Downing St Christmas Party - what's behind this?

[Leafyhouse]

Presumably someone knew about this for a year. And they've waited until just before Christmas to release it - and not all at once. They drip-fed allegations, waited for ministerial denials, then a few days later released damning video footage. I have 2 theories:

1. The media are looking for a scalp. Boris preferably, or perhaps Keir if he doesn't take the fight to the PM satisfactorily.

1. Rishi Sunak supporters. There's a perception that Boris needs to go, and the 1922 committee will show their hand soon.

1. Anti lockdown supporters. It looks like we may have to lockdown further before Christmas, and they're hell bent on undermining the PM's ability to do it.

What worries me is that no-one in the media is asking these questions. Which makes me think they're complicit.

AIBU to think we're being played like fools here?

No it wasn’t secretly filmed although how long the person has had it - not sure

Is it the same person who leaked the other stuff?

Hancock etc

If they knew it was being filmed, they surely know who filmed it?

I would say it's astonishing that they actually created video evidence, but nothing this lot does surprises me any more.

It’s more who got hold of it and released it

The briefing room was ready last year, it's mentioned in this article from October 2020. It was intended that Stratton would give daily briefings from there, but they didn't happen.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-54468229

It's obviously been professionally filmed, not from a phone. Quality, steadiness, change of angles.

@YellowRollNeck

It’s obviously been timed to coincide with the next impending lockdown. Who the hell os going to follow the rules this time after knowing what happened last Christmas?

Spot on.

There are two videos.

The Allegra Stratton video is blatantly filmed. The second is Jacob reese mogg taking the piss out of everyone which was filmed secretly

@MarshaBradyo

I really want to know too

Is it Cummings with a long standing campaign?

He probably does know that drip drip like this will undermine most

Yes shot the messenger rather than the message is usually a good tactic.

What matters is the truth and i doubt we have heard the last of this, Downing street is the PMs home, one of the most secure residences in this country, BJ also works with these people, its beyond belief he can claim he didn't know but his personal spokesperson did.

@DrSbaitso

It's obviously been professionally filmed, not from a phone. Quality, steadiness, change of angles.

A modern phone, post processed, can give almost studio quality.

twitter.com/nhsmillion/status/1468319392014422016?s=21

ah so is it a mock Q&A session for Allegra Stratten to see how she performs? I remember they were talking about various people to head the Downing Street briefings from January and Allegra was one of them but then Cummings got the boot (and they were a Cummings idea iirc) and so they did not happen and Allegra got moved to COP26 instead.
That would explain the high quality footage as they were being professionally filmed. Why not just say this though - I mean who cares, loads of people trying out for jobs have "screen tests". So who would have this footage and why release it now?
I suspect it's Cummings and Rishi plus a handy bit of propaganda for the anti lockdown crew (who i agree with as I am anti another lockdown) to foil any Plan B/ lockdown attempts.
I wish we didn't have to second, third, fourth guess everything though. Constant attacks on the Government from all sides is so wearing, I guess that's the point.

This is just what Tories do. They are absolutely ruthless when it comes to getting rid of a leader who's threatening their hold on power. Of course someone was sitting on this until it became useful.

My first thought was Russia, as the contractors who apparently wired up that room are Russian (how this was allowed I have no idea) I thought it would be perfect to sow the seeds of distrust at the time where another lockdown or more COVID rules may be implemented… however, I then realised, we don’t need Russia to do that, our Government is more than capable of doing it on their own.

I get why you’re asking, but endless ‘But why now?’ speculation distracts from the key fact that the footage exists, full stop - and we should all be furious.

@sashagabadon

ah so is it a mock Q&A session for Allegra Stratten to see how she performs? I remember they were talking about various people to head the Downing Street briefings from January and Allegra was one of them but then Cummings got the boot (and they were a Cummings idea iirc) and so they did not happen and Allegra got moved to COP26 instead. That would explain the high quality footage as they were being professionally filmed. Why not just say this though - I mean who cares, loads of people trying out for jobs have "screen tests". So who would have this footage and why release it now? I suspect it's Cummings and Rishi plus a handy bit of propaganda for the anti lockdown crew (who i agree with as I am anti another lockdown) to foil any Plan B/ lockdown attempts. I wish we didn't have to second, third, fourth guess everything though. Constant attacks on the Government from all sides is so wearing, I guess that's the point.

