This is our all-night story about Johnson, his wife Carrie, and Ricky Sunak, the chancellor, who were fined for lockdown violations – and paid for them – yesterday. Grand Saps, the secretary of transport and one of the top media interpreters in the cabinet, had the awkward job of defending Johnson in the media this morning. His argument was that Johnson made a mistake, but that he was just a human being, was not intentional and that he was really sorry. He told Sky News: The only thing I know – and I talked to the Prime Minister – is that he is completely disappointed with what is happening… He did not knowingly break the law. He did not do it on purpose. He did not come to parliament and he did it knowingly. He actually thought that the same people who wished him happy birthday, with whom he had already met earlier that day, were not breaking the law. The police have a different view. He fully accepts it and has paid the fine … The question I guess your question goes to his heart, you know, he intended to do that? Was it something that was done with malice, with intent? And the answer, of course, is no. It’s something that happened by mistake, and as I said, I spoke to him, he’s incredibly embarrassed about the whole thing. He knows he was stupid, defenseless. But he did not intend to break the law, and has paid the fine of the predetermined penalty and has a lot of work to do. I will post more of Shapps interviews soon. Yesterday, Tory MPs did not demand Johnson’s resignation. Today we will see if this will change. Parliament is not sitting and many MPs are on holiday, but there is a campaign event in Scotland where Ruth Davidson, the former leader of the Scots Tories, and Douglas Ross, now, are appearing together. Davidson wants Johnson to resign, but Ross does not, so disciplining the messages can be difficult. Otherwise, all we are waiting for is an update from Michael Gove, the rising secretary, on his plans to force the housing industry to finance the removal of bad investments from apartments. I try to watch the comments below the line (BTL) but it is impossible to read them all. If you have a direct question, include “Andrew” somewhere and I will be more likely to find it. I’m trying to answer questions and if it is of general interest, I will post the question and answer over the line (ATL), although I can not promise to do it for everyone. If you want to get my attention quickly, it’s probably best to use Twitter. I’m at @AndrewSparrow. Alternatively, you can email me at [email protected]
