Katy Balls Katy Balls

What did Boris tell his MPs about partygate?

After Boris Johnson faced a hostile response in the chamber from opposition MPs over his partygate fine, on Tuesday evening the Prime Minister addressed his own MPs in a meeting organised by the government whips. Ahead of the meeting, Johnson had been dealt a blow when former chief whip Mark Harper said he no longer had confidence in his ability to lead the government.

Johnson’s meeting was notable for what it missed: no mention of partygate. ‘It was more like an election rally speech,’ says an attendee. The Prime Minister embarked on a call and command as he asked MPs who they would trust more with the economy – Rishi Sunak or Rachel Reeves – and who would best control the borders – Priti Patel or Yvette Cooper. The Prime Minster also waded into the controversy over the government’s plan to send refugees to Rwanda – suggesting the Archbishop of Canterbury’s criticisms were misplaced.

While the general atmosphere was positive, it’s worth remembering that these events tend to work in favour of the speaker given a large chunk of attendees are those on the government payroll. One attendee even joked that they would ‘brown nose’ in their comments given the setting.

Yet there were two questions that signal trouble ahead. The first came from Aaron Bell who pressed the Prime Minister on whether there had been any partying in the Downing Street flat – the answer given was no. Then a question from former whip Craig Whittaker came relating to Thursday’s house business, when Labour plan to force a vote on referring the Prime Minister for an investigation into whether he misled parliament on partygate.

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