Kenya’s United Nations Speech On Ukraine Praised For Citing Africa’s Colonial Legacy

Posted on 23/02/2022 by Boris Clair

Martin Kimani used his address at an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to warn Vladimir Putin to respect Russia’s border with Ukraine and highlight the dangers of stoking the “embers of dead empires”.

His remarks came after the Russian president ordered troops into eastern Ukraine – under the fabrication of “peace keeping” – after recognising the independence of two separatist regions, a move criticised globally as a breach of international law.

Kimani said the birth of Kenya and Ukraine’s independence in 1991 after the collapse of the Soviet Union had the “ending of empire” in common.

He said rather than engage in “bloody wars” that would be raging decades later, Africa opted to “settle for the borders that we inherited”, even if there was a “yearning for integration with peoples in neighbouring states”. Kimani added Kenya “rejects such a yearning from being pursued by force” and “we reject it again today”.

A clip of the address, which came hours after Putin had given a rambling speech re-writing the history of eastern Europe, was viewed more than 3 million times from one Twitter feed.

“Kenya and almost every African country was birthed by the ending of empire. Our borders were not of our own drawing. They were drawn in the distant colonial metropoles of London, Paris, and Lisbon with no regard for the ancient nations that they cleaved apart.

“Today, across the border of every single African country live our countrymen, with whom we share deep historical, cultural, and linguistic bonds.

“At independence, had we chosen to pursue states on the basis of ethnic, racial, or religious homogeneity, we would still be waging bloody wars these many decades later. Instead, we agreed that we would settle for the borders that we inherited, but we would still pursue continental political, economic, and legal integration. Rather than form nations that looked ever backwards into history with a dangerous nostalgia, we chose to look forward to a greatness none of our many nations and peoples had ever known.

“We chose to follow the rules of the Organisation of African Unity and the United Nations Charter, not because our borders satisfied us, but because we wanted something greater, forged in peace.

“We believe that all states formed from empires that have collapsed or retreated have many peoples in them yearning for integration with peoples in neighbouring states. This is normal and understandable. After all, who does not want to be joined to their brethren and to make common purpose with them?

“However, Kenya rejects such a yearning from being pursued by force. We must complete our recovery from the embers of dead empires in a way that does not plunge us back into new forms of domination and oppression. We rejected irredentism and expansionism on any basis, including racial, ethnic, religious, or cultural factors. We reject it again today.”

Putin also ordered the deployment of Russian forces to the Donbass region in eastern Ukraine “keep the peace” – though commentators have warned not to be fooled by the language.

Johnson: Putin’s Decision To Recognise Separatist Ukraine States ‘A Very Dark Sign’

Posted on 21/02/2022 by Boris Clair

Boris Johnson has hinted Russia could face fresh sanctions as Vladimir Putin said he would recognise two breakaway republics in Ukraine.

The UK prime minister said the Russian president’s decision to acknowledge Donetsk and Luhansk’s claims to independence was a “very dark sign” that is “plainly in breach of international law”.

On Monday, the Ukraine crisis intensified as Putin used a long speech to recognise the two rebel-controlled regions in eastern Ukraine, which breaches the 2015 protocol that ended the conflict in Donbas.

The comments come amid mounting Western fears that Russia, which has massed an estimated 150,000 troops near Ukraine’s border, is poised to invade.

The move appears to have dashed hopes for a diplomatic breakthrough which had been raised with the possibility of talks between Putin and US president Joe Biden.

Johnson said he was considering whether the actions could trigger the imposition of fresh sanctions on Russia, as foreign secretary Liz Truss said Putin’s actions could not be allowed to go “unpunished”.

At a Downing Street press conference, the PM said: “This is plainly in breach of international law, it’s a flagrant violation of the sovereignty and integrity of Ukraine.

“It is a repudiation of the Minsk process and the Minsk Agreements.

“I think it’s a very ill omen and a very dark sign.”

It was “yet another indication that things are moving in the wrong direction in Ukraine”.

My statement condemning Russia’s recognition of the ‘Donetsk People’s Republic’ and ‘Luhansk People’s Republic’ as independent states 👇 pic.twitter.com/e0y3LNu29X

— Liz Truss (@trussliz) February 21, 2022

The prime minister had previously said sanctions would be triggered if Russia invaded Ukraine.

But he said: “Plainly what has happened is extremely bad news and we will be urgently talking to our friends and allies around the world, all of whom are jointly signed up with us in this package of sanctions.”

