More pressure on Boris Johnson over two Downing Street parties

With each passing day there is more pressure on British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, even within his party. This Thursday the newspaper The Daily Telegraph has reported that two farewell parties were held in Downing Street on April 16, 2021, despite the coronavirus restrictions in place. In the second phase of the de-escalation, it was forbidden to socialize indoors and outdoor meetings had to be a maximum of six people. The United Kingdom was also in national mourning for the death of Queen Elizabeth II’s husband. The following day a funeral was held for Philip of Edinburgh.

According to the newspaper, that Friday some 30 people participated in two farewell parties, in which, according to witnesses, alcohol was consumed and there were dances and music until the wee hours of the morning. That Friday, according to Telegraph, the prime minister was not at his official residence.

The celebrations honored James Slack, Johnson’s former communications director, who departed to take on the job of deputy editor at the tabloid. The Sun, and one of the personal photographers of the head of government.

The celebration of the two farewell parties add further pressure on a prime minister besieged by revelations about alleged violations in Downing Street.

The opposition has openly called for the prime minister’s resignation, to which some voices from his own Conservative Party have also joined, such as the “tory” leader in Scotland, Douglas Ross.

Johnson apologized last Wednesday in Parliament for his participation in a party in May 2020 in Downing Street. However, he assured that he thought it was a work meeting and that he did not spend more than 25 minutes in the garden where the celebration took place.