Met Police end Partygate inquiry with more fines

Image source, Reuters

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been told he faces no further action after police closed their Partygate investigation, No 10 says.

Mr Johnson’s wife, Carrie, will also not receive a further fine.

They were both fined last month for breaking Covid laws at a birthday party for Mr Johnson in Downing Street in June 2020.

Metropolitan Police said the inquiry into lockdown breaches in and around Downing Street has now come to an end.

It resulted in a total of 126 fines, known as Fixed Penalty Notices, being issued for events across eight different dates.

Twenty-eight people have been issued with more than one fine, the force added.

The ending of the police inquiry paves the way for the publication of the full report by senior civil servant Sue Gray into lockdown gatherings.

The full report is expected to be published next week.

The Met said the eight events resulting in fines took place between May 2020 and April 2021, with different Covid rules in place at different times.

Acting Deputy Commissioner Helen Ball said whether an event had taken place in “someone’s home” was a factor in deciding whether to issue a fine.

The Met said it would not be identifying any recipients of fines from its investigation, which had involved 12 detectives and cost £460,000.

The force added that its investigation involved examining 510 photographs, as well as CCTV images, emails, diary entries and witness statements.

Police also examined 204 questionnaires from people who were at the events. There were no interviews under caution.