Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer had promised to quit if found to have broken lockdown rules. Getty
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer had promised to quit if found to have broken lockdown rules. Getty
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer had promised to quit if found to have broken lockdown rules. Getty
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer had promised to quit if found to have broken lockdown rules. Getty

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UK

Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner cleared of breaking lockdown rules

Labour leadership duo had promised to quit their roles if found to have broken rules

Tim Stickings
Tim Stickings

July 08, 2022

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Britain's opposition leader Sir Keir Starmer has been cleared of breaking lockdown rules by having a beer and curry with colleagues on a trip to Durham, rescuing his political career after he promised to quit if he was fined.

Police said neither Sir Keir nor his Labour Party deputy Angela Rayner had been penalised after an investigation into their campaign trip in April 2021, when Britain was under partial coronavirus restrictions.

"I’ve always said no rules were broken when I was in Durham," Sir Keir said as he celebrated the verdict. "Honesty and integrity matter. You will always get that from me."

The Durham inquiry had cast a shadow over Sir Keir's leadership even as a far more extensive web of scandal engulfed Prime Minister Boris Johnson and culminated in his resignation on Thursday after a mutiny from his own ministers.

He said: “The contrast between the Tory party, which is tearing itself apart with a cast list of wannabe leaders, they’ve all propped up this Prime Minister for months and months and months knowing he’s unfit for office.

“Contrast that to the Labour Party: We’re united, we want to press on with a plan for Britain, and the change we want is more fundamental than a change at the top of the Conservative Party.

As evidence mounted of rule-breaking at Mr Johnson's office, some of his supporters sought to turn the tables by accusing Sir Keir of a breach by drinking a beer and takeaway curry in an MP's offices, in what became known as "beergate".

England was not under a complete lockdown at the time but indoor social gatherings were banned and police announced an investigation in May.

Labour had maintained that the meal was a necessary part of a work event, but Sir Keir raised the stakes by saying he would set an example and resign if he was reprimanded by police, looking to draw a contrast with Mr Johnson, who had initially soldiered on after similarly being accused and later fined.

Sir Keir's gamble paid off when Durham police said on Friday that there was "no case to answer for a contravention of the regulations ... due to the application of an exception, namely reasonably necessary work".

"Accordingly, Durham Constabulary will not be issuing any fixed penalty notices in respect of the gathering and no further action will be taken," a statement said.

Ms Rayner said: "“We’ve always been clear that no rules were broken in Durham. The police have completed their investigation and agreed, saying that there is no case to answer.

“Integrity matters in politics. The contrast with the behaviour of this disgraced prime minister couldn’t be clearer.”

