PM sorry for offence caused by No 10 party

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has apologised for a video where staff joked about a lockdown Christmas party and has ordered an inquiry into whether rules were broken.

It follows a week of denials from No 10 that a party had taken place.

At the start of PMQs, Mr Johnson said he shared people's anger, adding: "I was also furious to see that clip."

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said the prime minister was taking the public for fools.

In his statement, Mr Johnson said: "I apologise unreservedly for the offence that it gave up and down the country."

But he said he had been "repeatedly assured that there was no party and that no Covid rules were broken".

He says he has asked the cabinet secretary, the senior civil servant in Downing Street, to establish all the facts and to report back as soon as possible.

If rules have been broken, "there will be disciplinary action for all those involved", he told MPs.

The apology came after footage obtained by ITV showed the PM's then press chief Allegra Stratton joked about the party at a news conference rehearsal last December.

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