Partygate: What video of Tory staff partying during COVID means for Rishi Sunak and the Conservatives

A new video appearing to show Tory Party staff dancing and joking about COVID restrictions at a Christmas party during the height of the pandemic has added to the ongoing 'Partygate' controversy.

The video, obtained by The Mirror, shows a man and woman holding hands and dancing, while someone else says: "As long as we don't stream that we're, like, bending the rules."

The gathering took place at Conservative Party headquarters on 14 December 2020, when socialising indoors was banned as part of COVID rules.

At least 24 people are believed to have been at the party, including two names on Boris Johnson's resignation honours list.

On Sunday, levelling up secretary Michael Gove described the video as "terrible", telling Sky News's Sophy Ridge on Sunday show: "I want to apologise to everyone who, looking at that... will think these people are flouting the rules designed to protect us all."

Gove said the video was "unacceptable" but it would not be right for him to say whether police should investigate.

The video is the latest chapter in the ongoing Partygate controversy. Here's everything you need to know about the long-running saga and what it means for UK politics.

What does 'Partygate' actually mean?

Partygate refers to a series of allegations of gatherings and parties that took place in Downing Street and various other government locations during the COVID lockdowns in 2020 – breaking rules that prevented people from socialising.

Many of the events took place in the run-up to Christmas that year, though some also took place at other times.

They were attended by a range of people within government, including civil servants and special advisers.

Why is the new Partygate video important?

The party that features in the video had previously come to light when photos emerged of it last year, but police did not investigate, citing a lack of evidence.

But the footage shows the nature of the celebrations at Conservative HQ, and the images of people dancing together, along with comments mocking the rules the rest of the nation was following, is likely to cause further distress and anger among bereaved relatives.

It will also giving further ammunition to Johnson's critics and the Tories' opponents.

Watch: Sunak told to 'stand up to Johnson' and make him pay back Partygate legal fees

The video's publication comes in the same week the former prime minister was found to have misled parliament over so-called 'Partygate'.

The privileges committee found that Johnson deliberately misled the House when he denied Partygate rumours and found his behaviour equated to an "attack on our democratic institutions".

Johnson has dismissed the committee's report as "a lie", saying the Metropolitan Police had investigated and found he was not involved in rule-breaking – apart from the "so-called birthday party, when I and the then-chancellor Rishi Sunak were fined in circumstances that I still find puzzling".

The footage also comes as the COVID inquiry got under way last Tuesday. It is looking at various aspects around the pandemic – including the use of lockdowns – and will undoubtedly involve questions over the government's use of them.

What does the latest Partygate video mean for Rishi Sunak and the Conservatives?

The new footage will exacerbate a number of ongoing issues for Sunak, who is already dealing with the fallout of the privileges committee's report.

The publication of the report sparked in-fighting with Johnson ally Nadine Dorries saying Tory MPs who backed the report were "fundamentally not" Conservative and would be "held to account".

But other reports suggested that Johnson had told his supporters not to vote against the report.

The committee's report has also seen the former prime minister take aim at the committee's members, including Sir Bernard Jenkin, who he urged to resign following a report that the MP went to a drinks party in parliament while COVID restrictions were in place in 2020.

The Metropolitan Police said it had received a "third-party report following media reporting" about the alleged breach and "the information is being assessed" but added there was no investigation and officers had not been in contact with the Speaker's Office about the matter.

Read more: Met Police 'not investigating' claims north Essex MP Sir Bernard breached Covid rules

The latest Partygate video has prompted criticism of the Conservatives in general as well as Sunak, with Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner saying it showed that the Tories "openly mocked the rules the British people followed".

Rayner said: "Revellers at this lockdown Tory booze-up openly mocked the rules the British people followed. The Tories think it's one rule for them and one rule for everyone else.

"Instead of forcing them to face the consequences, Rishi Sunak has caved into Boris Johnson's demands and chosen to reward them with honours. It's a sickening insult.

"This prime minister is failing to deliver the integrity he promised and showing he's too weak to turn the page on 13 years of Tory scandal."

Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper said: "Conservative MPs and ministers should be sick to their stomachs seeing this new Partygate footage.

"While families grieved and NHS staff worked on the front line, Conservative campaign headquarters partied.

"What’s worse is the current prime minister granted Boris Johnson’s request to give some of these people honours.

"There are thousands of families out there who deserve an apology for this scandal – Rishi Sunak should give them one immediately."

What have the Conservatives said about the video?

Appearing on Sky’s Sophy Ridge on Sunday show, levelling up secretary Michael Gove apologised to one voter’s negative reaction to the video, saying: "Sorry, I can’t imagine what it must have been like for Paul on that day. I think if any member of your family is undergoing major surgery it’s undoubtedly traumatic.

“The fact that this was happening at the height of the pandemic when the virus was spreading and people were observing significant rules in order to make sure they protected others. The fact that this party went ahead is indefensible. The people who were there I’m sure feel contrite, I certainly hope they do.

“As I say there was a previous investigation into this and we now know more about it, but I can only say to Paul that I’m very, very sorry that there were people who were working in government very hard on his behalf, not all of whom on every occasion will have made the right decision in policy terms, but all of the time we were thinking about how we could help Paul and others.

“There’s a COVID inquiry ongoing at the moment which will look at the decisions that government made. I think one of the most important things that all of us can do is to look back at the decisions that government made and make sure that we’re better prepared if a future pandemic comes along, but for Paul and for others who are grieving, who suffered and who lost relatives or whose only family had to endure these rules, I can only apologise.”