Commons staff told to help Scotland Yard on Sir Bernard Jenkin lockdown-busting drinks party claims
- The drinks gathering in December 2020 was attended by Sir Bernard Jenkin
- Read: Bernard Jenkin still silent five days on from claims he went to party
Commons officials were yesterday ordered to cooperate with Scotland Yard over an alleged lockdown-busting drinks party attended by one of Boris Johnson’s Partygate inquisitors.
Sources said House Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle had asked Alison Giles, Parliament’s director of security, to assist police assessing the gathering attended by Sir Bernard Jenkin.
Sir Bernard maintained his silence yesterday, six days after claims were aired that he attended the event in December 2020 at which alcohol and cake were allegedly on offer to celebrate his wife’s birthday.
It is said to have taken place in the office of one of Sir Lindsay’s deputies, Dame Eleanor Laing. She also maintained her silence yesterday. It came as Scotland Yard said it was probing ‘alleged breaches’ of lockdown rules in relation to this and other events, adding: ‘It would not be appropriate to prejudge the outcome of these assessments or to provide a running commentary on their progress.’
A leaked invitation at the weekend appeared to demolish claims that the gathering in Dame Eleanor’s office was a ‘work event’.
Sources said House Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle had asked Alison Giles, Parliament’s director of security, to assist police assessing the gathering attended by Sir Bernard Jenkin (pictured)
The party is said to have taken place in the office of one of Sir Lindsay’s deputies, Dame Eleanor Laing (pictured)
A leaked invitation at the weekend appeared to demolish claims that the gathering in Dame Eleanor’s office was a ‘work event’
The WhatsApp message, sent by Baroness Jenkin, explicitly invited her ‘favourite people’ to a ‘birthday drinks’ bash. The invitation said the drinks would be ‘v small and socially distanced’ but insiders say at least ten people were in the room throughout, with a source claiming distancing rules ‘went out of the window’.
Tory grandee Sir Bernard is understood to deny breaking any Covid-19 rules by attending the gathering when restrictions were in place.
An ‘ally’ said he insisted that it was a ‘work event’ held by senior figures in the Women2Win Tory women’s network. But his wife’s invitation suggests otherwise.
The ally claimed that Sir Bernard simply ‘arrived to collect his wife’ – something also disputed by sources with knowledge of the gathering.
Sir Bernard was the most senior Tory on the Commons privileges committee that recommended Mr Johnson be suspended from Parliament for 90 days.
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