To ask if your essential meetings involve sitting around in the garden with wine and cheese, with your spouse in attendance?

[AlexaShutUp]

So the justification for the pictures of Boris in lockdown is that they were essential work meetings and therefore allowed. The wine and cheese was apparently because people were working long hours. I have seen no explanation of why Carrie was present.

Do you have essential work meetings of this nature? I don't.

AIBU to think that, in the midst of a pandemic, I'd rather that our decision makers stayed off the booze while carrying out their essential functions? And that unelected individuals who are not employed by the government in an official capacity have no business sitting in on such meetings?

Last week someone popped the Prosecco because it was Friday

Do you actually remember what it was like in May 2020?

Obviously not.

Why are people still debating why Carrie was there. Dominic Raab has just said it was. A post meeting get together. Post meeting, so not a meeting. So that’s why Carrie was there. Also means they broke the rules.

@VikingOnTheFridge

Anyone see the Raab interview? He reeeeeally didn't help!

He really didn't. I was wondering what his agenda was as it didn't seem to be very clear.

"What? Have I missed the relevance here. What does Tony Blair have to do with anything?"

You see to be Boris bashing, so I'm just returning the compliment

noblegiraffe
So to clarify, you don’t think it is important for the government to follow its own rules?

The government say they were following the rules by having a meeting/refreshment break during a meeting - the same as Keir Starmer's team with his photo linked above (he drank beer, not wine).

@Clavinova

VikingOnTheFridge as the photo indicates

The photo indicates that Carrie Johnson is sitting some distance away from the majority of staff in the garden.

The photo indicates that she is sitting at the same table as two of them. Not that it affects the point that no 10 is an environment where following the rules is important.

"who knows who else sits in on meetings because they are with Boris."

what a load of rubbish

Clavinova
noblegiraffe
if you think that hospital workers should stick to the rules, do you believe they the government should also stick to the rules?

I think hospital staff work in an environment where following the rules is important - not least to vulnerable patients

🤣🤣🤣 Tell that to the doctor I know who had regular parties throughout lockdowns

I only know one family who followed all the rules. We probably have followed most of the rules more because we don’t have family apart from mil who is in a home and BIL who lives hundreds of miles away who we have an arms length relationship with and friends who also live miles away.
We have gone out to work and noticed that compared to the first lockdown the traffic increased so much that by the December lockdown we were back to traffic jams and congested motorways
It was business as usual without the shops snd hospitality

@PurBal

When I worked for a church bread and wine was a very common occurrence

He really didn't. I was wondering what his agenda was as it didn't seem to be very clear

Adam Wagner said it made him rethink his previous view that the party was probably legal!

I did vaguely wonder if Raab was doing a deliberately shit job to undermine Johnson further, since he clearly wants the job and Boris is clinging on. But then maybe I'm just attributing malice where stupidity would be a more likely explanation.

I work for the Tube so any alcohol consumption on site would be a disciplinary matter. I don't think cheese would go down well with a team of tube workers: we are more sausage roll, Pringles and doughnuts type people. As for my spouse being at work with me, well, no, unless he's using my station for whatever reason (this has happened all of 5 times in two decades) or needs something from me (like keys, which he forgot once, and was locked out).

@Kennykenkencat

In answer to the question in the title I would say regularly. Dh has had regular business meetings on one company owners yacht where partners were invited. The yacht didn’t go anywhere but it was a fully catered day. I think the yacht was a company asset and a tax right off so had to be used regularly.

Another company, because the job entailed being away 2-3 weeks in every 4 and then back in the U.K. office for the rest of the month the company would have regular business meetings where partners were included. Again all fully catered. All involved alcohol and food.

If you look closely at the photo some people are wearing masks, they are in business suits and they work together so I am not sure what the fuss is about.

I work with hundreds of different people everyday with no masks, no SD because of the type of work we do and have done apart from the first lockdown. I can’t see the problem with having a drink with people you work with especially at the end of the job.

Last week someone popped the Prosecco because it was Friday.

I think there are a lot of companies particularly in certain sectors where this is the norm. Just because it doesn’t happen in their sector doesn’t mean no one else should do it

Yep, you are part of the problem then.

