LONDON (CNBC) -- UK Prime
Minister Boris Johnson and his team woke to a barrage of scathing headlines in the British press on Tuesday following the early findings of an inquiry into various parties held within Downing Street and government buildings during COVID-19 lockdowns.
The report, carried out by senior civil servant Sue Gray and published in a limited form on Monday, described “failures of leadership and judgment by different parts of No 10 and the Cabinet Office at different times” and said that some of the behavior was “difficult to justify.”
The 12-page report was the result of several weeks of investigations by Gray, in which hundreds of pictures and documents were gathered and which have now been passed to the Metropolitan Police as it carries out its own probe into alleged COVID breaches by government staff.
Weeks of reports of parties and gatherings — some alleged and others admitted to, and with several events attended by Johnson — have greatly riled the British press, public and politicians from across the political spectrum. That anger and indignation reflected in headlines on Tuesday.
The Times’ headline on Tuesday reflected on the police inquiry, noting “Police investigate PM’s four lockdown parties” in its headline as it highlighted that four alleged gatherings attended by the prime minister himself were among eight being investigated by the Met.
The left-leaning Mirror newspaper was most critical of Johnson, its headline a simple and cutting “Zero Shame,” as it summarized the ongoing lockdown party scandal in numbers:
“12 parties probed by cops, 3 attended by the PM, 1 was in his own flat, 300 pictures handed over ...and still zero shame” giving its damning verdict on the crisis as the Metropolitan Police confirmed on Monday that it will be investigating eight of the 12 dates considered in Sue Gray’s report.
The police added they were reviewing “more than 300 images and over 500 pages of information” and would seek accounts of what happened from relevant individuals.
The Metro, a free newspaper widely distributed to commuters, headlined with Gray’s main findings: “A failure of leadership” alongside a picture of a beleaguered Johnson, noting that Gray’s “’update gives a damning verdict on boozy pandemic parties at No.10.”
Gray’s report is expected to be published in full after the police conclude their own inquiry but it made clear that lockdown parties “should not have been allowed to take place” while others “should not have been allowed to develop as they did.”
Many politicians on all sides of the political spectrum have expressed anger and dismay at Johnson’s leadership but the prime minister has, so far, refused to stand down and a Conservative Party threshold for a vote of no confidence has not yet been reached.