16 other lockdown rallies at No10 and Checkers discovered in Boris Johnson's diaries

Government lawyers have raised concerns over 'potentially problematic' entries in the former prime minister's diary which suggest Covid guidelines may not have been tracked

Boris Johnson's official diary contained entries on meetings in Downing Street and Checkers (

Image: PA)

Boris Johnson's recently unearthed official diaries revealed 16 other gatherings at No10 and Checkers which may have breached lockdown rules, it has been revealed.

Government lawyers raised concerns about “potentially problematic” entries that suggested Covid guidelines may not have been followed.

The Privileges Committee, which investigated whether Mr Johnson misled MPs about Partygate, received the evidence last month.

In his report, he said that on May 18, as his investigation drew to a close, the authorities "provided us with new evidence relating to 16 gatherings at No10 and Checkers".

A government statement, which accompanied the information, read: "As part of their work in preparing Boris Johnson's witness statement for the Covid investigation, the team of lawyers supporting Mr Johnson have identified a number of log entries as potentially problematic.

"These entries are based on an assessment by the government's legal department regarding events/activities that could reasonably be considered to constitute breaches of Covid regulations."

Boris Johnson denied that the gatherings were illegal (

Picture:

PENNSYLVANIA)

Mr. Johnson insisted the gatherings mentioned in the diary entries did not break lockdown rules.

In a statement from the Privileges Committee, the former Prime Minister's lawyers said: "None of the events referred to in the documents constitute a breach of Covid regulations and no one has ever raised any concerns with Mr. Johnson about them."

They later added that "every event was legal" because it was either for business purposes, permitted under the rule of six, took place outdoors, or permitted under the rules for women who are pregnant or need help with childcare.< /p>

As well as providing the diary entries to the Privileges Committee, the Cabinet Office also sent them to the Metropolitan Police and Thames Valley Police.

The 16 gatherings are in addition to the six examined by Pr...