Labour has called on Prime Minister Boris Johnson to 'urgently explain' why he met Sue Gray to discuss her pivotal partygate report. It is understood the pair held at least one meeting to give an update on the document's progress while it was being drafted, but a Whitehall source said that its contents were not discussed at any point.
Such meetings would not have been viewed as unusual, the source said, with the aim to take stock of what stage the report was at. It comes as around 30 people, including Mr Johnson, are being contacted by the Cabinet Office to warn them of the contents of the document ahead of its publication.
Angela Rayner, Labour's deputy leader, called on the Prime Minister to 'urgently explain' why the 'secret meeting' had taken place. She said public confidence in the process had already been 'depleted' - and that people 'deserve to know the truth'.