UK Politics

Sunday Times Rich List: Rishi Sunak and wife join elite with £730m fortuneMillions of households will receive a £400 discount on their energy bills, and a £5bn tax will be levied on oil and gas giants as Rishi Sunak moved to counter the soaring cost of living.The chancellor was forced to unveil emergency measures as part of a £15bn package to tackle the impact of soaring inflation, which has reached a 40-year high.Measures include a £650 payment for 8 million of the worst-off households, a one-off £300 payment to 8 million pensioner households and £150 each to 6 million disabled people.The plans will be funded by around £10bn of extra borrowing, but Mr Sunak insisted he had a “responsible fiscal policy”.Mr Sunak also scrapped his £200 energy bills loan, replacing it instead with a £400 grant, available to all households. He said that tax breaks for innovation would ensure the windfall tax did not reduce investment in green power.Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves said Mr Sunak’s announcement showed the Labour Party was “winning the battle of ideas”, adding: “This government’s dither and delay is costing the country dearly.”As he began his statement to MPs, Mr Sunak was heckled with shouts of “what took you so long” and “about time”.Show latest update

1653576601Sketch: The chancellor who’s having to be everything he’s notWhile he sees himself as an Ebeneezer Scrooge-style Tory, Rishi Sunak is in fact best understood as the Ocean Club Marbella Veuve Clicquot Champagne Spray Chancellor, says sketch-writer Tom Peck:Jane Dalton26 May 2022 15:501653575856Sunak’s support and what it means for your financesOur business correspondent Ben Chapman analyses what the measures will mean for readers’ finances:Jane Dalton26 May 2022 15:371653574929Shell ‘recognises burden of rising bills’A spokesman for oil giant Shell said: “We have consistently emphasised the importance of a stable environment for long-term investment.“This is fundamental to our aim to invest between £20billion and £25billion in the UK in the next decade, mostly in low- and zero-carbon products and services, with a significant amount also focused on ensuring security of energy supply for the UK.“The Chancellor’s proposed tax relief on investments in Britain’s energy future is a critical principle in the new levy.“We recognise the burden that increased energy prices have across society, in particular on the vulnerable, and have hardship plans in place to help our customers.”Jane Dalton26 May 2022 15:221653574721How to get the new £650 energy bill grantAmont the chancellor’s new measures is a one-off payment of £650 for 8 million families on benefits to ease the pressure of rising energy bills.The sum will be applied to those on Universal Credit, Tax Credits, Pension Credit, and legacy benefits from July. Zaina Alibhai explains that those eligible should receive it automatically:Jane Dalton26 May 2022 15:181653574337Businesses and unions condemn Sunak’s stepsBusinesses and unions have attacked the chancellor’s announcements for different reasons.Rain Newton-Smith, the CBI’s chief economist, said helping people facing real hardship amid one of the worst cost-of-living crunches in recent memory was the right thing to do.But she added: “Despite the investment incentive, the open-ended nature of the energy profits levy, and the potential to bring electricity generation into scope, will be damaging to investment needed for energy security and net zero ambitions.“It sends the wrong signal to the whole sector at the wrong time against a backdrop of rising business taxation elsewhere.”TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said: “The Chancellor should have acted far sooner after his inadequate spring statement. His dither and delay has caused unnecessary hardship and worry for millions.“The government still doesn’t have a plan for giving families long-term financial security.“With energy bills rising 23 times faster than wages we urgently need to get pay packets rising and to pay universal credit at a permanently higher rate – not just a one-off boost.”Kitty Ussher, chief economist at the Institute of Directors, said: “Ultimately, what is good for household confidence is also good for the economy as a whole.“However, it is still the case that high energy prices are causing huge concern for business leaders.”Hannah Essex, Co-Executive Director of the British Chambers of Commerce said: “Unless steps are also taken to ease business costs, they will likely [sic] feed into the inflationary pressure on the economy and quickly eat into the financial support announced today.