaders are under just to stay open and minimise disruption for learners. Pupils will be best served by their schools not being distracted by preparation for inspection.

Clearly, one week goes nowhere near far enough and we will be pushing for this suspension to be extended into the new year.

The Department for Education has updated its guidance to schools following the plan B announcement, advising leaders to allow some staff to work from home so long as it does not disrupt in-person teaching or support. Attendance remains mandatory for pupils and students.

Updated

Conservative party says it may appeal against Electoral Commission ruling

The Conservative party has said it may appeal against the Electoral Commission’s finding relating to the refurbishment of the Downing Street flat. (See 9.54am.) A party spokesperson said:

The Conservative party has received notification from the Electoral Commission that, in their judgement, the manner in which a payment was reported represented a technical breach of reporting requirements under the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act.

We have been in constant contact with the Electoral Commission with regards to this matter and have sought their advice as to how the transaction should be reported since it was made. We are considering whether to appeal this decision and will make a decision within 28 working days.

Electoral Commission report raises questions about accuracy of PM's evidence to Geidt inquiry into flat refurbishment

As Sky’s Sam Coates reports, the full Electoral Commission report into the funding of the refurbishment of Boris Johnson’s flat suggests that Johnson may have misled Lord Geidt, the independent adviser on ministerial interests, when he gave evidence to the Geidt inquiry into this.

We should get a response from No 10 at the lobby briefing at 11.30am.

Dame Angela Eagle (Lab) also ridiculed the idea that there was a distinction between a gathering and a party.

(Her point went down well in the Commons chamber although, as someone with experience of teenage children, I can report that some people of that generation do see a difference between spending Saturday night at a “gathering” - fewer than 20 people - and a larger “party”.)

Updated

Labour says all No 10 parties should be investigated

Fleur Anderson, the shadow Cabinet Office minister who tabled the urgent question, told Michael Ellis in her reply to him that he inquiry should cover all Downing Street parties.

And she said she was calling them parties because that is clearly what they were.

UPDATE: Anderson said:

I welcome the prime minister’s announcement that he’s asked the cabinet secretary to conduct this investigation.

I have asked for this urgent question as there are further urgent questions to be asked about the investigation, and I don’t think we need to call them alleged parties, they are the parties, held in the government department or by government ministers elsewhere. Are there more parties that we need to hear about?

Updated

Inquiry into No 10 partying to include leaving do where PM gave speech

The decision to include the party held on 27 November in the Simon Case investigation means that the cabinet secretary will be adjudicating on an event that Boris Johnson attended.

This is what my colleague Aubrey Allegretti has written about the leaving do on 27 November.

While England was still in the grip of its second national lockdown, a leaving do was organised in No 10 – said to have been for Cleo Watson, a former aide to Johnson’s chief adviser, Dominic Cummings.

A source told the Guardian that Johnson personally attended and gave a speech, remarking on how full with people the room was, before leaving to continue working.

At the time, socialising in groups from different households was completely banned and people were ordered to work from home, though key workers could continue going into the office.

Updated

Inquiry into No 10 partying will cover two events at Downing Street, and one at DfE, MPs told

Michael Ellis, paymaster general in the Cabinet Office, is responding to the UQ on the inquiry into No 10 parties.

He repeats the point Boris Johnson made at PMQs yesterday when he said he was shocked by the No 10 Christmas party video.

The PM has been repeatedly assured that there was no party and no Covid rules were broken, he says.

But he says the government recognises the public anxiety and public indignation about this, in that it appears people setting the rules have not been following them.

He says the terms of reference of the investigation by Simon Case, the cabinet secretary, will be published today.

He says Case will investigate three gatherings: two at Downing Street, on 27 November and 18 December, and one at the Department for Education, on 10 December.

(This is an advance on yesterday, when No 10 implied at first that just the 18 December event would be investigated. But this also means several other parties, or party-type events, are not being investigated. See here, or the post at 9.28am.)

He says Case will investigate what happened at these gatherings, and whether disciplinary action is needed.

If evidence of a criminal offence emerges, it will be referred to the police, and the Cabinet Office inquiry will be paused.

He says all ministers, officials and special advisers will be expected to cooperate.

The findings will be published, he says.

But, in accordance with precedence, details any an disciplinary action relating to individuals will not be made public.

Updated

Sajid Javid has admitted having doubts about whether Covid rules were followed in Downing Street at an event last year alleged to have been a Christmas party, my colleague Aubrey Allegretti reports.

