LONDON: Boris Johnson’s former chief adviser Dominic Cummings has accused the British prime minister of lying to the parliament that he thought a drinks party held in the Downing Street garden during the first lockdown was work-related.
British Prime Minister Johnson told the House of Commons last week that he went to the party on May 20, 2020, thinking it was a work event.
Cummings said in a blogpost that Johnson was told by two senior officials that it was not. He was warned that a “socially distanced drinks” party organized by his principal private secretary Martin Reynolds would break COVID-19 rules but he still decided it should go ahead.
“The events of May 20 alone… mean the PM lied to Parliament about parties. Not only me but other eyewitnesses who discussed this at the time would swear under oath this is what happened,” Cummings wrote.
This and other parties at the Downing Street during COVID-19 restrictions are being investigated for potential law-breaking. The prime minister’s critics argued that Johnson’s behaviors showed he was not fit for the job.
Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab told Times Radio on Tuesday that the suggestion that the prime minister lied was “nonsense.” (ANI/Sputnik)