“A change of course is needed now. If the government does not act quickly, then rising costs will put our economy in a stranglehold.”Manuel Cortes, Transport Salaried Staffs Association General Secretary, said: “This package although somewhat late is welcome, but we need an emergency budget to deal with the cost-of-living crisis to ensure that no-one is left behind.”Jane Dalton26 May 2022 15:121653573971Tory MP calls for minimum wage rise beyond inflationConservative MP John Baron called for the government to raise minimum wages ahead of inflation and scrap the corporation tax increase to help fund the measure.The MP for Basildon and Billericay said: “The Chancellor and the Government’s absolutely right to recognise that more needs to be done. But I would suggest to him also that generally lower taxes bring forward greater prosperity over the medium- to longer term.“Given that inflation is going to be less transitory than many believe… will the Chancellor give consideration to raising the minimum wages ahead of inflation to help the lowest paid, given we have record low unemployment, whilst scrapping the corporation tax increases to help industry pay for that?”Rishi Sunak said: “I’m proud that the minimum wage has gone up this year significantly, putting £1,000 extra into people’s pay cheques, and actually we have a target long term to increase it to two-thirds of median earnings, which will ensure that it does tend to rise faster than inflation in normal times.“But I’m happy to work with him on making that happen.”Jane Dalton26 May 2022 15:061653573795What is a windfall tax and what does it mean for me?Saphora Smith explains exactly what the chancellor’s announcement means for everyone:Jane Dalton26 May 2022 15:031653571119Windfall taxes in place until prices hit more normal level, Sunak saysThe windfall tax will be in place until “prices return to a more normal level”, Rishi Sunak has said.Mr Sunak told the Commons: “We will put a backstop sunset clause in the legislation with the energy profits levy. It’ll remain in place until prices return to a more normal level.”Andy Gregory26 May 2022 14:181653570921Tory MP warns Sunak against ‘throwing red meat to socialists’A Tory MP has warned Rishi Sunak against “throwing red meat to socialists by raising taxes on businesses and telling them where to invest their money”, warning this is “not the Conservative way of encouraging those who create our prosperity and jobs to do just that”.Richard Drax asked the chancellor whether he agreed that “by setting this bar, we’re in danger – were we ever to lose power – of allowing the socialists to raise it, which they would do with relish, again and again and again”.Mr Sunak said he believed a “pragmatic and compassionate Conservative government would act to provide support to the most vulnerable at a time of acute need, and a fiscally responsible government would look to try to fund as much of that as possible in as fair a way as possible”.Earlier, the chancellor had said that the government’s cost-of-living support measures were “more generous” than those called for by Labour.Andy Gregory26 May 2022 14:151653570667Tory MP quizzes Sunak on why Japan and Switzerland have escaped inflation riseTory former minister Sir Desmond Swayne has asked Rishi Sunak what “difference in monetary policy has protected Japan and Switzerland from the levels of inflation” encountered in the UK, US and the rest of Europe.The chancellor replied: “Japan as he will appreciate is a very particular case but even there, they are experiencing their highest inflation rates relative in many, many years.“With regard to Switzerland, the reason is a couple of things. One is a strong, particularly strong Swiss franc, which happens at times like this, but also a very different mix of energy, which I believe is provided overwhelmingly by hydro-nuclear from memory, but it’s a completely different energy mix, which means that they suffer less from the shock that we are experiencing.”Andy Gregory26 May 2022 14:11 More

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has announced a new package of support worth £15 billion to help the country through the cost of living crisis.Among them, is a one-off payment of £650 for eight million families on benefits to ease the pressure of rising energy bills.The sum will be applied to those on Universal Credit, Tax Credits, Pension Credit, and legacy benefits from July.Those eligible won’t need to apply, but will receive two direct payments – the first in July and the second in autumn – from the Department of Work and Pensions straight to their bank accounts.One-off payments of £300 to pensioners and £150 for those receiving disability benefits were also announced.