Boris not fined for BYOB garden do, No10 says as PM vows to still be in the job by October

23 April 2022, 00:04 | Updated: 23 April 2022, 09:24

Boris Johnson has not been fined over attending a BYOB do in the Downing Street garden, No10 says.

He has already paid a fine for a birthday event in the Cabinet Room but reports on Friday said government workers have been fined over the "bring your own booze" event.

The Prime Minister is in a renewed fight to save his job after MPs voted to open an inquiry into whether he misled Parliament over the scandal.

His aides were reportedly worry about further action from the Met over some of the dozen events the Metropolitan Police has been investigating but a No10 spokesperson said he had not been given a fresh fine.

Read more: British embassy in Kyiv to reopen in show of support for Ukraine, PM announces

Mr Johnson has been in India for talks with Narendra Modi, the prime minister there, and told reporters he is confident he will still be in No10 by Diwali in October.

Asked if he was "absolutely sure" he will still by PM by then, Mr Johnson replied: "Yes."

He added that he hopes a deal by India will be completed by then.

'People knew what they were getting' with Boris Johnson

Asked whether he was a "cat with nine lives", Mr Johnson replied: "Talking about cats, we had a pretty good kick of the cat yesterday.

"Not that I'm in favour of kicking cats, for the avoidance of all doubt."

But with impending local elections set to test public confidence in him, some Tories have called for him to go.

Those calls could grow if Mr Johnson is among those fined over the BYOB event in May 2020, when England was under lockdown rules.

Read more: Video of 'hunched, bloated' Putin gripping table sparks questions over his health

If a second fine were to be issued, that would double to £100 from the £50 fine on offer if paid within 14 days.

ITV News reported on Friday that some government staff have been fined over that bash but it was not confirmed if Mr Johnson was among them. Other reports said at least one person had been given a fine.

The PM has previously said he believed "implicitly" the garden do was a work event.

The Met has said it would not provide more updates until after the local elections on May 5.

'The only way the party can stay in power is through good news.'

Mr Johnson sought to deflect from the scandal during his press conference in New Delhi.

"I think that what people want in our country is for the Government to get on and focus on the issues on which we were elected, and that's what we're going to do," he said.

"I think they'll be particularly interested in jobs, growth in the UK - a memorandum of understanding for instance, today, on wind power, gigantic ambitions for more and more wind energy, both of us, not just offshore wind but floating platforms.

"We want to work together to produce substantial quantities of new wind power, which will enable us to produce more energy for our people together in a very short time.

"That strikes me as being a reasonable thing for the Government of the UK to focus on, that is what we are focused on."

MPs nodded through an inquiry into whether Mr Johnson misled Parliament over Partygate this week, which No10 had previously sought to delay.

Labour has called for him to quit and some Tory MPs have withdrawn their support from the PM.