Johnson said it was “becoming clear that we are going to need to start applying as much pressure as we possibly can”.

“It is hard to see how this situation improves,” he acknowledged.

But he added: “I think there’s a sort of chance that (Putin) could row back from this, and we’ve got to pray that that’s the case.”

The prime minister said he would speak to Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky to “offer him the support of the United Kingdom”.

Meanwhile, the foreign secretary said the recognition of the Donetsk People’s Republic and the Luhansk People’s Republic as independent states “demonstrates Russia’s decision to choose a path of confrontation over dialogue”.

“We will co-ordinate our response with allies,” she said.

“We will not allow Russia’s violation of its international commitments to go unpunished.”

The government has already promised a tougher sanctions regime to deal with any Russian transgression, with MPs expected to approve the new framework on Tuesday.

Shadow foreign secretary David Lammy said: “This blatant breach of international law must be met with consequences from the international community.”

The European Union announced it would impose sanctions in response to Russia’s recognition of the two states.

In a joint statement, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and European Council president Charles Michel said it was an “illegal act”.

Nato secretary general Jens Stoltenberg said: “This further undermines Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, erodes efforts towards a resolution of the conflict, and violates the Minsk Agreements, to which Russia is a party.”

Earlier defence secretary Ben Wallace has said there was still “strong cause for concern” that Putin remained committed to an invasion of Ukraine, despite diplomatic moves to end the crisis.

In a Commons statement, he said Russian forces were continuing to move towards the border zone contrary to repeated assurances given by Moscow.

There were now more than 110 battalion tactical groups massed along the border while the Black Sea fleet included two amphibious groups and nine cruise missile-equipped ships with a further four cruise missile-capable vessels in the Caspian.

At the same time, he said there had been “a proliferation of false flag operations and propaganda stunts and Russian news outlets carrying fictitious allegations”.

Downing Street said intelligence reports suggested the Russian plan “has in effect already begun” and that it was “starting to play out in real time”.

Nevertheless Johnson’s official spokesman said there was still a “window for diplomacy” after it appeared that a tentative agreement had been reached on a crisis summit between Putin and Biden.

Following a series of lengthy calls involving French president Emmanuel Macron, the White House said talks could go ahead provided there had been no invasion.

However Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said later that while the two leaders could meet if they considered it necessary, no plans for a summit had been agreed.

“It’s premature to talk about specific plans for a summit. The meeting is possible if the leaders consider it feasible,” he said.

Chris Whitty And Patrick Vallance Urge Caution Despite Removal Of Covid Restrictions

Posted on 21/02/2022 by Boris Clair

The UK government’s leading scientific advisors on the Covid pandemic have sounded notes of caution as Boris Johnson released his plan for living with the virus.

England’s chief medical officer professor Sir Chris Whitty and Sir Patrick Vallance, the government’s chief scientific adviser, both used markedly different language to the PM as he announced a rolling back of all legal Covid restrictions within weeks.

In addition, from this Thursday people will no longer have to self-isolate if they test positive for Covid. Currently, the rules state that anyone who has tested positive or has symptoms must isolate for up to 10 days.

At a Downing Street press conference, the scientists were at pains to stress the lifting of restrictions “needs to be a gradual, steady change”, and warned new Covid variants will cause “significant problems”. Whitty even said people should still isolate if they have Covid-19.

But despite the differences in tone, Johnson insisted there was no divide between the “gung-ho politicians and the cautious, anxious scientists”.

Earlier in the Commons, the PM admitted that the “pandemic is not over”, but said he wanted people to take personal responsibility for dealing with the pandemic, rather than relying on government intervention.

At the press conference, Whitty warned high rates of Omicron remain and “I would urge people in terms of public health advice, and this is very much the government’s position, that people should still if they have Covid try to prevent other people getting it and that means self-isolating”.

“So, that is the public health advice. It would have been the public health advice, and will be the public health advice, for multiple other diseases,” he said, describing it as “standard public health advice for a significant and highly transmissible infection”.

Vallance added that “the one thing this virus has taught you, is not to be cocky”, and said Covid will continue to evolve over the next couple of years.

He told the Downing Street news conference that there was no guarantee that future variants would be less severe.

“This pandemic is not over. The virus is continuing to evolve. It will continue to do so quite fast probably for the next couple of years,” he said.

“There is no guarantee that the next variant is as reduced severity as Omicron. As is it evolves what it is trying to do is to transmit more readily.