“We need to make sure that for those whom the struggle is too hard, and for those whom the risks are too great, they are supported,’’ Mr Sunak said in the House of Commons while unveiling the new support package.The chancellor vowed to provide support to those across the country by revising his previous energy bill loan of £200 which he announced in March.It has now been doubled to £400 and households will no longer need to repay the money.Cost of living: how to get helpThe cost of living crisis has touched every corner of the UK, pushing families to the brink with rising food and fuel prices.The Independent has asked experts to explain small ways you can stretch your money, including managing debt and obtaining items for free.If you need to access a food bank, find your local council’s website, and then use the local authority’s site to locate your nearest centre. The Trussell Trust, which runs many foodbanks, has a similar tool. Citizens Advice provides free help to people in need. The organisation can help you find grants or benefits, or advise on rent, debt and budgeting. If you are experiencing feelings of distress and isolation, or are struggling to cope, The Samaritans offers support; you can speak to someone for free over the phone, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.“We are meeting our responsibility to provide the most help to those on the lowest incomes. I believe that is fair, and I’m confident the House will agree,” he told MPs.“But there are many families who do not require state support in normal times, they are also facing challenging times. Is it fair to leave them unsupported? The answer must surely be no.“While it is impossible for the government to solve every problem, we can and will ease the burden as we help the entire country through the worst of the crisis.” More

Boris Johnson is facing renewed calls to quit after three more Tory MPs submitted letters of no confidence following the publication of Sue Gray’s report into the partygate scandal.A total of 21 Conservative backbenchers are now publicly demanding his removal, but behind the scenes others have privately said he should step down.It comes after images emerged of the prime minister apparently drinking at a lockdown-breaking Downing Street event during the height of the coronavirus pandemic.Mr Johnson’s former top aide Dominic Cummings claimed the images showed he “obviously lied” to police and the House of Commons about No 10 parties.Senior civil servant Ms Gray said an individual threw up and a scuffle broke out at a No 10 official’s leaving do, held during strict Covid restrictions, following “excessive alcohol consumption” by some at the event.The prime minister issued a televised apology over the scandal in an address to the nation after the report attacked “a serious failure” to abide by the “standards expected of the entire British population.”Here’s the full list of Tory MPs calling for the prime minister to stand down:Sir Roger Gale, MP for North ThanetSir Roger Gale, the first Tory MP to declare no confidence in the prime minister last year, described the pictures – which show the PM apparently toasting his then-communications chief Lee Cain with a plastic cup of sparkling wine in a room littered with alcohol bottles on 13 November 2020 – as “damning”.The MP for North Thanet submitted a letter of no confidence in the prime minister in December, but subsequently said it was not the right time for a leadership election, given the conflict with Russia.However the veteran Conservative MP has now told Times Radio: “It’s absolutely clear that there was a party, that he attended it, that he was raising a toast to glass one of his colleagues. And therefore, he misled us from the despatch box. And, honourably, there is one answer.”Steve Baker, MP for WycombeFormer Conservative minister Steve Baker last month called for Mr Johnson to quit for failing to obey his own Covid rules during the Partygate scandal.“The prime minister now should be long gone,” the senior backbencher told the Commons. “Really, the prime minister should just know the gig’s up.’”Mr Baker, deputy leader of the Tories’ Covid Recovery Group, said he found he could not “forgive” the PM for “not obeying the letter and spirit” of the law.He declined to comment on the photos, but tweeted a government poster issued during lockdown depicting a seriously ill Covid patient with the words: “Look her in the eyes and tell her you never bend the rules.”William Wragg, MP for Hazel GroveMr Wragg revealed he had submitted a no-confidence letter during a Commons debate on whether Mr Johnson should be referred to a parliamentary committee over Partygate.He said it was “utterly depressing to be asked to defend the indefensible”. He added: “I cannot reconcile myself to the prime minister’s continued leadership.”Anthony Mangnall, MP for TotnesThe backbencher submitted a no-confidence letter earlier this year – saying Mr Johnson’s “actions and mistruths” were overshadowing the government’s work.Mr Mangnall told a constituent he stood by the resignation call following the PM’s police fine, according to Sky News.Mark Harper, MP for Forest of DeanThe former chief whip