Partygate: The texts and emails that show No 10 knew they were flouting lockdown rules

A top Downing Street official told a colleague that he and his staff had “got away with it” after throwing a “bring your own booze” (BYOB) party at the height of lockdown, the Partygate report has revealed.

The 37-page document, produced by senior civil servant Sue Gray, was published on Wednesday morning, laying bare the details of booze-fuelled gatherings in No 10 and Whitehall.

At one event, a staff member threw up after drinking “excessive amounts” of alcohol, and two others were involved in a “minor altercation”.

Gray laid the blame for the culture of rule-breaking at the feet of “senior leadership” in Boris Johnson’s government and team.

“The events that I investigated were attended by leaders in government. Many of these events should not have been allowed to happen,” she said.

Gray’s report included emails and WhatsApp messages sent by Johnson’s most senior staff member explicitly referring to the fact that rules were knowingly being broken.

A number of the messages involve Martin Reynolds, who was the prime ministers’ principal private secretary.