:quality(75)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/elcomercio/GIYDCNZNGAYS2MZRKQYDAORSGA.jpg "4 revelations from the report on Boris Johnson’s parties during confinement")
“Leadership failures.”
The initial conclusions of the long-awaited report on the parties held during the confinement in Downing Street – the residence of the British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson– were published.
LOOK: Sue Gray report on Downing Street parties during lockdowns points to ‘leadership failures’
The report, carried out by official Sue Gray, is limited, since the police asked not to add many details and thus “avoid any damage” in the investigation that they have open on the same cause, although it reveals some keys to what happened and concludes with a criticism of the British leadership.
“Some of the meetings in question represent a serious failure to meet the high standards expected of those who work at the heart of government”, reads the recently published report. “It shouldn’t have been allowed.”
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Boris Johnson has recognized the facts and, before the House of Commons, pointed out that “it is not enough to ask for forgiveness”.
“I understand and I’ll fix it“, manifested between the critics of the parliamentarians.
The report it only has 11 pages, but here we tell you some of its main conclusions.
1. “It should not have been allowed”
Gray notes in the report that, in some cases, “shouldn’t have been allowed to take place.” As for other events, “they shouldn’t have been allowed to take place the way they did.”
Sue Gray was specifically investigating 16 events which took place on a dozen dates between May 2020 and April 2021, including 3 of which there was no record.
Of those 16, 12 are being investigated by the police.
These include the meeting with the drinks in downing street garden attended by the prime minister on May 20, 2020. It is also cause for police investigation the Johnson’s birthday in the Cabinet room on June 19, 2020.
Regarding alcohol consumption, Gray further noted that “excessive alcohol consumption is not appropriate in a professional workplace at any time. Steps should be taken to ensure that all government departments have a clear and robust policy covering alcohol consumption.” of alcohol in the workplace.
At the time the events occurred, the UK was in various degrees of confinement.
Rules for the general public included a ban on indoor gatherings of more than two people, as well as other restrictions for outdoor events.
2. “Leadership failures”
The official also concludes that “there was leadership failures and judgment by different parts of the number 10 and the Cabinet Office”.
“Sometimes it seems no thought was given to what was happening throughout the country considering the appropriateness of some of these gatherings, the risks they presented to public health, and how they might appear to the public,” the document states.
On this point, the parliamentarians of the opposition demand that all findings be published In its whole.
The report is crucial to Johnson’s tenure, which has been rocked by weeks of damaging headlines about parties in Downing Street and other government buildings.
Many Conservative MPs said they were looking forward to his findings before deciding whether to try to remove him from office.
Are needed 54 Conservative Party leaders to carry out a motion of no confidence.
3. “Serious failure to meet the high standards expected” of the government
“At least some of the meetings represent a serious breach of high standards that is expected not only of those who work in government but of the entire British population at that time,” says Gray.
“In the context of the pandemic, when the government called on citizens to accept far-reaching restrictions on their lives, some of the behavior around these meetings is difficult to justify,” the civil official points out.
All events took place at 10 Downing Street or the Cabinet Office, except one at the Department for Education.
“It is not up to me to pass judgment on whether the criminal law has been broken; that’s properly a law enforcement issue,” said Gray, second permanent secretary at the Cabinet Office and who reports to Britain’s top civil servant, Simon Case.
Of the police investigation, Gray wrote in his report that he has been “in regular contact with the Metropolitan Police as my work has progressed so that they can make decisions about the meetings under review, including the possibility of starting their own research”.
4. Members who wanted to protest but couldn’t
One of the report’s latest revelations is that “some staff members wanted to raise concerns about behaviors they witnessed at work, but sometimes they felt unable to do so.
“No staff member should feel unable to report or challenge misconduct where they witness it,” Gray said.
The document also notes that there should be “easier ways for staff to raise such concerns informally, outside the management chain”.
4. Members who wanted to protest but couldn’t
One of the report’s latest revelations is that “some staff members wanted to raise concerns about behaviors they witnessed at work, but sometimes they felt unable to do so.
“No staff member should feel unable to report or challenge misconduct where they witness it,” Gray said.
The document also notes that there should be “easier ways for staff to raise such concerns informally, outside the management chain”.
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Condemn Downing Street culture
Nick Eardley, BBC Political Correspondent
On first reading, some of these conclusions are quite damning for Downing Street at a time of lockdown restrictions.
There is a lot of talk about events that shouldn’t have happened or that shouldn’t have been able to unfold the way they did.
There is talk of leadership failures, significant things to be gleaned from these events.
I think Boris Johnson will be under a lot of pressure when he comes to the House of Commons to set out what he thinks those lessons are.
There is a broader question as to whether those leadership failures were from the prime minister himself.
I suspect we will hear opposition politicians in the next few hours say exactly that, that culture was created by man at the top.
However, what really needs to be considered is How do Conservative MPs react to this? We know that many of them have been deeply uncomfortable with the stories they have heard about what happened in Downing Street.
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Source: Elcomercio