Scottish front pages this morning are dominated by the Downing Street Christmas part(ies) row, as they are in England, but in particular highlighting Scottish Tories’ condemnation of their colleagues’ antics.

The Scottish Conservative leader, Douglas Ross – who announced on Thursday morning he is self-isolating after a member of staff received a positive lateral flow result – was certainly robust when he stated that Johnson “cannot continue in the highest office in the land” if he misled the Commons over whether the party took place.

Ross said he was “angry, annoyed and really disappointed” when the video of No 10 aides laughing about the alleged party emerged on Tuesday night, adding that it undermined public trust in the Covid rules.

It’s worth recalling that Ross resigned as a Scotland Office minister last May over Dominic Cummings’ trip to Barnard Castle.

He was echoed by former leader Ruth Davidson, who said the UK government was “taking the public for fools”, adding “none of this is remotely defensible”.

And a few front pages nod to the fact that Johnson was following Scottish and Welsh measures as he announced a return to home working and the introduction of vaccine passports as Omicron cases continue to rise.

Updated

Hospital waiting lists and 12-hour A&E waiting times at record levels in England, NHS figures show

The number of people in England waiting to start routine hospital treatment has risen to a new record high, PA Media reports. PA has filed these highlights from the latest NHS England waiting time figures. PA says:

  • A total of 5.98 million people were waiting to start treatment at the end of October 2021. This is the highest number since records began in August 2007. The number of people having to wait more than 52 weeks to start treatment stood at 312,665 in October 2021, up from 300,566 in the previous month and nearly double the number waiting a year earlier, in October 2020, which was 167,067.
  • A total of 16,225 people in England were waiting more than two years to start routine hospital treatment at the end of October 2021. This is up from 12,491 at the end of September and is around six times the 2,722 people who were waiting longer than two years in April.
  • The number of people having to wait more than 12 hours in A&E departments in England last month from a decision to admit to actually being admitted has risen to a new record high of 10,646. The figure is up from 7,059 in October and is the highest for any calendar month since records began in August 2010. Some 120,749 people waited at least four hours from the decision to admit to admission in November, down very slightly on the 121,251 in October.
  • The average response time last month for ambulances in England dealing with the most urgent incidents - defined as calls from people with life-threatening illnesses or injuries - was nine minutes and 10 seconds. This is down slightly from nine minutes and 20 seconds in October, which was the longest average response time since current records began in August 2017.
  • Ambulances in England took an average of 46 minutes and 37 seconds last month to respond to emergency calls, such as burns, epilepsy and strokes. This is down from 53 minutes and 54 seconds in October, which had been the longest average response time since records began in August 2017.

Updated

Boris Johnson and his wife, Carrie, announce birth of 'healthy baby girl'

The news keeps coming today. PA has just snapped this.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson and wife Carrie have announced “the birth of a healthy baby girl at a London hospital earlier today”.

At least this is one surprise announcement that no one can dismiss as a dead cat.

Congratulations and best wishes to all of them.

Updated

The Daily Mirror’s Pippa Crerar says she is hearing suggestions that the government might bring forward the date of the Christmas recess. Sending MPs home early is a reliable way of minimising plotting, because it means MPs are no longer congregating in parliament.

Here is the full report from the Electoral Commission on its investigation into the funding of the PM’s flat refurbishment at Downing Street.

Louise Edwards, director of regulation at the Electoral Commission, said the fine imposed on the Conservative party reflected “serious failings” in its compliance with reporting requirements. She said:

Our investigation into the Conservative party found that the laws around the reporting and recording of donations were not followed.

We know that voters have concerns about the transparency of funding of political parties. Reporting requirements are in place so that the public can see where money is coming from, inaccurate reporting risks undermining trust in the system.

The party’s decisions and actions reflected serious failings in its compliance systems. As a large and well-resourced political party that employs compliance and finance experts, and that has substantial sums of money going through its accounts, the Conservative party should have sufficiently robust systems in place to meet its legal reporting requirements.

Conservative party fined £17,800 for not properly recording donation related to PM's flat refurbishment

The Conservative party has been fined £17,800 by the Electoral Commission for failing to properly record a donation relating to the refurbishment of the Downing Street flat used by Boris Johnson. In a news release the commission says:

The Conservative Party has been fined £17,800 by the Electoral Commission after failing to accurately report a donation and keep a proper accounting record.

The sanction was imposed on the party, following the conclusion of a detailed investigation. The investigation looked at whether any transactions relating to works at 11 Downing Street fell within the regime regulated by the commission and whether any such funding was reported as required.