I agree with all this

But Rishi? He seems so orderly

Others yes though and agree it’s just wearing at this point

Maybe it is the anti lockdown crew

It would be interesting to hear from Allegra, that video looks damming but since they were just mocking up a news conference as practice its possible they were making up there having been a party as a joke. Possible. Maybe not probable. Has the entire video been leaked or just highlights?

I do agree the fact of this leak, and the Hancock leak are interesting in themselves rather than just due to the content. Someone is stirring.

@dropitlikeitsloth

My first thought was Russia, as the contractors who apparently wired up that room are Russian (how this was allowed I have no idea) I thought it would be perfect to sow the seeds of distrust at the time where another lockdown or more COVID rules may be implemented… however, I then realised, we don’t need Russia to do that, our Government is more than capable of doing it on their own.

Probably some senior Tory with loads of shares in hospitality. I doubt it’s a complex ideological motive

@WomanStanleyWoman

I get why you’re asking, but endless ‘But why now?’ speculation distracts from the key fact that the footage exists, full stop - and we should all be furious.

We should definitely be furious, and I am.

It's still worth asking why someone wants us to be feeling this fury now, though. You don't want to be manipulated by anyone, anyone at all.

It would be interesting to hear from Allegra, that video looks damming but since they were just mocking up a news conference as practice its possible they were making up there having been a party as a joke. Possible. Maybe not probable. Has the entire video been leaked or just highlights?

Dunno if it's the whole session, but I think the fact that Allegra points out that it's being recorded makes it more likely that the party happened. She's trying to get off the subject.

@ApricotCrush

I can't comment on the party, but that video couldn't have been filmed on 22nd December as the new conference room wasn't unveiled until 16th March.

Boris Johnson hasn’t attempted to say the video wasn’t filmed when it was reported to have been. And I’m sure he would have if actually it was filmed months later, bizarrely referring to a Christmas party four days earlier.

That was my first thought when I saw that video. The audience were staff and colleagues. One of them surreptitiously filmed it, then sat on it for a year. The sheer treachery and malice is astounding.

No one surreptitiously filmed it. Stratton said it was being recorded, and there were a few camera angles so I’m assuming they just had cameras set up in there. It wasn’t shaky mobile phone footage taken by someone who didn’t want it noticed.
You’re right about it being kept for a year and then released, but it’s not a secret recording, she says “this is being recorded” in a way that sounds like what she means is “so careful what you say”.

Seriously I’m not a conspiracy theorist (don’t they all say that…) but I don’t think I’ve ever listened to or read such biased news coverage of a story. Either the press are colluding to get Johnson out, or it is just such a tasty story they are going mad for it. And being very lazy. Not much attempt for any objective journalism. Absolutely no attempt to actually establish any facts. At the moment surely there is no definitive
knowledge of what happened, the scale of it and who knew what. And the press don’t seem to care. Endless interviews with the public with utterly loaded questions. Strikes me as quite unusual.

@Leafyhouse

Presumably someone knew about this for a year. And they've waited until just before Christmas to release it - and not all at once. They drip-fed allegations, waited for ministerial denials, then a few days later released damning video footage. I have 2 theories:

1. The media are looking for a scalp. Boris preferably, or perhaps Keir if he doesn't take the fight to the PM satisfactorily.

1. Rishi Sunak supporters. There's a perception that Boris needs to go, and the 1922 committee will show their hand soon.

1. Anti lockdown supporters. It looks like we may have to lockdown further before Christmas, and they're hell bent on undermining the PM's ability to do it.

What worries me is that no-one in the media is asking these questions. Which makes me think they're complicit.

AIBU to think we're being played like fools here?

Matt Hancock?

OP - I agree it's important to understand what is behind this. Why has the Allegra Stratton video been withheld for a year? If it was genuinely meant to expose hypocrisy it would have been released at the time. So therefore it must have a manipulative intention. The consequences seem to be to reduce the adherence to social mixing restrictions and laws in general, not just the Tory government. So is it a disenchanted Tory or is it more anti-establishment? Important that the media should be asking the questions. The Hancock video can be easily understood as a personal attack, and less of an overall anti establishment effect. This crisis is fundamental to the culture of No.10 leadership and the public's tolerance to restrictions. Who did it?