After the party, the apologies: questioned for having participated in May 2020 at an alcoholic reception in his official residence, the British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, presented "from the bottom of his heart" Wednesday January 12th his apologies to the British population .

"I understand the anger which animates them against me and against the government that I lead when they imagine that in Downing Street, the rules are not respected by those who make the rules", he said said, visibly embarrassed, before the House of Commons.

"The party is over" 

The head of the British government said he regretted his behavior while assuring, under the jeers of the opposition MPs, to have thought that the controversial rally was in fact a working meeting.

"I went to the garden a little after 6 p.m. on May 20, 2020 to thank the staff before returning to my office 25 minutes later to resume work," he explained.

"Looking back, I should have asked them to come home."

The opposition, and some members of the Conservative Party from which Boris Johnson comes, believe that he will have to resign if it is established that he has broken the rules established to stem the spread of the coronavirus epidemic.

"The party is over, Mr. Prime Minister," said Labor leader Keir Starmer from the opposition benches.

"After months of deception, (here is) the pathetic spectacle of a man who has come to the end of the road. His defense (...) is so ridiculous as to be insulting to the British people."

The specter of a resignation for Boris Johnson?

According to information leaked earlier this week by the ITV channel, a "Bring your own booze" invitation was emailed in May 2020 to around 100 people by Boris Johnson's personal secretary, Martin Reynolds.

The party brought together around 40 guests, including the head of government and his future wife Carrie, as schools, pubs and restaurants were closed in Britain and relatives of COVID patients generally could not be at their disposal. bedside at the time of their death.

The reception, which Martin Reynolds specified would respect social distancing measures, woke up to the heated controversy caused by the broadcast of a video showing employees at 10 Downing Street joking about a Christmas party that s was held there in 2020, when the British were again under sanitary restrictions.

Several Britons have been sued for having organized parties at the time of the "beer party" at the residence of the Prime Minister and the London police force, who had so far refrained from investigating the the subject, said Monday that he contacted the Cabinet Office, one of the executive branches, to determine whether health laws had been violated at 10 Downing Street.

Responding to calls for his resignation, Boris Johnson replied that he was unable to anticipate the results of the internal investigation by Sue Gray, Permanent Secretary to the Cabinet Office, into several events at 10 Downing Street during periods of confinement.

"I know enough to know that there are things we just haven't done right. And I have to take responsibility for that," he added.

The popularity of Boris Johnson, who came to power in July 2019 after a landslide victory for the Conservatives in the legislative elections, has suffered for several months by his government's handling of the health crisis and a series of other scandals , including one relating to work carried out by the Prime Minister at his Downing Street residence.

More than half of Britons now would like him to resign, according to the latest polls, and it is rumored that Conservative MPs, who can trigger a vote of no-confidence if 54 of them, out of 360, ask for it in writing, begin to seriously consider the hypothesis of his ousting.

With Reuters

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