Britain’s omicron cases soar as new lockdown party allegations at Boris Johnson’s residence come to light

Coronavirus cases are surging, especially in London, where Mayor Sadiq Khan declared an emergency amid fears that so many essential workers will become infected and need to isolate that health and security services may be threatened.

Meanwhile, Johnson finds himself at the center of another mini-scandal. The Guardian newspaper on Sunday published a photograph depicting a “wine-and-cheese party” in the garden of Downing Street. Bottles and glasses can clearly be seen — and so can Johnson and his wife Carrie, alongside 17 other attendees.

The Guardian reported that the outdoor affair took on May 15, 2020, when gatherings of more than two people were banned in outdoor public places.

A spokesman for Downing Street said no lockdown rules were broken, that the garden was a private not a public place, and that this was not a party, but a “work meeting,” which was deemed “essential.”

Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab told BBC, “I know how hard that Number 10 team were working, as the hub, the fulcrum of the crisis response. I think there’s a lot of exhausted people, and they, as people do in work, were having a drink after the formal business had been done.”

The leader of the opposition Labour Party, Keir Starmer called Raab’s claim “a stretch” and reminded the country that in May 2020 many people who followed the rules were unable to attend funerals of loved ones.

The latest photograph follows a string of other recent setbacks and embarrassments, including mock news conference that saw a chief spokeswoman making light of alleged violations of lockdown measures by Downing Street staff during Christmas 2020.

Johnson has denied that any rules were broken, but under pressure from his own Conservative Party, he ordered an internal inquiry by Britain’s top civil servant, Simon Case.

Soon after, Case was forced to recuse himself from the probe following reports that a gathering was held in his own office around the same time.

In London, shopping streets saw smaller crowds over the weekend, while pub and restaurant owners complained of a flood of party cancellations.

The Natural History Museum announced it was temporarily shutting down due to staff shortages caused by infections and isolation rules.

Patricia Marquis, England director for the Royal College of Nursing union, told the BBC Monday that hospitals were under “immense stress and pressure” because health-care workers were themselves becoming infected and had to stay home

“So, staff are looking forward now thinking, ‘Oh my goodness, what is coming?’” Marquis said.

Johnson and his cabinet are scheduled to meet Monday to discuss tougher measure to confront omicron. Among the options, described by British news media, are an advisory to ask families to host smaller holiday parties; a legal mandate on household mixing; an evening curfew on pubs and restaurants; or a return to full lockdown.

Scientific advisers to the government warned that without stricter measures, 3,000 people could enter hospitals in Britain each day, up from the 900 daily admissions now.

In the midst of the holiday season, the government advisers said large indoor gatherings posed high risk of seeding “multiple spreading events.”

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