There’s nothing funny about the Downing Street parties anymore

Our government’s betrayal is beyond a joke

2 years ago

Another day, another document detailing illegal Downing Street parties has leaked. This has happened three times over the last six months – and while we were at one point invested in the memes, jokes and funny Facebook pages to come out of the scandals, no-one seems to be laughing anymore.

The newly-released email stated that staffers were invited to “socially distanced drinks in the No. 10 garden” on 20th May 2020, right in the middle of the first, and longest, lockdown.

This isn’t the first time the glorified public schoolboys have been caught sneaking booze into their dorm. According to former Chief of Staff Dominic Cummings, a party was held in November 2020 at Johnson’s Downing Street flat. If his account is true, the party would’ve been held during the four-week “circuit breaker” lockdown just before Christmas.

New blog: parties, photos, trolleys, variants. The Guardian photo does NOT show a party but there was a rule-breaking drinks on 20 May. MPs shd force publication of plans for variants & other pandemics ASAP to preempt further disasters https://t.co/J3jslbQV9A

— Dominic Cummings (@Dominic2306) January 7, 2022

A second party was then allegedly held on 18th December in the same year, according to Sky News. While people were spending Christmas separated from their families for the first time, our trusty government were organising a secret Santa via WhatsApp.

Which begs the question – how many more of these secret, illegal gatherings have to be leaked until action is taken? Will fines be imposed on people who went to the parties, just like they were on students? The Met Police are reportedly “investigating” the Downing Street lockdown drinks.

Photo via Unsplash before edits

During the circuit breaker lockdown in November 2020, I became so ill with Covid that I wasn’t able to go back to my retail job for six weeks afterwards and ended up suffering from Long Covid. I was isolating in a single room away from my loved ones for days on end, watching my physical and mental health plummet to the ground. Meanwhile, government staffers were spending it playing Christmas quizzes, sipping red wine and snacking on fancy cheeses.

The most tragic thing is that countless people in 2020 suffered an even worse fate. Hannah Brady, a grieving daughter who lost her key worker dad shortly after the May garden party, told Metro: “Those days will stay with me for the rest of my life, just like the families of the 353 people that died that day, my family couldn’t even get a hug from our friends”.

Photo via Unsplash

There aren’t any more memes to be made about this situation. You’d be hard pressed to find a single person who can see the funny side of our government’s betrayal. We can’t let this one slide, not again. The government must be held accountable.