London police announced on Tuesday that they would impose 20 fines for breaching anti-COVID rules following their investigation into parties organized in British power circles in the midst of confinement, a scandal which had weakened Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
“We will start today to send 20 notices of fines for breaches of the regulations linked to COCID-19,” Scotland Yard said in a press release without specifying who the persons sanctioned were.
A time considered to be on an ejection seat in January in the face of defections in his majority, the conservative leader seems to have overcome the crisis, especially in the context of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. But the conclusions of the police, who therefore consider that offenses have indeed taken place, could relaunch the case, especially if it were revealed that Mr. Johnson is directly targeted by a fine.
Scotland Yard investigated a dozen gatherings in 2020 and 2021. Prime Minister Boris Johnson is believed to have attended some of them.
The revelations of these sometimes festive events in places of power during the pandemic, when the British were asked to drastically reduce their social interactions to fight against the spread of COVID-19 have shaken the power.
Boris Johnson, whose popularity fell sharply after this scandal, had made his mea culpa before the deputies but ruled out any resignation, relying on the conclusions of the police investigation.
Scotland Yard did not specify the identity of those sanctioned on Tuesday, saying that it was following the rules of professional conduct of the police.
The events concerned were also not specified in order to avoid identifying the perpetrators.
The police have not completed their investigation into this case and have promised to do “everything” to make it progress “rapidly”. Further fines could follow if there is enough evidence of violations, police said.