Boris Johnson has become the first ever British prime minister to be interviewed under police caution after he and Downing Street staff were asked to give evidence about the Partygate scandal.
Officers asked 88 people in a questionnaire to provide a ‘lawful exception’ or ‘reasonable excuse’ for attending the allegedly illegal bashes during lockdown.
The forms, equivalent to a police interview, form part of the criminal investigation into potential rule-breaking at the very top of government.
Being questioned under caution is similar to an arrest, but it means the suspect does not need to be detained and can leave at any point.
The questionnaire includes the police caution: ‘You do not have to say anything, but it may harm your defence if you do not mention when questioned something you later rely on in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence.’
Mr Johnson, 57, consulted a lawyer hired at his own expense before filling out and returning his questionnaire.
He claims he attended six events, including a birthday party and a gathering in his flat, as part of his working day.
During the cash for honours investigation in 2006, Tony Blair said if he was interviewed under caution, it would be a resigning matter.
Operation Hillman, which is examining whether Covid restrictions were broken in Number 10 and across Whitehall, sent the questionnaires this month.
The Met had said that the forms asked the respondents for an ‘account and explanation of the recipient’s participation in an event’, adding that they have ‘formal legal status and must be answered truthfully’.
Downing Street staff have been asked by police to provide a ‘lawful exception’ or ‘reasonable excuse’ for parties which took place during the coronavirus lockdown, a leaked legal questionnaire (pictured) has shown
The Prime Minister returned his last Friday before he faced questions over whether or not he will resign if he is handed a fixed penalty notice.
Now, the document – leaked to ITV News – gives the first insight into what questions Mr Johnson is likely to have been asked.
The document states at the outset that those accused have an opportunity to provide ‘a written statement under caution’.
It then goes on to ask around a dozen questions, including timings of attendance at parties and how many others were present.
It also asks respondents if they ‘interacted with’ or undertook ‘any activity with’ any one present.
The form gives them a chance to justify their actions, asking: ‘What, if any, lawful exception applied to the gathering and/or what reasonable excuse did you have for participating in the gathering?’
The Metropolitan Police says there are three ways to respond to the questionnaire.
The options are to remain silent and answer no questions; provide an answer to the specific queries; or to give a prepared statement.
The PM is known to have taken legal advice before he submitted his answers last week and he is expected to argue that he did not break any rules in attending gatherings because Number 10 is both his workplace and his home.
A spokesperson for Downing Street previously said: ‘We have confirmed the Prime Minister has been contacted by the Metropolitan Police. We will not be commenting further while the investigation is ongoing.’
More junior members of staff are said to have have told ITV News that they are concerned they won’t be able to afford the same standard of legal advice as the PM.
Anyone who receives a questionnaire has seven days to respond, with the latest batch sent out yesterday, meaning the police investigation still has at least a week left to run.
The report revealing the leaked questionnaire is airing tonight on ITV News.
News of the questionnaire comes after at emerged that at least two cabinet ministers would withdraw support for the PM if he is handed a fixed penalty notice in relation to Covid rule breaches.
According to the Times newspaper, two ministers have said the Prime Minister’s position will be untenable if he is found to have breached lockdown laws and is fined by the police.
One source told The Times: ‘If he gets an FPN he’ll have to go. How can you have a prime minister who has been found guilty of breaking the law?’
A minister and close ally of a second cabinet member also told the newspaper: ‘If the Met’s conclusion is effectively that he broke the regulations then it makes his position extremely difficult.
‘It’s going to be very difficult for him to stay, especially if it’s for a party in the No 10 flat.’
The Times reported that he will be expected to appeal an FPN if he is handed one by the Met in an attempt to draw out the process and ‘to kick it into the long grass’.
On Sunday, Mr Johnson stonewalled for 10 minutes on Partygate in an awkward interview, refusing to say whether he will quit if police fine him.
The PM squirmed as he was repeatedly grilled by the BBC‘s Sophie Raworth on the controversy – insisting he ‘can’t comment about a process that is under way’.
Despite there being no apparent legal barrier to speaking on the issue, Mr Johnson said: ‘There is simply not a bean I can tell you about that.’
Mr Johnson is believed to have attended as many as six of the parties being investigating by the Metropolitan Police.
One such party was allegedly organised by Carrie Johnson in the official Downing Street residence on November 13, 2020.
Another was the ‘bring your own booze’ garden which took place during the first lockdown in May 2020.
Mr Johnson is believed to have attended as many as six of the parties being investigating by the Metropolitan Police. One of the parties under investigation is the ‘bring your own booze’ garden in May 2020 (pictured)
Courtesy, Daily Mail (UK)