Boris Johnson taking family time as wife Carrie welcomes baby girl at London hospital

Prime Minister Boris Johnson plans to take time with his family after his wife Carrie welcomed a healthy baby girl.

The baby girl was born on Thursday morning.

The couple were seen walking into a London hospital at 7.40am flanked by two police officers.

They entered via a side entrance with Mrs Johnson carrying an overnight bag.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the couple said they were “delighted”.

“The Prime Minister and Mrs Johnson are delighted to announce the birth of a healthy baby girl at a London hospital earlier today,” the statement said.

“Both mother and daughter are doing very well. The couple would like to thank the brilliant NHS maternity team for all their care and support.”

Mr Johnson was present with his wife throughout the birth, it is understood, but will not be taking paternity leave.

A spokesman for the PM said: “You expect the prime minister to take some time with his family. As ever, he is going to balance that with his responsibilities as prime minister and leading the country as you would expect him to do.

He added: “[Mr Johnson] has a unique responsibility as prime minister and will continue to meet those duties.”

The birth comes amid a tumultuous week for the prime minister who has come under fire after the Daily Mirror revealed that a two Christmas parties were held at Downing Street while London was under lockdown restrictions.

Since the story broke, a video of the Prime Minister’s then press secretary Allegra Stratton was leaked in which she is shown joking about how to describe the Christmas party at a mock press conference.

Ms Stratton resigned on Wednesday, delivering a tearful statement to media outside her home in which she said she would “regret the remarks for the rest of my days”.

The Conservatives have now confirmed an event organised by Shaun Bailey’s failed London mayoral campaign took place in the party’s Westminster headquarters on December 14 while the capital was in Tier 2 restrictions.

According to the Times, the “raucous” party took place in the HQ’s basement, was attended by No 10 aides and featured dancing and wine-drinking into the early hours despite indoor social mixing being banned at the time.

An investigation has been launched into the claims that the Christmas celebrations broke lockdown rules.

Sir Keir Starmer was among those to wish the couple well: “Congratulations to Carrie and Boris Johnson on the birth of their daughter. Wishing your family health and happiness.”

Mr and Mrs Johnson were married in a private ceremony at Westminster Cathedral in May and announced they were expecting their second child together in July.

They welcomed their first child, a boy named Wilfred, in April last year.

Mrs Johnson, 33, had previously spoken candidly about how she had suffered a miscarriage at the start of this year.

Writing on Instagram, she said the experience left her “heartbroken”.

“I feel incredibly blessed to be pregnant again,” she wrote.

“But I’ve also felt like a bag of nerves.

“Fertility issues can be really hard for many people, particularly when on platforms like Instagram it can look like everything is only ever going well.

“I found it a real comfort to hear from people who had also experienced loss so I hope that in some very small way sharing this might help others too.”

Mrs Johnson has also campaigned for pregnant women to get the Covid vaccine.

The baby girl is the Prime Minister’s seventh child - though it is speculated that Mr Johnson may have more children. He has often avoided questions on his private life in the past.

In an interview with NBC on a trip to New York, Mr Johnson said for the first time he has six children - from three different relationships.

As well as his two with Mrs Johnson, the prime minister has four children with his second wife Marina Wheeler and a daughter from an affair in 2009 with journalist and art critic Helen Macintyre.

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