Boris Johnson became UK prime minister in July 2019, left, and resigned three years later in July 2022, right. Here 'The National' looks back at his colourful time as leader of the country. Getty Images / Reuters
Boris Johnson became UK prime minister in July 2019, left, and resigned three years later in July 2022, right. Here 'The National' looks back at his colourful time as leader of the country. Getty Images / Reuters
Boris Johnson reads a statement outside 10 Downing Street, formally resigning as Conservative Party leader. PA
Boris Johnson reads a statement outside 10 Downing Street, formally resigning as Conservative Party leader. PA
Boris Johnson and his wife Carrie Johnson attend the National Service of Thanksgiving to celebrate the Platinum Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth at St Paul's Cathedral in June 2022. Getty Images
Boris Johnson and his wife Carrie Johnson attend the National Service of Thanksgiving to celebrate the Platinum Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth at St Paul's Cathedral in June 2022. Getty Images
Boris Johnson addresses the media after surviving a confidence vote in his leadership, in June 2022. PA
Boris Johnson addresses the media after surviving a confidence vote in his leadership, in June 2022. PA
Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 Committee of Tory backbenchers, announcing that Mr Johnson had survived a confidence vote in his leadership at the Houses of Parliament in June. PA
Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 Committee of Tory backbenchers, announcing that Mr Johnson had survived a confidence vote in his leadership at the Houses of Parliament in June. PA
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Mr Johnson chats with residents in a Diamond Jubilee-themed room as he makes a constituency visit to Sweetcroft care home in Uxbridge, in May 2022. Getty Images
Boris Johnson reads the findings of the Sue Gray report into gatherings on government premises while Covid-19 restrictions were in place, in his office in No 10, Downing Street in May 2022. Photo: Downing Street
Boris Johnson reads the findings of the Sue Gray report into gatherings on government premises while Covid-19 restrictions were in place, in his office in No 10, Downing Street in May 2022. Photo: Downing Street
An image of a gathering in the Cabinet Room in No 10, Downing Street in June 2020 on the prime minister's birthday was released alongside the Sue Gray report. Photo: Cabinet Office
An image of a gathering in the Cabinet Room in No 10, Downing Street in June 2020 on the prime minister's birthday was released alongside the Sue Gray report. Photo: Cabinet Office
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Boris Johnson with a Mark 3 shoulder launch missile system at Thales weapons manufacturer during a visit to Northern Ireland for talks, in May 2022 in Belfast. Getty Images
Mr Johnson having a turban placed on his head at Gujarat Bio Technology University, during his two-day trip to India in April. Getty Images
Mr Johnson having a turban placed on his head at Gujarat Bio Technology University, during his two-day trip to India in April. Getty Images
Mr Johnson after apologising to MPs for the 'partygate' fine he had received, in the House of Commons in April. AFP
Mr Johnson after apologising to MPs for the 'partygate' fine he had received, in the House of Commons in April. AFP
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Mr Johnson and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy walking in central Kyiv, in April. AFP
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Mr Johnson speaks with officers as he makes a constituency visit to Uxbridge police station in December 2021. Getty Images
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Prince Charles looks on as Boris Johnson attempts to open his umbrella at the National Memorial Arboretum in Stafford, in July 2021. Getty Images
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Mr Johnson with a vial of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 candidate vaccine, known as AZD1222, at Wockhardt's pharmaceutical manufacturing facility, in November 2020, in Wrexham, Wales. Getty Images
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Mr Johnson drills during his visit to Exeter College in September 2020. Getty Images
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Mr Johnson holds crabs caught on the Carvela at Stromness Harbour in July 2020, during a visit to Scotland. Getty Images
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Mr Johnson holds a painting of a ladybird during a visit to The Discovery School in West Malling, in July 2020. Getty Images
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Boris Johnson appears on monitors for a meeting in London. The prime minister chaired the morning update meeting remotely as he was self-isolating after testing positive for Covid-19. Reuters
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Boris Johnson makes a televised address to the nation from inside No 10, Downing Street, with the latest instructions to stay at home to help contain the Covid-19 pandemic, in March 2020. AFP
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Mr Johnson attends the launch of the UK-hosted COP26 Summit at the Science Museum in London, in February 2020. Getty Images
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Mr Johnson is greeted by staff at No 10, Downing Street, after meeting Queen Elizabeth II and accepting her invitation to form a new government in December 2019. PA
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Mr Johnson and his partner Carrie enter Downing Street as the Conservatives celebrate a sweeping election victory in December 2019. Getty Images
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Mr Johnson drives a digger with the words 'Get Brexit Done' inside the digger bucket through a fake wall emblazoned with the word 'GRIDLOCK', during a general election campaign event in December 2019. Getty Images
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Mr Johnson eats pie on the campaign bus in Derby, on the final day of campaigning before the general election in December 2019. Getty Images
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Mr Johnson poses for a photo wearing boxing gloves during a stop on his general election campaign trail in Manchester, in November 2019. Getty Images
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Mr Johnson eats a rock sweet which reads 'Back Boris' during a general election campaign trail stop in Blackpool, in November 2019. Getty Images
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Mr Johnson leads a bull around a pen as he visits Darnford Farm near Aberdeen, Scotland, in September 2019. Getty Images
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Queen Elizabeth welcomes Mr Johnson as the newly elected leader of the Conservative party and invites him to become prime minister and form a new government, at Buckingham Palace in July 2019. Getty Images
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