Labour party leader Sir Keir Starmer and his deputy Angela Rayner have not been issued fines for an alleged lockdown breach during the coronavirus pandemic.
Durham Police had been investigating claims an evening attending by the pair and other senior party figures might have broken social distancing regulations after the party leader was pictured having a beer and curry.
A leaked memo published by the Mail on Sunday indicated that the dinner in Durham had been planned on the schedule for Sir Keir’s day of campaigning in April 2021.
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The document states that there would be a "dinner in Miners Hall" with City of Durham MP Mary Foy from 8.40pm to 10pm – and a note indicates a member of staff in Sir Keir’s office was to arrange the takeaway curry from the Spice Lounge.
During a televised statement in May, Sir Keir previously vowed he would "do the right thing" and quit if he was found to have breached lockdown measures at the event.
But Durham Constabulary have now confirmed that their investigation into the event had now concluded, and that they had found "no case to answer" for a contravention of the regulations.
In a statement, the force said: "Following the emergence of significant new information, an investigation was launched by Durham Constabulary into a gathering at the Miners’ Hall, in Redhills, Durham on April 30 2021. That investigation has now concluded.
"A substantial amount of documentary and witness evidence was obtained which identified the 17 participants and their activities during that gathering. Following the application of the evidential Full Code Test, it has been concluded that there is no case to answer for a contravention of the regulations, due to the application of an exception, namely reasonably necessary work.
"Accordingly, Durham Constabulary will not be issuing any fixed penalty notices in respect of the gathering and no further action will be taken.
"The investigation has been thorough, detailed and proportionate. The final evidence supplied by participants from the local constituency was returned to Durham Police on July 5 and analysed by investigators against all the evidence before the investigation was concluded on July 8 2022.
"In line with established national policing guidelines, we will not name or otherwise identify any of those present at the gathering, all of whom have been informed of the investigation outcome by their legal representatives.”
In response, the Labour leader wrote on Twitter: "I’ve always said no rules were broken when I was in Durham. The police have completed their investigation and agreed: there is no case to answer. For me, this was always a matter of principle. Honesty and integrity matter. You will always get that from me."
Labour allies of Sir Keir previously said he would be cleared by police and there was a sharp contrast between him and Boris Johnson. Durham Police said they had reversed an earlier decision on the case that no offence had been committed, after receiving "significant new information."
Police have not said what sparked the probe but The Times reported a "key factor" was confirmation that deputy leader and Ashton MP, Angela Rayner attended the evening. Labour had previously denied she had been present.
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