“The change in severity is a random by-product. We expect there to be further variants and they could be more severe.”

Johnson said there will likely be another variant that will “cause us trouble”.

Speaking at the press conference, he said: “I don’t want you to think that there’s some division between the gung-ho politicians and the cautious, anxious scientists, much as it may suit everybody to say so.

“We have a very clear view of this. This has not gone away. We’re able to make these changes now because of the vaccines and the high level of immunity and all the other considerations about Omicron that you’ve seen.

“But we have to face the fact that there could be, likely will be, another variant that will cause us trouble.

“But I believe that thanks to a lot of the stuff that we’ve done, particularly investment in vaccines and vaccine technology and therapeutics, we’ll be in a far better position to tackle that new variant when it comes.”

Routine contact tracing will also end on Thursday, as will the £500 self-isolation payments and the legal obligation for individuals to tell their employers about their requirement to isolate.

Changes to statutory sick pay and employment support allowance designed to help people through the coronavirus pandemic will end on March 24.

People aged 75 and over, the immunosuppressed and those living in care homes will be offered another Covid-19 booster vaccine this spring under the plans.

But free universal testing will be massively scaled back from April 1 and will instead be focused on the most vulnerable, with the UK Health Security Agency set to determine the details, while asymptomatic testing will continue for social care staff.

But the Department of Health and Social Care will receive no extra money to deliver the testing.

Labour MP Pinpoints Exactly What’s Wrong With No.10’s Levelling Up Agenda In Scathing Video

Posted on 17/02/2022 by Boris Clair

Zarah Sultana took aim at No.10′s heavily-criticised “levelling up agenda” in a scathing new video circulating on Twitter.

Alluding to the cost of living crisis facing Britons at the moment – as inflation has just hit a 30-year high – the Labour MP claimed the government was doing little to alleviate the problem.

With soaring gas and electricity bills, rising interest rates and an upcoming national insurance hike, the treasury promised it would act to help lower-income households.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak then unrolled a support package earlier this month which supposedly enabled 28 million households to get their council tax bills slashed by £150 along with £200 reduction in energy bills.

However, according to Sultana during a clip shared on news outlet Double Down News, Sunak is “taking the piss” by offering only £200 loans even though energy bills are increasing by £700 due to the global squeeze on wholesale gas prices.

Sunak also ignored Labour’s bid to cut the VAT on fuel bills – even though it was marketed as one of the main benefits of leaving the EU.

Moving onto the startling rise in food prices – as outlined by anti-poverty campaigner Jack Monroe – Sultana continued: “This government likes to talk about levelling up when in truth, we currently have over five million children in poverty.

“Last month, over a million adults went a day without eating because they couldn’t afford to put food on the table.

“Don’t believe their lies on levelling up – they’re busy punching down.

“If we think things are bad, they are going to get a whole lot worse.”

Inflation is rising but salaries are not increasing at the same rate, while the head of the bank of England, Andrew Bailey, has even encouraged people not to ask for a pay rise during this cost of living crisis.

Sultana claimed, “things can be done differently, they just take political will,” adding: “The cost of living crisis isn’t inevitable, it isn’t a natural crisis.”

She also proposed taxing wealth over £100 million instead of increasing the national insurance contributions.

Covid Vaccine To Be Given To All Children Aged 5-11 In England, Announces Sajid Javid

Posted on 16/02/2022 by Boris Clair

Children aged five to 11 in England will be offered a Covid vaccine, the government has announced.

It follows advice from the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI).

Sajid Javid, the health secretary, said the vaccine programme will be rolled out to include children in that age group at some point during April.

The decision follows similar moves in Scotland and Wales.

“Children without underlying health conditions are at low risk of serious illness from Covid-19 and the priority remains for the NHS to offer vaccines and boosters to adults and vulnerable young people, as well as to catch-up with other childhood immunisation programmes,” Javid said.

“The NHS will prepare to extend this non-urgent offer to all children during April so parents can, if they want, take up the offer to increase protection against potential future waves of Covid-19 as we learn to live with this virus.”

It is understood precise details of the expansion of the vaccine programme will be set out soon.

The UK medical regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), approved the Pfizer vaccine for use in children five to 11 last year.

The MHRA announced in December that a special “paediatric formulation” of the Pfizer vaccine was safe for use among that group.

They will be offered a much lower dose of the vaccine than what is offered to adults or children aged 12 and over.