called for the PM to go in Commons, as he also shared a letter of no-confidence he sent to 1922 Committee chair Sir Graham Brady.The committee needs 54 letters to hold a vote of no confidence in the leader. Mr Harper said: “Our party still has so much to offer our country, but sadly, not under Boris Johnson’s leadership.”Craig Whittaker, MP for Calder ValleyThe former party whip said Mr Johnson should “do the right thing and resign” during a Facebook event after the PM was fined.But Mr Whittaker said he won’t be submitting a letter to the 1922 Committee – predicting that the PM would win a no-confidence vote (his removal would require a majority of Tory MPs, around 180, to vote against him).Nigel Mills, MP for Amber ValleyMr Mills said Mr Johnson’s position as prime minister was “untenable” after he was fined by the Metropolitan Police for breaking his own Covid laws.He said he would be sending in a letter of no-confidence to 1922 committee chair.Tobias Ellwood, MP for Bournemouth EastThe defence committee chair said it was “horrible” for Tory MPs to have to defend Partygate, and submitted a no-confidence letter earlier this year.Following the police fine, Mr Ellwood said he still believed the PM should “step back”.Caroline Nokes, MP for Romsey and Southampton NorthThe ex-minister said Mr Johnson was “damaging the entire Conservative brand” over Partygate, describing him as a “liability” as she called on him to quit.Ms Nokes has told a constituent she submitted a letter of no-confidence to the 1922 Committee “a long time ago”.Gary Streeter, MP for South West DevonAnnouncing he had sent in his letter on no-confidence earlier this year, Mr Streeter said he could not “reconcile the pain and sacrifice” of the British public with “the attitude and activities of those working in Downing Street”.He told a constituent he stood by the resignation call, according to Sky News.Peter Aldous, MP for WaveneyMr Aldous said earlier this year he had submitted a letter to the 1922 Committee “after a great deal of soul-searching” – saying a new leader would be in “the best interests of the country, the government and the Conservative Party”.He reportedly told a constituent he “remained of this opinion”.Aaron Bell, MP for Newcastle-under-LymeMr Bell submitted a letter of no confidence in Mr Johnson’s leadership in February.He said the prime minister’s position was “untenable” because of his handling of the Partygate scandal and the “breach of trust” represented by the series of lockdown-breaching events at 10 Downing Street.The MP later said the Partygate row had come up on some doorsteps in early May and that the issues around Mr Johnson’s leadership “needs to be brought to a head sooner rather than later”.David Davis, MP for Haltemprice and HowdenBrexiteer David Davis dramatically called on the PM to quit in January, telling him: “In the name of God, go.”The former cabinet minister became the most senior Conservative to demand his resignation over the partygate scandal, intervening during prime minister’s questions in the House of Commons.“You have sat there too long for all the good you have done,” Mr Davis said, reviving a quote first attributed to Oliver Cromwell.Neil Hudson, MP for Penrith and the BorderThe backbencher spoke out against the PM after he was fined. Although Mr Hudson said the Ukraine war meant now was not the time for a leadership contest, he called on Mr Johnson to “outline a timetable and process for an orderly transition to a leadership election as soon as the international situation permits”.Andrew Mitchell, MP for Sutton ColdfieldIn an intervention after Mr Johnson’s statement to the House of Commons following the publication of the update on the Gray inquiry on 31 January, the former chief whip told the No 10 incumbent he “no longer enjoys my support”.Nick Gibb, MP for Bognor Regis and LittlehamptonThe long-serving former schools minister became the 14th Conservative MP to publicly announce he had submitted a letter of no-confidence in the PM.Mr Gibb attacked Mr Johnson for “flagrantly disregarding” rules he had set “within the fortress of 10 Downing Street”.He said his constituents were “furious about the double standards” and the prime minister had been “inaccurate” in statements to the Commons.Tim Loughton, MP for East Worthing and ShorehamThe former children’s minister told constituents via a Facebook post on 15 January that he had “regretfully come to the conclusion that Boris Johnson’s position is now untenable” and that his “resignation is the only way to bring this whole unfortunate episode to an end”.Julian Sturdy, MP for York and OuterBackbencher Julian Sturdy began the trickle of fresh voices demanding Mr Johnson’s exit after the damning inquiry from the senior civil servant was published.He wrote on Twitter: “I am now unable to give the prime minister the benefit of the doubt and feel it is now in the public interest for him to resign.”John Baron, MP for Basildon and BillericayMr Baron accused the PM of misleading parliament, and said he “no longer enjoys my support”.