By Becky Morton
Political reporter
Boris Johnson will no longer work with government-appointed lawyers for the Covid inquiry, after he was referred to the police over further potential rule breaches during the pandemic.
Allies of the former PM said he had lost all confidence in the Cabinet Office, which handed over the material.
The Cabinet Office said officials had been obliged to disclose the documents under civil service rules.
No 10 said neither ministers nor the PM were involved in the decision.
Mr Johnson was said to be “livid” that the material was passed to the police and had lost confidence in the objectivity of the leadership at the Cabinet Office – both ministerial and official.
He will now appoint new lawyers to represent him at the inquiry, which will be funded by the taxpayer.
Meanwhile, a row has erupted between the Covid inquiry and the Cabinet Office over the release of Mr Johnson’s WhatsApp messages and diary entries, according to newly released documents.
Crossbench peer Baroness Hallett, the inquiry’s chairwoman, demanded the Cabinet Office hand over unredacted material, saying a failure to do so would be a criminal offence.
But the Cabinet Office has challenged the application, saying some of the material was “unambiguously irrelevant” to the inquiry.
Image source, Cabinet Office/ PA
Both Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak were fined for attending a birthday party in Downing Street
Civil servants referred information to two police forces after reviewing Mr Johnson’s official diary as part of documents to be submitted to the public inquiry into the government’s handling of the pandemic, which is due to begin hearings next month.
The Times, which first reported the story, says Mr Johnson has been referred to Thames Valley police because his ministerial diary revealed visits by family and friends to Chequers – the prime minister’s country house in Buckinghamshire – during the pandemic.
But a spokesman for Mr Johnson has dismissed any claims of rule breaches as a “politically motivated stich-up”.
“The events in question were all within the rules either because they were held outdoors or came within another lawful exception,” the spokesman said.
Thames Valley Police said it had “received a report of potential breaches of the Health Protection Regulations between June 2020 and May 2021 at Chequers, Buckinghamshire”.
The Met Police released a similar statement but said their information related to potential breaches in Downing Street.
Both forces say they are assessing the information received but it is understood Mr Johnson has had no contact from the police.