Boris Johnson is due next Wednesday to announce the lifting of all domestic Covid rules in England, including the requirement to self-isolate after testing positive.

Javid’s announcement came just hours after Nicola Sturgeon confirmed that Scottish children aged five and over will be offered the vaccine.

She said: “Discussions with health boards on the best way of delivering vaccinations to five- to 11-year-olds have already begun. These will continue and we will provide further information when this approach is finalised. In the meantime, parents and carers of children aged between five and 11 need not do anything.

“This draft advice does not affect children in the five- to 11-year-old age group who have specific medical conditions which place them at greater risk from Covid-19. This group is already being vaccinated.”

Tory Party Chair Oliver Dowden Likens ‘Woke Ideology’ To Maoism In Bizarre Speech

Posted on 14/02/2022 by Boris Clair

Oliver Dowden has likened “social justice warriors” to communist dictator Mao Zedong in an extraordinary attack on so-called cancel culture in the UK and US.

The Tory party chairman and former culture secretary said a “painful woke psychodrama” was sweeping the west and putting individual freedoms at risk.

He made his comments in a speech to the pro-Trump Heritage Foundation think tank in Washington.

Dowden said it was up to conservatives to “mount a vigorous defence of the values of a free society” which he claimed were under threat from “woke ideology”.

And he took aim at left-wing activists whom he accused of being “engaged in a form of Maoism determined to expunge large parts of our past in its entirety”, citing the defacing of a statue of Winston Churchill during protests in 2020.

The Tory party chairman said the “world watches” the relationship between America and its allies as they attempt to prevent Russian president Vladimir Putin from attacking Ukraine.

But Dowden said that just as “rogue states are seeking to challenge the international order…a pernicious ideology is sweeping our societies”.

“In Britain, its adherents sometimes describe themselves as social justice warriors,” he said.

“They claim to be woke, awakened to the so-called truths of our societies.

“But wherever they are found, they pursue a common policy inimicable to freedom.

“In their analysis, free speech is not a fundamental right necessary for the discovery of truth. To them, it is a dangerous weapon.”

He went on: “For all their fury at so called imperialism, these activists have absolutely nothing to say about that Vladimir Putin’s modern day empire building.

“Indeed, one of the perversities of this worldview is that the imperialist West is always at fault.”

Dowden claimed “woke” ideology is now “everywhere”.

“It’s in our universities, but also in our schools. In government bodies, but also in corporations. In social science faculties, but also in the hard sciences,” Dowden said.

“But I tell you, it is a dangerous form of decadence. Just when our attention should be focused on external foes, we seem to have entered this period of extreme introspection and self-criticism.

“And it really does threaten to sap our societies of their own self-confidence.

“Just when we should be showcasing the vitality of our values and the strength of democratic societies, we seem to be willing to abandon those values, for the sake of appeasing a new groupthink.

“The US and the UK may be different societies but we are joined by the same fundamental values.

“Neither of us can afford the luxury of indulging in this painful woke psychodrama.”

Alongside the attack on cancel culture and the culture wars, Dowden also hinted at an end to the big public spending and government interference that characterised the coronavirus response.

“We have reached a high watermark of the size of the state,” he said in a Q&A after his speech.

“We can’t repeat the mistakes we have seen in the past whereby in previous national crises, the state has expanded in scope and then has remained permanently much larger.

“We now need to embark on the course of making sure we rein in the size of the state, which in turn allows us to cut taxes.”

Boris Johnson ‘Fears For The Security Of Europe’ As Tensions Grow Over Potential Russian Invasion Of Ukraine

Posted on 11/02/2022 by Boris Clair

Boris Johnson “fears for the security of Europe” as tensions mount over a potential Russian invasion of Ukraine and British people were urged to leave the country.

The UK prime minister voiced his concern during a call with Western leaders – including US president Joe Biden – as the Foreign Office updated its advice on Friday evening to urge UK nationals to “leave now while commercial means are still available”.

At the same time, Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan said there is the “credible prospect” of an invasion of some sort taking place before the end of the Winter Olympics on February 20.

He said the Russians are in a position to “mount a major military operation in Ukraine any day now”, which could include a “rapid assault on the city of Kyiv” or on other parts of the country.

The warning was echoed by UK defence secretary Ben Wallace, who said warned an invasion could come “at any time”.

Tensions have heightened in the last 24 hours as Russian president Vladimir Putin has now amassed an estimated 130,000 troops on the border with Ukraine.

