No10 staff 'partied to 1am and used Boris's son's slide' on eve of Philip's funeral

21 January 2022, 18:33 | Updated: 21 January 2022, 20:34

Downing Street staff partied until 1am the night before Prince Philip's funeral and a photograph of the do has emerged, according to fresh claims.

A picture shows staff, some holding drinks, in No10's basement, and at one point booze got spilled into an office printer, reports the Daily Telegraph - which says it has seen a photo of it. The party is said to have got under way at 6pm and lasted until 1am.

It was also reported that takeaway pizzas were sent to No10, while staff used a slide belonging to Wilfrid, Mr Johnson's son.

Previous reports said the child’s swing had been broken by a reveller.

Downing Street apologised to Buckingham Palace over the party in April last year, which took place in Covid restrictions that forced the Queen to attend her husband's funeral alone.

The revelations come after Foreign Secretary Liz Truss - who has been earmarked as a possible successor should Mr Johnson lose his job - publicly praised the Prime Minister, insisting his work has been "fantastic and excellent" during his time at No10.

When asked by reporters at the Australia-United Kingdom Ministerial Consultations (Aukmin) in Sydney if Boris Johnson's leadership was "tenable", she replied: "The Prime Minister has my 100% support. He is doing an excellent job. Britain was one of the first countries to roll out the Covid vaccine.

"We've had a very successful booster programme. We're now able to open up our economy again in Britain and we've got one of the fastest-growing economies in the G7.

"And the reason that we are here in Australia is working with our very close partners, to advance freedom and democracy around the world, and to protect our country.

"I want the Prime Minister to continue as long as possible in his job. He is doing a fantastic job. There is no leadership election."

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The Foreign Secretary is visiting Australia for the annual 'Aukmin' talks with with country’s defence and foreign ministers along with Defence Secretary Ben Wallace.

Reporters also pressed her on recent partygate allegations to which she replied: "The Prime Minister apologised and said mistakes were made. He is working to open up the economy and deliver for people across Britain and that is what is important… and that is what people are focused on."

It comes after Boris Johnson faces furious backlash after multiple alleged parties are said to have taken place across Whitehall whilst the rest of the nation faced strict lockdown measures.

Senior official Sue Gray is looking into a litany of possible events, including the BYOB garden party that Mr Johnson has admitted he attended - although he insists he understood it to be a "work event" which could "technically" have been within the rules.

The Prime Minister's deputy spokesman said the party before Prince Philip's funeral was a "deeply regrettable" decision.

Earlier this week the PM was hit by the defection of Red Wall MP Christian Wakeford to Labour.

Former Tory MP Mr Wakeford branded the PM "disgraceful" as he announced his decision in the Bury Times and sent a letter to Mr Johnson explaining why he had lost patience with his leadership.

In the letter, Mr Wakeford told Boris Johnson that "you and the Conservative Party as a whole have shown themselves incapable of offering the leadership and government this country deserves".

Her comments come after a stark warning about foreign threats to the UK including from Russia amid concerns President Putin could be planning an invasion in Ukraine.

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"We are seeing increased economic coercion from China, we are seeing increased aggression from Russia, we are seeing Iran in danger of obtaining nuclear capability and we need to work with all of our friends and partners around the world, and Australia is an absolutely crucial ally and friend."

Over 100,000 Russian troops are currently stationed at the Ukraine border but Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov today reiterated Moscow's position that it has "never threatened the Ukrainian people", adding they have no plans to attack.