London: Senior British minister Michael Gove on Sunday referred to a video showing a party at the headquarters of the ruling Conservative Party during a lockdown in 2020 as "terrible," as the government continues to be plagued by COVID rule-breaking gatherings.
Days after a parliamentary committee found that former Prime Minister Boris Johnson had purposefully misled lawmakers about illegal lockdown parties at his office, the Mirror newspaper released the video.
The 45-second video depicts revellers having a good time in December 2020, when it was forbidden for the British public in London to socialise inside to help stop the spread of COVID-19.
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In the video, people can be seen drinking and dancing. Johnson honoured two attendees of the gathering in his resignation list earlier this month; the event had already been looked into by police when a still photo of it surfaced.
Gove, the housing minister, told Sky News, "It's terrible." "I believe it to be wholly out of sequence. Really, all I want to do is apologise to everyone. The controversy surrounding breaking the law during COVID lockdowns contributed to Johnson's resignation last year and continues to hang over the Conservatives and the current prime minister, Rishi Sunak.
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Days before the main disciplinary body for lawmakers, the privileges committee, handed down its damning verdict against Johnson, Johnson resigned as a member of parliament on June 9. This reopened party rifts and reignited public resentment.
According to polls, the Conservatives, who have been in power since 2010, trail the opposition Labour party by about 20%. By the end of 2024, the next election must take place.
On Monday, lawmakers will decide whether or not to support the report of the privileges committee. Johnson has resigned from Congress, so the report's significance is largely symbolic, but Johnson's supporters have warned that those who supported its conclusions risked backlash from Conservative legislators and even de-selection as parliamentary candidates.
Gove announced that he would abstain, calling some portions of the report "excellent," but disagreeing with its conclusion that Johnson should have received a 90-day suspension from the House of Representatives had he continued to serve in office. He claimed he had no idea what Sunak would do.
Sunak's efforts to concentrate on boosting Britain's ailing economy will be hindered by the Johnson scandal and COVID "partygate" headlines. Homeowners will see significant increases in mortgage payments as the Bank of England raises interest rates in an effort to lower persistently high inflation.
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When asked if the government would intervene to assist borrowers, he replied that it had no immediate plans to do so but was monitoring the situation. "The worst thing to do would be to spend money in order to provide a short-term relief, which would then mean that our overall finances were in a weaker position, interest rates were higher for longer, and inflation was high for longer," said Gove.