“Given the scale of rule-breaking in No 10, I can not accept that the Prime Minister was unaware,” he said in a statement on his website.“Therefore, his repeated assurances in Parliament that there was no rule-breaking is simply not credible.“Having always said I would consider all the available evidence before deciding, I’m afraid the Prime Minister no longer enjoys my support – I can no longer give him the benefit of the doubt.”David Simmonds, MP for Ruislip, Northwood and PinnerIn a statement, Mr Simmonds said it was “clear that while the government and our policies enjoy the confidence of the public, the prime minister does not”.He added: “Accordingly, it is time for him to step down so that new leadership can take forward the important work of the Government in ensuring that our people and country prosper.”Angela Richardson, MP for GuildfordIn a post on Facebook, Ms Richardson said: “I am clear that had this been a report about my leadership, I would resign.”Ms Richardson said she feared that Mr Johnson’s apology in the Commons on Wednesday was “too little, too late”.And she added: “Trust has been broken and it saddens me that the culture in No 10 and the length of time the enquiry has taken has eroded trust in your political representatives. It reflects badly on all of us.” More

In a major U-turn, chancellor Rishi Sunak has announced a £5bn temporary windfall tax of 25 per cent on oil and gas companies to help fund a £15bn package of assistance for households struggling in the cost-of-living crisis.Mr Sunak said that almost all of the 8m of the worst-off households in the UK will benefit to the tune of £1,200, made up of support measures including a £650 cost-of-living payment for the poorest, a one-off £300 payment to 8m pensioner households and £150 each to 6m disabled people.And he said that he will double the assistance with energy bills on offer to all households this autumn from £200 to £400 and convert the payment from a loan to a grant.He said that tax breaks for innovation, including a new 80 per cent investment allowance, will ensure that the one-year Energy Profits Levy on North Sea oil and gas giants does not reduce investment in green power.The chancellor’s package was announced in a statement to parliament the day after the publication of Sue Gray’s Partygate report, and was seen by many MPs as an effort to distract attention from demands for Boris Johnson to resign in response.It came just a week after Boris Johnson ordered Conservative MPs to vote down Labour proposals for a windfall tax on the grounds it would hit investment. And it came days after regulator Ofgem said that average bills for gas and electricity can be expected to rise by a further £800 to £2,800 a year in October when the price cap comes up for review.Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves said Mr Sunak’s announcement showed that her party was “winning the battle of ideas”.“This government’s dither and delay is costing the country dearly,” Ms Reeves told the House of Commons. “The chancellor has finally realised the problems the country is facing.”Cost of living: how to get helpThe cost of living crisis has touched every corner of the UK, pushing families to the brink with rising food and fuel prices. The Independent has asked experts to explain small ways you can stretch your money, including managing debt and obtaining items for free. – If you need to access a food bank, find your local council’s website and then use the local authority’s site to locate your nearest centre. – The Trussell Trust, which runs many foodbanks, has a similar tool. – Citizens Advice provides free help to people in need. The organisation can help you find grants or benefits, or advise on rent, debt and budgeting.- If you are experiencing feelings of distress and isolation, or are struggling to cope, The Samaritans offers support; you can speak to someone for free over the phone, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.A former member of the Bank of England’s rate-setting monetary policy committee, Andrew Sentance, said the package was “an emergency budget in all but name,”, but warned he was “not sure it will be enough”, with further action set to be needed in the autumn.Mr Sunak was later due to discuss his package in a live Twitter debate with Money Saving Expert Martin Lewis, who has been harshly critical of the chancellor’s response to rising fuel and food prices.Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said that the package would be more than outweighed for many families by the tax hikes imposed by the chancellor this year.