‘From prosecco Tuesdays to thank-you tipples, No 10 has a serious drink problem’

A protester demonstrates outside Downing Street after further allegations of parties during lockdown. Photograph: Andy Rain/EPA

There’s no denying that last week was especially torrid for the prime minister, with news emerging of endless parties hosted at No 10 during the peak of the pandemic. It seems a drinking culture at the heart of government refuses to subside, even during a crisis.

Boris Johnson’s critics say this culture was endemic under him, but as someone who also worked in the civil service under David Cameron and Theresa May as well, I know this isn’t the case. The prime minister doesn’t have a drinking problem; No 10 does.