The investigation found that the party failed to fully report a donation of £67,801.72 from Huntswood Associates Limited in October 2020. The donation included £52,801.72 connected to the costs of refurbishment to 11 Downing Street. The full value of the donation was not reported as required in the party’s Q4 2020 donation report.

The commission also concluded that the reference in the party’s financial records to the payment of £52,801.72 made by the party for the refurbishment was not accurate.

The investigation found that decisions relating to the handling and recording of this donation reflected serious failings in the party’s compliance systems.

Updated

Cabinet Office miniser to respond to Commons urgent question about No 10 parties

The Commons authorities have announced that there will be an urgent question at 10.30am on the terms of the inquiry into Downing Street parties. The Labour MP Fleur Anderson has tabled it.

A minister from the Cabinet Office will respond, but it is not clear who it will be yet. The most senior minister there is Steve Barclay, but for a UQ like this they often send a more junior minister, like Michael Ellis or Nigel Adams, particularly if they want to minimise press interest.

I have amended the agenda at 9.28am to take this into account.

Updated

Johnson faces Tory revolt over plan B as fresh claims of lockdown-busting parties emerge

Good morning. Prime ministers get used to reading in the papers that they are having their worst every day/week since taking office - normally every couple of months or so - but sometimes it might be true, and this morning Alex Wickham in his London Playbook briefing says that last night Tories he spoke to “were unanimous that Wednesday was Johnson’s worst day politically since becoming prime minister”.

But today, in at least two respects, the situation continues to get worse.

First, the Times is reporting new allegations about lockdown-busting partying by the Tories (paywall). It focuses on two events, and it reports:

As anger grows among Tory MPs about an event held in No 10 on December 18 last year, The Times can disclose that Conservative Party staff danced and drank wine late into the night at another event that month.

Senior advisers and officials working in Downing Street also held a Christmas quiz, and one source claimed that Dan Rosenfield, Johnson’s incoming chief of staff, took part ...

On December 14 about 25 people gathered in the basement of Conservative headquarters in Westminster. The event was organised by the campaign team of Shaun Bailey, who was running for mayor of London. Bailey attended the party, at which people wore festive hats and he received a Lego set as a Christmas present from a donor.

Revellers damaged a door and staff were disciplined. No 10 aides were said to have been among those present.

At the time London was in the Tier 2 level of restrictions, meaning all socialising indoors between households was banned ...

At about the same time, a Christmas quiz is understood to have been organised for officials and Conservative advisers working for the prime minister, with invitations sent out in advance.

Yesterday No 10 initially said the inquiry by Simon Case, the cabinet secretary, would just focus on the 18 December Downing Street party, but at the press conference later in the day Boris Johnson said Case could look at other things, and the Times story will add to the pressure on him to extend the remit of his investigation.

And, second, the Tory rebellion over the move to plan B is serious, and growing. As Jessica Elgot reports, Sajid Javid, the health secretary, was heckled from his own side in the Commons last night as he announced the move to plan B. Johnson seems to have made the situation worse at the press conference by calling for a debate on mandatory vaccination and this morning on the Today programme Marcus Fysh, the Conservative MP, denounced the introduction of Covid passports as a “disgrace”. He said:

Of course I’ll vote against it. Everybody should vote against it. This is a fundamental thing about what sort of society we want to live in.

It’s a disgrace that they’re pursuing that, utter disgrace.

Johnson is in no danger of losing the vote next week, because Labour will support him. But a prime minister who loses the support of a substantial proportion of their own MPs on the key issue of the day loses authority.

Here is the agenda for the day.

10.30am: A Cabinet Office minister responds to an urgent question about the inquiry into No 10 parties

Around 11.15am: Jacob Rees-Mogg, the leader of the Commons, takes questions in the Commons on next week’s business.

11.30am: Downing Street holds a lobby briefing.

Around 12.15pm: Dominic Raab, the justice secretary and deputy prime minister, makes a Commons statement on delivering justice for victims.

12pm: Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s first minister, takes questions in the Scottish parliament.

Afternoon: Kate Forbes, the Scottish government’s finance secretary, makes a budget statement in the Scottish parliament.

I try to monitor the comments below the line (BTL) but it is impossible to read them all. If you have a direct question, do include “Andrew” in it somewhere and I’m more likely to find it. I do try to answer questions, and if they are of general interest, I will post the question and reply above the line (ATL), although I can’t promise to do this for everyone.

If you want to attract my attention quickly, it is probably better to use Twitter. I’m on @AndrewSparrow.

Alternatively, you can email me at andrew.sparrow@theguardian.com

Updated

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