US national security advisor Jake Sullivan speaks during the daily White House press briefing.

Anna Moneymaker via Getty Images

The Foreign Office followed the US in advising against all travel to Ukraine, with a spokesman saying: “The safety and security of British nationals is our top priority, which is why we have updated our travel advice.

“We urge British nationals in Ukraine to leave now via commercial means while they remain available.”

After Johnson and world leaders held the virtual call, a No 10 spokesperson said: “The prime minister told the group that he feared for the security of Europe in the current circumstances.

“He impressed the need for Nato allies to make it absolutely clear that there will be a heavy package of economic sanctions ready to go, should Russia make the devastating and destructive decision to invade Ukraine.

“The prime minister added that president Putin had to understand that there would be severe penalties that would be extremely damaging to Russia’s economy, and that Allies needed to continue with efforts to reinforce and support the Eastern frontiers of Nato.

“He urged the leaders to work together to deliver economic and defensive support to Ukraine.

“The leaders agreed that if president Putin deescalated, there was another way forward, and they pledged to redouble diplomatic efforts in the coming days.”

Speaking from the White House, Sullivan said Russia could choose “in very short order to commence a major military action against Ukraine” but stressed the US does not know whether Putin has made a final decision.

Moscow denies it is planning an invasion and called the Western military actions provocations meant to bait Russia into war.

But diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis have yet to yield results.

The two countries share a border, and between 1919 and 1991 Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union. Ukraine declared independence from the Soviet Union in the early-1990s but maintained close economic and cultural links with Russia.

Russia has been trying to reunite with its neighbour even since, with Putin calling the break-up of the Soviet bloc the “greatest geopolitical tragedy of the 20th century”.

It’s not entirely clear why Putin is acting now. There’s speculation he may be moving because the US looks weak following the messy evacuation from Afghanistan.

‘Don’t Threaten Police’ – Boris Johnson’s Allies Warned Over Partygate

Posted on 11/02/2022 by Boris Clair

The prime minister’s allies have been warned not to “bully” police investigating Partygate after an extraordinary comment was made in a newspaper.

Senior Tory MPs are among those who urged Boris Johnson to distance himself from the controversial remarks made in The Times.

A source close to the PM apparently said the Met Police will need to be “very certain” that he had broken lockdown rules before issuing him with a fixed penalty notice.

The source added: “There is inevitably a degree of discretion here. Do you want the Met Police deciding who the prime minister is?

“If he does get one, it would be odd if the discretionary action of the police determines the future of the country.”

Sir Bob Neill, Tory chair of the Commons justice committee, hit back: “It is completely inappropriate to suggest that there should be any special treatment for anyone involved in these inquiries and any suggestion of political pressure on the police is completely reprehensible. No.10 would do well to disown it.”

The SNP’s Westminster leader Ian Blackford said: “The prime minister must distance himself from this extraordinary threat to the police. No-one is above the law, not even Boris Johnson – no matter what he might believe.”

Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey added: “This veiled threat by Number 10 allies is amongst very heavy competition perhaps the darkest moment of this whole sorry saga.”

Meanwhile, the PM’s former chief aide turned critic Dominic Cummings tweeted: “Tory MPs are propping up a guy not just trying to fix illegal donations etc but trying to bully cops into treating him differently.”

Adam Wagner, a human rights barrister and expert in Covid regulations, stressed that the legal test is that the police “reasonably believe” someone has committed an offence before issuing an FPN.

“This will be the same regardless of how important the person is — this is the rule of law,” he added.

The Metropolitan Police Service is investigating 12 alleged Covid-rule breaking gatherings held in Downing Street and Whitehall during the pandemic.

Among them are parties Johnson is understood to have attended as well as a separate bash held in his Downing Street flat.

Police said they need to contact “each individual” who attended the events – which means both the PM and his wife Carrie could face interviews.

Detectives investigating the alleged rule-breaking parties are due to contact more than 50 attendees this week.

Officers will send formal questionnaires to those individuals over events that took place between May 20 2020 and April 16 2021.

Anyone found to have breached Covid rules without a reasonable excuse could be issued with an FPN.

The prime minister has so far refused to confirm he would quit if police rule he broke lockdown laws

A spokeswoman told the Mail: “This government has always backed the police and fully respects their complete independence to carry out inquiries without fear or favour.”

Cressida Dick Forced Out As Metropolitan Police Chief

Posted on 10/02/2022 by Boris Clair

Metropolitan Police commissioner Dame Cressida Dick has been forced out as head of the force after a series of controversies.

