The committee is also likely to take an interest in the so-called “Winner Takes It All” Abba party which reportedly took place on 13 November, five months after the 19 June birthday.
The Telegraph understands that an early draft version of the Gray Report contained a reference to officials claiming they heard Abba’s songs from the prime minister’s flat in the evening that Dominic Cummings, Mr Johnson’s main aide, and Lee Cain , their communications director, quit.
A person questioned by Ms. Gray said: “I told both her and the Met Police that I heard Abba’s music from the No. 11 flat that night. At least three other people told her the same, but this information was provided by us.” Despite giving, no one complied.
A source familiar with the early drafts said the Abba musical reference was there but “not very detailed”.
Revelation of text messages
The messages were sent hours after Mrs Johnson’s birthday bash held in the Cabinet Room on 19 June 2020, for which Mr Johnson was fined, along with Mrs Johnson and Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak.
Messages are seen showing another gathering inside his flat. At the time of the alleged incident, the COVID lockdown rules were clear – prohibiting more than two people from meeting indoors, unless for a work purpose.
At an evening event inside her flat, Mrs Johnson is accused of being in the company of at least two friends, both special advisers. But Mrs Johnson had no formal position in government and it is uncertain what the purpose of the act might be.
At 6.15 p.m. the exchange of messages begins with a Downing Street aide informing Mrs Johnson that her husband is on his way to the flat. According to sources, it was common for such messages to be sent, not inappropriately informing Mrs Johnson of the Prime Minister’s actions. According to the Sunday Times, Mrs Johnson then replied that “she was already there and suggested she was with an unspecified male friend”.
What exact words are included in Mrs Johnson’s message is unclear, but according to sources familiar with the messages, she replied: “Great. I’m already here with gays.”
The term used affectionately refers to a small circle of gay, male friends with whom Mrs. Johnson is close. The claim of such use of language is consistent with a report cited by The Mail on Sunday columnist, Dan Hodges, a Downing Street employee, back in February. He wrote: “She [Mrs Johnson] Will say: ‘I’m with homosexuals in the flat. Can you come over?’ It was meant as an affectionate surname. ,
The existence of the texts was made known to the Gray Inquisition in January. But now, it gets complicated.
The aide declined to forward the messages, but said he was ready to go to the Cabinet Office and show the investigating officers in person. The aide also said that they agreed to supply them to the Metropolitan Police, which announced at the time that it was launching its own criminal investigation.
The Cabinet Office has disputed this version of events. A Cabinet Office source said: “The person did not offer to bring the messages to the Cabinet Office, so the investigative team had no chance to read them.”
The aide has now written to Cabinet Secretary Simon Case to take up “some of the evidence provided to the Gray Report and the Met that I think is important”. This includes an attachment to an email sent to the Gray interrogator in January, which claimed they had “messages indicating there was a social gathering at the PM’s flat that evening”.
