Home Business NewsHigh Court reject permission for a legal challenge against the Met Police over their probe into Partygate

High Court reject permission for a legal challenge against the Met Police over their probe into Partygate

by LLB Reporter
22nd Feb 23 3:07 pm

Aย legal challenge against the Metropolitan Policeโ€™s investigation into Boris Johnsonโ€™s attendance at lockdown parties was heard in the High Court on Wednesday.

The action had been brought by the Good Law Project and a former Deputy Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, Lord Paddick.

Boris Johnson was issued with a ยฃ50 Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN), after the Met Policeโ€™s probe concluded that he had unlawfully attended a birthday party thrown in his honour at Downing Street during the first lockdown.

Director of Good Law Project, Jo Maugham, said, “We canโ€™t understand โ€“ and the Met wonโ€™t disclose โ€“ how Boris Johnson dodged fines for going to parties that junior civil servants were fined for attending. But what it looks like is special treatment for the powerful.”

The High Court rejected permission in their ruling on Wednesday that a legal challenge brought by Good Law Project and former Deputy Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, Lord Paddick, can go ahead.

Maugham added, โ€œWe are disappointed – but sadly not surprised.

โ€œWe think this decision ignores the quite proper questions that people have about what they understandably perceive to be differences of treatment between the powerful and the rest of us.

โ€œIt canโ€™t be one rule for those in power and another rule for us.

“We are considering whether to appeal.”

On Tuesday the Good Law Project said, โ€œThis case focuses on the Met Policeโ€™s failure to even send questionnaires โ€“ their primary method of investigating Partygate events โ€“ to former Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, regarding two other lockdown gatherings that he attended in November and December 2020. A number of civil servants and officials who took part in these events were sent questionnaires and ultimately fined.

โ€œIn pre-action correspondence, the Met failed to explain why Mr Johnson was not sent the questionnaires, or how they concluded that his attendance โ€“ unlike that of other attendees โ€“ was lawful.โ€

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