It is alleged that government officials tried to blur Sue Gray’s report at Partygate and pressured her to remove names, according to reports.
Samantha Jones, Permanent Secretary of Number 10, reportedly discussed who should be publicly named in the report with the MS Gray team before publication.
According to The Sunday Times, Ms. Gray was lobbied to make changes Tuesday night by Ms. Jones, Cabinet Secretary Simon Case and Cabinet Permanent Secretary Alex Chiselm.
The report said up to 30 names were planned to be included in the report, but only 15 people were eventually included.
A Whitehall source told the newspaper: “One last attempt was made to convince her on Tuesday night. [Gray] to omit names from the report, but she made it clear that the only way to do that was if they were instructed. “
Some details were also removed from the report, according to The Sunday Times, including references to music played at the “Abba party” in the prime minister’s apartment and the time to leave.
Details of the departure of Hannah Young, personal secretary № 10, have reportedly been removed.
Downing Street categorically denies that any details have been corrected in the report. A source at number 10 said: “It is not true that someone from the political side saw something in advance or wanted to influence it.
A Downing Street official also claims that Ms. Gray was investigating whether two couples were caught having sex at number 10 on the night Dominic Cummings and Lee Kane left in November 2020.
Ms Gray reportedly could not find enough evidence of the alleged incident to include it in the report.
In his report, the senior civil servant said that senior officials, including Boris Johnson, “should be held accountable for this culture.”
She said the public would be “scared” by a series of violations of Covid’s regulations on Downing Street.
“It is also the case that some of their participation in some of these events was allowed given the presence of senior officials. “The top leadership at the center, both politically and officially, must be responsible for this culture,” she added.
Ms. Gray was to investigate Abba’s party, which allegedly took place in the apartment of the Downing Street prime ministers on the night of Lee Kane’s departure.
However, the civil servant said that after the Sofia Police completed the investigation into the collection, it decided it was “not appropriate or proportionate” to continue its own investigation into the incident.
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