Johnson, who previously told MPs no parties had occurred on the day when the photos were taken, is facing fresh allegations that he misled Parliament.
Downing Street didn’t comment on the photos, instead, it said Johnson “will address Parliament in full” when the Sue Gray report is published.
Eight people, including Johnson, could be seen in the photos, with bottles of alcohol and party food on the table.
Johnson was not fined by the Met over this event or any other event on the day, when Johnson’s former aide Dominic Cummings’ also left, but at least one other individual did. The Met declined to say what the offending event was. It also declined to explain why the prime minister was not fined over the leaving party.
Asked if there had been a party on the day, Johnson told Parliament on Dec. 8, 2021, “No, but I am sure that whatever happened, the guidance was followed and the rules were followed at all times.”
In light of the newly emerged photos, Deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner said “there’s no doubt now” that Johnson had “lied.”
Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper urged the Independent Office for Police Conduct to investigate why the Met did not fine Johnson over the leaving party.
According to the London Mayor’s office, Labour Mayor Sadiq Khan has written to the force on Tuesday seeking a “detailed explanation of the factors which were taken into account by investigating officers when decisions were made about whether to take action in individual cases in the Downing Street ‘partygate’ investigation.”
“The mayor has been clear he cannot and would not intervene in operational decisions, however with the investigation now complete, he has made this request in accordance with the Policing Protocol Order 2011 paragraph 23(g),” a spokeswoman for Khan said.
Criticisms also came from Conservative backbenchers on Tuesday, with Sir Roger Gale saying he believes Johnson had misled Parliament.
“That is a resignation issue,” Gale wrote on Twitter. “I have made my own position clear. It is now a matter for my Conservative parliamentary colleagues to decide whether or not to instigate a vote of no confidence.”
Speaking to a number of media outlets on Tuesday, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps defended the prime minister, saying he had merely “gone by to say thanks and raise a glass to a colleague who was leaving.”
“I see his red box is there, which is his work box, it looks to me like he goes down on his way out of the office and thanks the staff and raises a glass, and doesn’t in his mind recognise it as a party,” Shapps told Sky News. “And indeed the police have looked into this and spent a lot of time and resources.”
A Downing Street spokeswoman said: “The Cabinet Office and the Met Police have had access to all information relevant to their investigations, including photographs.
“The Met have concluded their investigation and Sue Gray will publish her report in the coming days, at which point the Prime Minister will address Parliament in full.”
The images emerged after Downing Street admitted it did instigate a meeting between Gray and the prime minister during the run-up to the much-anticipated publication of her partygate inquiry.
Treasury minister Simon Clarke had insisted on Monday morning that it was the senior civil servant who “instigated” the meeting in the weeks leading up to her widely anticipated report into lockdown breaches in Downing Street.
But hours later Downing Street admitted it was “No 10 officials” who had requested the meeting earlier this month so that the prime minister could discuss the “timings and publication process.”
No 10 also insisted Johnson did not support allegations attributed to his allies that Gray had been “playing politics” ahead of her report.
