Minister defends officials over Johnson police referral

The justness caput has defended officials who passed worldly to the constabulary relating to Boris Johnson implicit imaginable regularisation breaches during Covid.

Civil servants referred accusation to 2 constabulary forces aft reviewing the erstwhile PM's authoritative diary.

Alex Chalk said officials would person been criticised if they had "sat on" the information.

Mr Johnson's spokesperson said it was "totally untrue" determination had been immoderate further breaches of Covid rules.

The Cabinet Office said officials had been obliged to disclose the documents to the constabulary nether civilian work rules.

The Times, which archetypal reported the story, says Mr Johnson has been referred to Thames Valley constabulary due to the fact that his ministerial diary revealed visits by household and friends to Chequers - the premier minister's state location successful Buckinghamshire - during the pandemic.

Mr Johnson's diary was being considered by lawyers "so that worldly tin beryllium provided" to the Covid inquiry, Mr Chalk told BBC Radio Gloucestershire.

Lawyers "saw worldly that they had a interest about", Mr Chalk said.

This was past passed to civilian servants, who successful crook referred it to constabulary "without immoderate engagement with ministers", Mr Chalk added.

He said: "If they had sat connected it past radical would person criticised them for that - if they had passed it on, others would criticise.

"They person been enactment successful a rather a hard presumption and yet it comes down to what is successful the documents, which I haven't seen."

The BBC understands Mr Johnson has had nary interaction from the police.

The spokesperson for the erstwhile premier curate said: "The events successful question were each wrong the rules either due to the fact that they were held outdoors oregon came wrong different lawful exception.

"They see regular meetings with civilian servants and advisers.

"It appears immoderate wrong authorities person decided to marque unfounded suggestions some to the constabulary and to the Privileges Committee - galore volition reason that this has each the hallmarks of yet different politically motivated stitch-up."

The spokesperson said Mr Johnson's lawyers had written to the Cabinet Office, arsenic good arsenic the Commons Privileges Committee, "explaining that the events were lawful and were not breaches of immoderate Covid regulations".

Thames Valley Police said it had "received a study of imaginable breaches of the Health Protection Regulations betwixt June 2020 and May 2021 astatine Chequers, Buckinghamshire".

The Met Police released a akin connection but said their accusation related to imaginable breaches successful Downing Street.

The caller findings person besides been passed to the Commons Privileges Committee, which is investigating whether Mr Johnson misled Parliament implicit Covid rule-breaking events successful authorities buildings.

Mr Johnson resigned arsenic premier curate past July, successful portion owed to nationalist choler implicit revelations helium broke Covid lockdown rules.

And, successful May 2022, a study by then-senior civilian servant Sue Gray acceptable retired a bid of societal events held by unit successful Downing Street which broke the rules.