Labour says to UK PM as Johnson apologises

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson. AP file photo
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson yesterday apologised for attending a "bring your own booze" gathering at his official residence during the first coronavirus lockdown as opponents said he had to resign.

Leader of the main opposition Labour party Keir Starmer said Johnson must now resign and that the public thought he was a liar.

"The party's over prime minister," Starmer told him. "The only question is: will the British public kick him out? Will his party kick him out? Or will he do the decent thing and resign?"

Johnson admitted for the first time he had attended the party at Downing Street on May 20, 2020, when social gatherings were limited to a bare minimum and said he understood the anger that the revelations had caused.

"I know the rage they feel with me over the government I lead when they think that in Downing Street itself the rules are not being properly followed by the people who make the rules," an ashen-faced Johnson told parliament.

Johnson, who won a landslide 2019 election victory on a promise to secure Britain's exit from the European Union, said he regretted his action and had thought the gathering was a work event.