Tory peer quits as justice minister over Downing Street partygate breaches

David Wolfson said there had been a ‘breach of the criminal law’ at No 10.

13 April 2022

A Conservative peer has quit as justice minister over breaches of Covid regulations in Downing Street.

David Wolfson said in a letter to Prime Minister Boris Johnson that he was quitting not only over the events themselves or the PM’s “own conduct”, but also “the official response to what took place”.

Lord Wolfson said he had reached the “inevitable conclusion that there was repeated rule-breaking, and breach of the criminal law, in Downing Street” and that the “scale, context and nature of those breaches” were inconsistent with the rule of law.

It comes after Mr Johnson and Chancellor Rishi Sunak paid fines relating to a birthday party held for the PM in the Cabinet room in No 10 in June 2020.

However, neither politician indicated they would consider resigning over the finding by the Metropolitan Police, instead saying they wanted to get on with the job.