“The chancellor is hammering families with a £800 tax hike this year, more than wiping out what he announced today,” said Davey.“It is the Sunak scam, promising you help but picking your pockets while you’re not looking.“The simplest way to help people right now would be for Rishi Sunak to scrap his unfair tax hikes, starting with VAT. That would put money now back into people’s pockets, boost the economy and support struggling businesses.”The chancellor said that his one-off £650 payment will go to more than 8m low-income households on Universal Credit, Tax Credits, Pension Credit and legacy benefits.Separate one-off payments of £300 will go to all 8m pensioner households entitled to the winter fuel payment, while £150 will go to individuals receiving disability benefits.Mr Sunak also announced a £500m increase for the Household Support Fund, delivered by local councils, bringing its total value to £1.5bn and extending it from October until March 2023.The new package brings the total cost-of-living support provided by the government to £37bn, including a £150 discount on council tax for those in bands A-D.Mr Sunak said the windfall tax was justified by the “extraordinary profits” raked in by oil and gas companies as a result of the spike in commodity prices caused by post-Covid disruption to supply chains and the war in Ukraine. The hike will increase the headline rate of tax payable on profits from 40 to 65 per cent. However, it will not apply to profits made before today, meaning that it will miss the massive earnings reported by energy companies earlier in the year. The temporary levy will cease at the end of 2025, but could be phased out earlier “if oil and gas prices return to historically more normal levels”, said the Treasury.The new Investment Allowance incentivises companies to invest through saving them 91p for every £1 they invest, nearly doubling the tax relief available and meaning the more a company invests, the less tax it will pay.The Treasury is to hold discussions with the electricity generation sector on how consumer prices can be reduced to bring them more closely in line with true production costs. More

The British government was unveiling a package of help on Thursday to ease a severe cost-of-living squeeze, a day after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson vowed to “move on” from months of scandal over parties in government buildings during COVID-19 lockdowns.Treasury chief Rishi Sunak was due to outline new measures including a windfall tax on oil and gas firms’ bumper profits. The 10 billion-pound ($12.5 billion) package is also likely to include a rebate on energy bills for millions of people.A windfall tax would be a U-turn for the Conservative government, which has previously said such a levy would deter investment in the U.K.’s energy sector.Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said a windfall tax would be “totally ridiculous” and would “raise prices for consumers.”But the government is under pressure to act as skyrocketing energy and food bills drive millions in Britain into financial hardship.U.K. inflation hit 9% in April, the highest level in 40 years, and millions of families saw their annual energy bills jump by 54% the same month. amounting to an extra 700 pounds ($863) a year on average for each household. Britain’s energy regulator said this week that domestic energy bills could shoot up again by another 800 pounds a year in the fall, as Russia’s war in Ukraine and rebounding demand after the pandemic push oil and natural gas prices higher.The economic announcement comes as Johnson’s government tries to turn a page after an investigator’s report slammed a culture of rule-breaking inside the prime minister’s No. 10 Downing St. office. Civil service investigator Sue Gray described alcohol-fueled bashes held by Downing Street staff in 2020 and 2021 when U.K. residents were barred from socializing, or even from visiting sick and dying relatives, because of coronavirus restrictions. She said the “senior leadership team” must bear responsibility for “failures of leadership and judgment.”The prime minister said he was “humbled” and took “full responsibility” — but insisted it was now time to “move on” and focus on Britain’s battered economy and the war in Ukraine.Johnson still faces an inquiry by a House of Commons standards committee over whether he lied to Parliament when he insisted no rules had been broken in Downing Street. Ministers who knowingly mislead Parliament are expected to resign.The “partygate” scandal leaves Conservative lawmakers in a quandary: try to topple their leader amid a war and financial crisis, or stick with a prime minister whose perceived willingness to flout rules he applies to others has caused public outrage.Under party rules, a no-confidence vote can be triggered if 15% of party lawmakers — currently 54 — write letters calling for one. If Johnson lost such a vote, he would be replaced as Conservative leader and prime minister. It’s unclear how many letters have been submitted so far, but the number is growing.Two more Tory legislators, John Baron and David Simmonds, called Thursday for Johnson to resign.Baron said Johnson’s previous claim “that there was no rule-breaking is simply not credible,” and therefore he had misled Parliament. More

