‘We need the full truth before any new Covid measures are introduced’: Mayor Andy Burnham on No.10 party video

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has launched a blistering attack on the Government over the now-infamous ‘Christmas party’ in Downing Street last year.

At his mayoral press conference on Wednesday afternoon Mr Burnham accused ministers of not being straight with the public about the incident, which the Government has repeatedly insisted did not take place.

He said full transparency and accountability was needed to ensure the public would continue complying with measures to combat Covid-19 and the new Omicron variant and spoke of the corrosive effect on morale from the incident.

Mr Burnham urged residents in the city-region tempted not to bother following Covid rules to do ‘what was right’ for their families, friends and communities and ignore the goings-on in Westminster.

‘The Government has to get a grip of this situation’

Mr Burnham tore into ministers after saying how he had seen first hand the effect the news headlines had had on NHS staff when he went to get his booster vaccination on Wednesday at the centre at the Etihad.

He said it was possible to get the full truth out of the Government about the alleged party and that should happen immediately, together with people losing their jobs if need be.

Mr Burnham said: “The news overnight has had a transparent effect. It has made the job of NHS staff harder and harder.

“I have been in politics a long time and I know that you don’t rehearse lines in a press room if something has not happened.

“We are not being told the full truth and we have to be told everything that is known about what happened. The impression given earlier today was that the prime minister did not know what was going on in Downing Street.

“There is always a full record of what is going on in 10 Downing Street and that should be released. Everything that is known needs to be in the public domain.

“There has to be accountability and if necessary resignations.

“That and only that will get the trust and buy-in back for fighting the pandemic.

“The Government has to get a grip of this situation. The grip has gone at a national level with the whole management of this.”

‘Do as we say, not as we do’

Mr Burnham compared last year’s alleged Christmas meet-up in Downing Street with the festive season Greater Manchester endured in 2020 at the end of months of severe restrictions to combat the coronavirus.

This, he said, made public fury over the current political row extremely understandable.

Then on Wednesday, leaked video footage showed Downing Street staff joking about parties and apparently making light of lockdown measures.

Mr Burnham said he had been unimpressed with Downing Street when dealing with it to try to secure a better deal for the city-region in 2020 alongside other local leaders in hard-hit parts of the north of England.

Mr Burnham said: “So many people sacrificed so much last year, particularly this time last year.

“We had been in restrictions since July, had the whole debate about Tier 3, we were then in a further lockdown in December and it was really hard for people.

“What people are getting from the news now is that at the other end of the country in Downing Street there was an overwhelming sense of: ‘Do as we say, not as we do’.

“My experience working with the other leaders with Downing Street over Tier 3 was that it was obvious that our experience of the pandemic was not theirs. They were not going through what we were going through. That came over very strongly to us at that time.

“I can understand the frustration people will be feeling. People will be casting their minds back to last year and it is inevitable they will be making that contrast.

“It was hard for people to watch the video we saw.”

Further measures being discussed with this incident still raging

The discussion about the alleged Downing Street party comes as further measures are being considered to tackle the Omicron variant.

Mr Burnham said it was vital that the issues swirling around the festive parties were properly addressed before any additional measures against Covid-19 were brought in to ensure people would comply with them.

He said: “We are not being told the full truth at this stage and I don’t believe this can continue if the Government is going to come back and ask more of the public.

“We need to deal with this properly as a precursor to anything that’s announced.

“This whole situation about what went on has to be cleared up before we get to any measures.

“Without that I don’t believe we will get the buy-in, and without restoring public trust and buy-in none of the measures will work anyway.

“The Government needs to carry people along with this and there’s a real risk of them not being able to do that.”

Mr Burnham said whatever measures are brought in over the following days and weeks need to be “clear” and “proportionate”.

He said: “The public gets lost when there is a sense of confusion in the measures, and that needs to be avoided.”

‘Do the right thing for Greater Manchester’

Mr Burnham said that people should continue to follow measures put in place and get their vaccination doses and booster jabs because it would help Greater Manchester respond to Covid-19.

He said: “My message is don’t be distracted and do what’s right for Greater Manchester, for yourself, your friends, families and neighbours, irrespective of what’s going on in Government.”

What has the Government said about the party?

At Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday 8 December, Boris Johnson said he understood people’s fury at the leaked Downing Street video and said he shared that anger, apologising “unreservedly” for “the impression it gives”.

He also said he has been repeatedly told there was no party and no Covid rules were broken.

Mr Johnson said the Cabinet Secretary was looking into the matter.

Allegra Stratton, who at the time was the prime minister’s press secretary and featured in the leaked video, resigned as a Government adviser on Wednesday afternoon.