British prime minister apologizes for attending lockdown party
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson apologized Wednesday for attending a party during England's strict lockdown in 2020.
It was the first time that Johnson acknowledged he went to a garden party at his official residence and office on London's Downing Street in May 2020. He is facing growing anger and calls for his resignation over claims he and his staff flouted COVID-19 restrictions by holding a "bring your own booze" party. At the time, Johnson's government had imposed restrictions barring people in England from meeting more than one individual outside their household.
![PHOTO: Demonstrators hold placards as they protest near the House of Commons, where Britain's Prime Minister was taking part in the weekly session of Prime Minister Questions in central London, Jan. 12, 2022.](https://s.abcnews.com/images/International/boris-protest-gty-ps-220112_1641996242657_hpEmbed_23x15_992.jpg)
During the weekly Prime Minister’s Questions session in the House of Commons in London on Wednesday, Johnson said he had considered the garden party to be a work event to thank his staff for their efforts during the pandemic.
"I want to apologize," Johnson told lawmakers. "With hindsight, I should have sent everyone back inside."
The prime minister urged people to await "the full conclusion" of an investigation by senior civil servant Sue Gray into several alleged parties by government staff. Gray will report her findings by the end of the month.
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Opposition Labour Party leader Keir Starmer said Johnson's defense was "the pathetic spectacle of a man who has run out of road" and demanded he "do the decent thing and resign."
The prime minister declined to resign and didn't explicitly admit that he had broken any rules, but said he understood "the rage."
"I know that millions of people across this country have made extraordinary sacrifices over the past 18 months," he added. "I understand the anger, the rage that they feel at the thought that people in Downing Street were not following those rules."
-ABC News' Guy Davies, Ian Pannell and Joseph Simonetti