Boris Johnson’s right-hand man has denied the prime minister is a liar and described him as a man of “honour”.But Labour’s Lisa Nandy said the PM was only “sorry that he got caught”, while the chair of the Commons standards committee Chris Bryant said that Mr Johnson’s response showed him to be “blind to his own failings”.No 10 chief of staff Stephen Barclay said the PM was not aware that a number of events he attended in Downing Street developed into drunken lockdown-breaching parties and was “shocked” to read the details in Sue Gray’s report on Wednesday.The report blasted a “failure of leadership” at No 10 as it set out how officials held “wine-time Friday” events at a time when Britons were ordered to stay at home and avoid social contact. It revealed how they drank until the early hours and listed incidents of revellers vomiting and fighting and being rude to security staff and cleaners who objected.Speaking to Sky News, Mr Barclay agreed it was “heartbreaking” that Britons were unable to say farewell to dying loved ones during lockdown.But he insisted that the situation was not comparable to the prime minister raising a toast to departing colleagues at leaving drinks events in No 10, as the people involved were already working in “tight-knit” groups on the Covid response.After Mr Johnson yesterday resisted calls to resign for misleading parliament, Mr Barclay was asked directly by interviewer Kay Burley: “Does the PM have honour?”He replied: “Yes, he does.”Burley followed up: “Does he tell lies?”Barclay replied: “No, he doesn’t.”Mr Barclay later said he expected Mr Johnson to lead the Conservatives into the next general election, telling LBC radio: “I believe he will.”The Cabinet Office minister said that the most shocking aspect of Ms Gray’s report was the abuse of security and cleaning staff by officials, and confirmed that Mr Johnson was this morning meeting cleaners in No 10 to offer a personal apology.Labour’s Lisa Nandy told BBC1’s Breakfast she was “horrified” by the picture painted by Ms Gray of behaviour in No 10 under Mr Johnson’s stewardship.“It makes very uncomfortable reading,” said the shadow levelling up secretary. “There were celebration parties, leaving parties, garden parties, staff being told to leave by the back door so they weren’t seen drunk. “There were fights,there were people being sick. All of this a culture that the prime minister presided over.“There’s a rot that runs right through all of this, but it’s quite clear from yesterday that the rot starts at the top and what we have is a prime minister who won’t take responsibility and Conservative MPs who largely – with a few exceptions – won’t do the right thing.”Ms Nandy later told BBC1’s Breakfast that Mr Johnson had tried to “pass off responsibility” onto junior members of staff at 10 Downing Street.“He hasn’t resigned, he’s apologised belatedly when he was caught,” she said. “He’s not sorry that he did it. He’s sorry that he was caught. “And meanwhile you have a lot of families around the country who feel utterly humiliated. They feel that they did the right thing and now they wonder heartbreakingly if they did the wrong thing by following the rules that he set, because he told us that we’re all in this together.”Mr Bryant said that the events described in Ms Gray’s report were “morally indefensible” and the prime minister was “blind to his own failings”.“He attended these events, he raised a glass at them, he knew they were happening,” Mr Bryant told Sky News. “This may sound like a very pedantic point, but the rules didn’t say anything about an exemption for work events, they simply said no gatherings were allowed and these were gatherings and he was at them, so he knew what happened.”Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper dismissed as “pathetic” Mr Barclay’s claims that Mr Johnson was unaware of parties in the building where he lives and works.”These pathetic excuses are an insult to the British people who sacrificed so much while Boris Johnson broke the rules,” said Ms Cooper.”It is inconceivable that the prime minister didn’t know what was happening under his nose, with rule-breaking parties organised by his own most senior staff.”If the prime minister was truly sorry and wanted to take full responsibility, he would resign. Conservative MPs should stop  defending the indefensible and finally force Boris Johnson to step down.” More