Keir Starmer is braced for the results of Durham police's "Beergate" probe, which could determine his political future.
Mr Starmer has been dogged by criticism from Tory MPs and right-wing newspapers after footage emerged of him drinking a beer and eating a takeaway curry at a campaign event in Durham.
In a high stakes move in May, the Labour leader vowed to resign if he gets fined by police for breaking Covid rules at the event in April 2021.
Durham Constabulary is expected to report back as early as this week with its findings after reopening the case when it received "significant new information".
Labour insist no rules were broken and Mr Starmer has put his leadership on the line to avoid comparison with Boris Johnson, who was fined by police over his Downing Street birthday do in June 2020 but refused to quit.
But what is all about and what does it mean for Keir Starmer?
What is Beergate?
Grainy footage emerged last year of Keir Starmer enjoying a beer in a constituency office in Durham on April 30 after a day of campaigning.
The Labour leader was campaigning ahead of the crunch Hartlepool by-election on May 6, which was held the same day as local elections across the country.
The Sun reported the story at the time but Labour denied rules were broken and said Mr Starmer had "paused for dinner" while working.
The row was revived in January by the Daily Mail as Boris Johnson became embroiled in Partygate revelations.
Durham Constabulary reviewed the footage in February but decided no offence had been committed.
After the Prime Minister and Chancellor Rishi Sunak received fixed penalty notices for attending Mr Johnson's surprise birthday gathering in No10 in June 2020, Beergate returned to political agenda.
The Mail ran the story on its front page for days while Tory MP Richard Holden repeatedly urged Durham police to reopen their probe.
The force announced it would look at the event again in a bombshell announcement on the day of the local election results in May.
Durham police said they had received "significant new information" about the event but did not say what these details were.
What has Labour said?
Labour has always maintained that no rules were broken at the gathering because everyone was working.
England was under strict Covid rules at the time, which banned indoor meet-ups. But there were exemptions for "work purposes".
Political campaigning was also allowed in the run up to the elections.
Labour said in their initial statement: “Keir was in the workplace, meeting a local MP in her constituency office and participating in an online Labour Party event. They paused for dinner as the meeting was during the evening.”
Mr Starmer and Labour have maintained this position throughout.
The dispute centres on whether the Labour leader was really working or not - as that is what made the gathering exempt from Covid rules.
Labour said a takeaway curry was ordered which was served in the kitchen and people helped themselves to some food while continuing to work.
But Tory MPs and some newspapers insist the event was social, with reports that some staff were socialising rather than working and a claim in the Sun that there were 30 attendees who racked up a £200 takeaway bill.
One issue for Labour is they originally said deputy leader Angela Rayner was not present but later admitted she was.
The party said this was an honest mistake but it emboldened Mr Starmer's critics - and was reportedly a factor in the police decision to probe the gathering.
What have the police said?
Durham Police said: “Earlier this year, Durham Constabulary carried out an assessment as to whether Covid-19 regulations had been breached at a gathering in Durham City on April 30 2021.
"At that time, it was concluded that no offence had been established and therefore no further action would be taken.
“Following the receipt of significant new information over recent days, Durham Constabulary has reviewed that position and now, following the conclusion of the pre-election period, we can confirm that an investigation into potential breaches of Covid-19 regulations relating to this gathering is now being conducted.”
The police did not elaborate on the nature of the new information.
The force has previously said it won't issue retrospective fines for Covid breaches. It failed to interview Dominic Cummings over his lockdown trips to Durham and Barnard Castle.
Will Keir Starmer resign?
The Labour leader promised in May to do the "right thing" and step down if he is fined by police for breaking Covid laws.
In a bombshell statement, Mr Starmer said he was "absolutely clear no rules were broken" but added: "If the police decide to issue me with a fixed penalty notice, I would of course do the right thing and step down."
But he has given himself a loophole. The Mirror repeatedly asked him if he would step down if Durham Police criticise him but he isn't fined - which he did not commit to.
Mr Starmer is privately confident he won't be fined but it is still a gamble.
Labour knows that it would be too damaging for him to try to brazen out breaking the rules like Boris Johnson.
Mr Starmer, a former director of public prosecutions, has been too critical of No10 rule breaking to survive a fine of his own.
Will Angela Rayner resign?
The Deputy Labour leader has also said she will resign if she is fined over Beergate.
Questioned by the Mirror on July 4, she repeated her pledge to quit her post if she is fined - but warned “I’m not going anywhere” when it comes to speaking up in politics.
The Deputy Labour leader, giving an IPPR speech on her working-class background and diversity in politics, denied she would leave a gap in representation at the top of Labour if she had to stand down.
She said: “I’m not going anywhere, even if the hypothetical happened, which I’m very confident it won’t because I’m very confident I haven’t broken any rules.
“But I do think it was important to say that because this Prime Minister thinks he can break the law and then continue in office.
“I think that is a red line for anybody and it’s a red line for me.”
Ms Rayner said she “will continue to champion” better representation saying “it can’t be one person - it has to be about creating an environment for everybody”.
Saying the party was already diverse she added: “I don’t think there will be a gap.
“I think my job and my role is always to make sure that if I’m not around tomorrow there’s lots of other people who can do that role.
“It’s not about me - it’s about the team and what they can bring.”
Is it as bad as Partygate?
No. The allegations are in different leagues, no matter how much the Tories try to suggest otherwise.
Partygate became a scandal due to the sheer scale of rule-breaking - as well as the fact that the people who made these laws were found at some of these gatherings.
The Metropolitan Police investigated 12 Partygate gatherings, including six bashes that the Prime Minister was understood to have attended.
The force issued 126 fines to 83 individuals, with 28 people receiving between two and five fixed penalty notices.
Whitehall enforcer Sue Gray probed 16 gatherings before publishing a scathing report that lashed failures of leadership and judgment at the top of Government.
Her full report laid bare the extent of lockdown boozing in No10 and Whitehall, where officials drank so much they were sick, red wine was spilled on the walls and cleaners and security staff were abused.
By contrast, Beergate is a single event where the dispute centres on whether Mr Starmer continued to work after having an Indian takeaway with staff in a constituency office.
The problem for Labour is that Mr Starmer tore into the PM over Partygate which leaves him open to charges of hypocrisy if he himself is fined.
