Boris Johnson raises a toast at a No10 lockdown bash he denied ever happened, in one of a series of photos blowing a hole in his Partygate defence.
Others at the event were said to have landed fixed-penalty notices, but not the Prime Minister.
One source said: “It’s unbelievable he wasn’t even questioned, when he instigated the event – and even poured the drinks.”
The PM stands accused of lying to Parliament as four pictures show him raising a glass with aides around a table laden with booze and party food.
Sources told the Mirror the photos were taken at a leaving do at No10 on November 13 last year, when people from different households were banned from mixing indoors.
In the Commons the following month Mr Johnson denied a party had taken place in No10 on that date.
He was asked by Labour MP Catherine West on December 8, one week after the Mirror first revealed lockdown parties, whether he would confirm the event. He replied: “No. But I’m sure that, whatever happened, the guidance was followed and the rules were followed at all times.”
Mr Johnson already faces an inquiry by the Committee of Privileges over whether he misled Parliament when he claimed no rules had been broken in No10. Ministers who knowingly mislead the House of Commons are expected to resign.
Tory MP Roger Gale said the “damning” pictures, taken at a leaving do for the PM’s former spin doctor Lee Cain, meant Mr Johnson should quit.
He added: “It’s absolutely clear that there was a party, that he attended it, that he was raising a toast to one of his colleagues.
"Therefore, he misled us from the despatch box. And honourably there is one answer. We have to have somebody at the helm that we can really rely on.”
Scots Tory leader Douglas Ross, who previously called for the PM to quit before changing his mind, said: “The Prime Minister must outline why he believes this behaviour was acceptable.
“To most, these pictures seem unjustifiable and wrong.”
And Labour’s deputy leader Angela Rayner said: “While the British public were making huge sacrifices, Boris Johnson was breaking the law.
“Boris Johnson said repeatedly that he knew nothing about law-breaking. There’s no doubt now: he lied.”
Angry insiders claimed others at the bash had received fixed-penalty notices for the event – yet the PM escaped without another fine.
The photos, leaked to ITV News on the eve of Sue Gray’s long-awaited Partygate report, emerged hours after former No10 aide Dominic Cummings claimed pictures would be published “within the next 24 to 48 hours”.
They appear to show the PM making a toast to Mr Cain next to a table with two bottles of bubbly, four bottles of wine and a bottle of gin.
Sources in the room told the Mirror that while just eight Downing Street aides were pictured, more were present but out of shot.
They also claimed Mr Johnson had “instigated” the event, gathering staff around the table and pouring drinks before leaving 15 minutes later. One source at the bash said: “It’s absolutely unforgivable that the Met have fined people for this event but Boris got away scot free. It’s unbelievable he wasn’t even questioned, let alone fined, when he instigated the event and even poured the drinks.
“The police need to explain clearly how they came to their decisions.”
Former Metropolitan Police deputy assistant commissioner Brian Paddick told LBC radio: “It’s very damaging for the Met when the public see these photographs. Because members of the public will think, ‘If I was caught in a photograph like that, I’d expect to be fined’. And the Met need to explain why the PM was not. I think they may not have investigated this as thoroughly as they could have because they didn’t want to upset No10.”
The Mirror revealed last week that the PM was only investigated for two events – a gathering in his official flat the same night as the leaving do, and his Cabinet Room birthday party over which he was fined.
Eight days before the November do, England had been put back into strict lockdown due to soaring Covid cases. The next day the PM issued a video message saying Diwali celebrations could not go ahead in the normal way because of the pandemic. He added: “Getting together with friends and family is not always going to be possible.”
Just hours before the photos were published, Mr Cummings said the PM faced the release of Partygate photos that would show he “obviously lied to the Commons and possibly to the cops”. Mr Cummings appeared to suggest pictures could be released by disgruntled junior civil servants fined for lockdown breaches while the PM was not.
Ms Gray’s report, expected to be published as early as today, could also include photographs of events. The senior civil servant handed more than 300 images to Scotland Yard from her probe.
Scotland Yard revealed last week that it had issued fines for an event on November 13, 2021. The Lib Dems urged the Independent Office for Police Conduct to investigate why the PM did not receive one.
Downing Street declined to defend the snaps, suggesting the Met had already seen them.
A No10 spokeswoman said: “The Cabinet Office and the Met Police have had access to all information relevant to their investigations, including photographs. The Met have concluded their investigation and Sue Gray will publish her report in the coming days, at which point the PM will address Parliament in full.”
Some insiders believe the PM may have escaped a fine because police regarded his presence as “reasonably necessary” for work purposes. Junior aides who stayed longer, however, may not have been covered by the exemption.
The five questions that need answering
1 How did PM escape a fine when others at Lee Cain’s leaving do received them?
2 Did the Met Police see the pictures of the PM raising a glass at this
rules-busting gathering?
3 Did the PM intentionally mislead MPs when he told them that all rules were followed on 13 November, 2020?
4 Why did the Met Police only investigate Boris Johnson for two of the six gatherings he attended?
5 How have MPs and Tory aides got away without fines when junior civil servants at the same events got them?
