What did Boris Johnson tell Parliament about parties?

On 19 April, Boris Johnson was asked in Parliament: "Did you deliberately mislead the House at the dispatch box?" His one-word reply: "No."

After being fined by the Metropolitan Police for breaking his own Covid rules, he will be investigated by a Commons committee over whether he misled MPs when talking about parties in Downing Street.

It is important because the Ministerial Code, the rule book for government ministers, says: "Ministers who knowingly mislead Parliament will be expected to offer their resignation."

"Knowingly" suggests deliberately misleading MPs, which can be difficult to prove.

These are the key times the prime minister has talked in Parliament about Downing Street parties and gatherings.

Date of quote: 8 December 2021

Context: Labour MP Catherine West asked: "Will the prime minister tell the House whether there was a party in Downing Street on 13 November [2020]?"

What Mr Johnson said: "No - but I am sure that whatever happened, the guidance was followed and the rules were followed at all times."

Let's break down his answer. The first part is the apparent denial that there was a party on 13 November 2020.

We know that there were two gatherings that may have broken the law in Downing Street on 13 November because they were mentioned in senior civil servant Sue Gray's initial report.

Those gatherings have been investigated by the Metropolitan Police. We know from Ms Gray's terms of reference that matters were to be referred to the police when "evidence emerges of behaviour that is potentially a criminal offence".

Ms West's question specified "party" and that is not a term for which there is a precise definition.

Moving on to the rest of his answer, Mr Johnson said that the guidance and the rules were followed at all times.

Starting with the rules - the law at the time said "no person may participate in a gathering which consists of two or more people and takes place indoors" and had an exception where "the gathering is reasonably necessary for work purposes".

The Sunday Times reported that one event had been a leaving party for Lee Cain, that Mr Johnson had poured drinks and had "instigated" it, something Downing Street denied.

The prime minister has called other alleged parties "work events". But the other gathering from 13 November took place in the flat where the prime minister lives with his wife - people from outside their household should not have been there, with certain exceptions.

Staff in the rest of the building reportedly heard ABBA songs being played loudly.

We do not know whether Mr Johnson was in the flat at the time - but the Daily Telegraph reports he was seen heading up there on the night of the event. Downing Street said it could not comment on this.

The guidance for workplaces at the time said "only absolutely necessary participants should physically attend meetings".

There was nothing in the guidance that implied leaving drinks or other forms of socialising at work were allowed.

Date of quote: 8 December 2021

Context: Opening remarks to Parliament after a video emerged of members of his staff joking about whether there had been a Christmas party at Downing Street.

What Johnson said: "I have been repeatedly assured since these allegations emerged that there was no party and that no Covid rules were broken."

The party they were talking about is understood to be the one on 18 December 2020, described in Ms Gray's initial report as "a gathering in No 10 Downing Street ahead of the Christmas break".

A source who attended the gathering told BBC News "several dozen" people had enjoyed food, drink and party games and it had gone on past midnight.

This claim revolves around what assurances the prime minister was given, which we do not know.

We do know that the gathering has been investigated by the Metropolitan Police but we do not yet know whether any fines have been issued for it.

And we do not know whether Mr Johnson attended the gathering - if he is fined for attending it, he will have some explaining to do.

If he was not there - and was told there was no party - he could argue he had not knowingly misled the House.

Date of quote: 1 December 2021

Context: Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer asked: "As millions of people were locked down last year, was a Christmas party thrown in Downing Street for dozens of people on 18 December [2020]?"

What Johnson said: "What I can tell the right honourable and learned gentleman is that all guidance was followed completely in No 10."

The question was about the same "gathering... ahead of the Christmas break".

But Mr Johnson's reply sounds as if he is saying all guidance was followed at all times, not just on 18 December.

If he had been talking about the whole of the pandemic, then the statement would have been misleading. Guidance was clearly not followed in Downing Street at times and the Metropolitan Police has also reached the conclusion that the law was broken - already issuing more than 50 fines.

On 14 April, Mr Johnson confirmed he had been fined for attending a birthday gathering in June 2020.

If the prime minister was only talking about 18 December, we will have to wait for the Metropolitan Police investigation and Sue Gray's final report to know if the law was broken.

But the government guidance for the Christmas period in 2020 says: "Although there are exemptions for work purposes, you must not have a work Christmas lunch or party where that is a primarily social activity."