The under-fire police chief said earlier in the day she had “absolutely no intention of going”, but later admitted the mayor of London Sadiq Khan “no longer has sufficient confidence in my leadership to continue”.

In a statement, she made clear her resignation followed a meeting with the mayor which “left me no choice but to step aside”.

Dick’s leadership has been dogged by a series of scandals, including the murder of Sarah Everard by serving officer Wayne Couzens and racist, misogynist and homophobic messages exchanged by officers shared by officers at Charing Cross police station.

In a statement, Khan, said: “Last week, I made clear to the Metropolitan Police commissioner the scale of the change I believe is urgently required to rebuild the trust and confidence of Londoners in the Met and to root out the racism, sexism, homophobia, bullying, discrimination and misogyny that still exists.

“I am not satisfied with the commissioner’s response.

“On being informed of this, Dame Cressida Dick has said she will be standing aside. It’s clear that the only way to start to deliver the scale of the change required is to have new leadership right at the top of the Metropolitan Police.

“I would like to thank Dame Cressida Dick for her 40 years of dedicated public service, with the vast majority spent at the Met where she was the first woman to become Commissioner. In particular, I commend her for the recent work in helping us to bring down violent crime in London – although of course there is more to do.

“I want to put on the record again that there are thousands of incredibly brave and decent police officers at the Met who go above and beyond every day to help keep us safe, and we owe them a huge debt of gratitude.

“I will now work closely with the home secretary on the appointment of a new commissioner so that we can move quickly to restore trust in the capital’s police service while keeping London safe.”

In a statement, Dick said: “It is with huge sadness that following contact with the Mayor of London today, it is clear that the Mayor no longer has sufficient confidence in my leadership to continue.

“He has left me no choice but to step aside as commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Service.”

Hours earlier, when asked by the BBC if she should step down she said: “I have absolutely no intention of going and I believe that I am and have been, actually for the last five years, leading a real transformation in the Met.”

This is a breaking news story and will be updated. Follow HuffPost UK on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Nadine Dorries Says She Would Only Stop Supporting Boris Johnson If He ‘Kicked A Dog’

Posted on 10/02/2022 by Boris Clair

Nadine Dorries has spelled out how far her loyalty to Boris Johnson goes as she defended the prime minister over leaked photos of a Christmas party during lockdown.

The culture secretary has developed a reputation for robustly supporting the under-fire PM against any critics since she became a cabinet minister in September.

Last week, a still from PMQs of Dorries staring at Johnson – smiling – quickly became a meme.

Now, in an interview with US broadcaster CNN, Dorries made clear there would be little Johnson could do to shake her off.

When asked if there was any situation which would cause her to withdraw her support of him, Dorries replied: “Well, of course there are. If he went up and, you know, kicked a dog, I’d probably withdraw my support for him, but no, based on his professional delivery for the UK, no, absolutely not.”

Of the leaked photos of him taking part in a quiz with champagne and tinsel during lockdown, she added: “What I would say on the food, it was an open packet of crisps, it was Christmas, it was a Zoom quiz with the wider staff. So, I mean, basically that’s all I’ve got to say on it. I’m not sure who didn’t do a Zoom quiz during lockdown with an open pocket of crisps.”

It’s the latest bizarre contortion from a Tory MP in an effort to defend their leader.

Junior minister Conor Burns claimed Johnson was effectively “ambushed by cake”, and therefore his alleged rule-breaking birthday party was not his fault.

And backbencher Adam Rosindell compared partygate to robbing a bank in an odd exchange on Sky News.

Rosindell described so-called “cakegate” as a “frenzy”, and said: “He’s made a mistake, no question about that, we all do.”

He continued: “I think we’ve all done it, let’s not be so judgemental that the prime minister of the United Kingdom has not committed some horrendous, terrible crime the deserves the entire government to be derailed.”

Sky News’ Kay Burley replied: “And you’re confident that it’s OK for the prime minister who makes the rules to break the rules and thus break the law – that’s OK?”

“No it’s not – you know I’m sure there are ministers who get parking tickets and speeding fines too,” Rosindell said.

“Anyway, lots of people break the law in small ways, sometimes unintentionally.

“He’s not robbed a bank.”

The Metropolitan Police is currently investigating 12 alleged parties, and may launch a formal probe into another after the new image emerged of Johnson taking part in a Christmas quiz on December 15, 2020.

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