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Boris Johnson’s Christmas quiz violated rules: Starmer

Mounting dissent against Johnson from within Conservative Party

boris-johnson-reuters-1 File photo of UK PM Boris Johnson | Reuters

Amid uproar over a Christmas party at 10 Downing street that may have violated COVID-19 guidelines last December, a photograph of Prime Minister Boris Johnson conducting a Christmas quiz—and defying his earlier claim that he was unaware of parties at his office—has added to calls for his removal.

Calling Prime Minister Boris Johnson the “worst possible leader at the worse possible moment”, Labour leader Keir Starmer said the PM violated rules with the quiz and said he knew it.

While official guidance at the time stated “You must not have a work Christmas lunch or party, where that is a primarily social activity and is not otherwise permitted by the rules in your tier,” Boris Johnson was pictured sitting underneath a portrait of Margaret Thatcher as he read out questions for a Christmas quiz in No 10 on December 15--when London was under tier 2 restrictions, and three days before an alleged Downing Street Christmas party under investigation, the Mirror reported.

Starmer told the The Andrew Marr Show that it looked as though Johnson knew he was violating the rules. “He must have known those other groups were in other rooms in his own building. And this is very important because he’s damaged his authority, he’s now so weak, his party’s so divided, he can’t deliver the leadership this country needs.”

“There’s this basic question of trust and that is broken with the prime minister and that’s why he is unfit for office," Starmer said.

However, Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi said the quiz was virtual and and those who were seen in the photo were the ones who work with him.

However, reports trickled in on Sunday of dissent against Johnson’s leadership within the Conservative Party. With a key vote on a range of “Plan B” COVID-19 measures expected in the House of Commons on Tuesday, 50-80 Tory MPs are reportedly considering voting against the government or abstaining, according to a Guardian report.

In particular, a provision that could lead to vaccine passports being mandated for entry into large venues, has proven unpopular with the public.

The political challenge for Johnson is that while his government is advocating COVID-safe behaviours, the scandal over last year’s 10 Downing Street party has suggested these safeguards were not followed at the highest levels. As the UK grapples with the spread of the Omicron variant, expected to become the dominant strain from Delta, public trust in Boris Johnson is at an all time low, according to a recent YouGov poll.

A government inquiry into three gatherings by government officials last including including two in Downing Street is now underway, led by the Cabinet Secretary.

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