You think telling us about your husband's meetings on some tycoons yacht for tax purposes is supposed to make us think this is all okay? What planet are you on?

Roussette

Last week someone popped the Prosecco because it was Friday

Do you actually remember what it was like in May 2020

Obviously not

Actually I do. Trying to scrape a living out of nothing after having all our incomes decimated because of the first lockdown.
The only upside was at least the roads were clear and it was sunny so we were able to get around quicker.

@starfro

If you've all had Covid already and you all work in a tiny building for 12hrs+ a day, you won't spread Covid by then having a drink in the Garden after work.

For those that say Carrie is just a wife so should stay away and let the men do the Politics, shame on you! She's a hugely influential part of the Conservative team.

Yep, but if you don't want a political rival to use it against you when you are on the ropes and also have the consequence that many of the population will no longer comply with any futher public health requirements and restrictions then perhaps you should actually follow the fucking rules that you have set rather than engaging in post hoc apologism.

Stick that in your "essential part of the team 12+ hour day" and smoke it.

Didn't see many ICU staff having cheese and wine garden parties after the end of their shifts.

The real question is who is leaking all this and why?

@Clavinova

Getyourarseofffthequattro The issue is that you think everyone else should follow "the rules" except the government.

I think the concerning issue is that you think hospital staff shouldn't follow 'the rules' because they didn't make 'the rules'.

Boris, is that you?

@CheshireKitten123

"What? Have I missed the relevance here. What does Tony Blair have to do with anything?"

You see to be Boris bashing, so I'm just returning the compliment

Returning the compliment on people criticising Boris by posting a link about something done by someone from Labour who is no longer in government? Why would everyone criticising Boris here be a fan of Tony Blair? Are we all meant to respond to this in a particular way? Should I return the compliment with a criticism of Thatcher? What an odd tit for tat.

In my case, Blair was never in government at a time when I was old enough to vote, criticisms of him don’t affect me, and I feel no need to defend him.

You will remember then Kenny that back then the rules stated mixing with just one other outside.
Not 19.

@Underhisi

The real question is who is leaking all this and why?

twitter.com/edballs/status/1472685913364905988

@Roussette

I don't think this can be misconstrued.

On the very day 19 of them were quaffing wine and cheese, this was put out by the Government.

On your own or
With people you live with, or
With just one other person

Seems pretty clear to me. However despite this, i'm sure some will try and argue that those photographed did nothing wrong 🙄

'You will remember then Kenny that back then the rules stated mixing with just one other outside. Not 19.'

Unless at work? They are outside and spread out fgs.

@Underhisi

The real question is who is leaking all this and why?

Obviously Rishi's team which just shows you how utterly morally bankrupt the whole shi show is. They are using this for political gain and blow the consequences. That said, if we had a prime minister that could actually follow his own rules and not waste the public's good will on defending obvious breaches of rules (both COVID and parliamentary standards) then we wouldn't be here stating into the jaws of a new COVID variant outbreak with a significant number of the public unwilling to follow any restrictions.

@Underhisi

The real question is who is leaking all this and why?

Well, it's one of the questions.

My guess is it's a person/faction who don't want Johnson to be able to introduce any more restrictions. Possibly also someone who wants him out.

But that was the question.

I just answered the question. If you don’t like the answer because it doesn’t fit into your own view I can’t help that.

You have to realise that just because it isn’t your experience and your view that doesn’t mean it isn’t everyone else’s

Why would having drinks on someone’s yacht years ago mean I am part of the problem?

Why would having business meetings and drinks with plus ones be a problem in another job.

And there is me thinking we have followed nearly all the rules.

I can only be the problem if I have had Covid at any point since the lockdowns began.

Otherwise what was the problem.

@JaniieJones

'You will remember then Kenny that back then the rules stated mixing with just one other outside. Not 19.'

Unless at work? They are outside and spread out fgs.

The government issued clear clarifications that social gatherings at work were not permitted. The use of the "it was at work" is not a defence. It had to be necessary "for work". Wine and cheese and chit chat after a press conference is not a neccesary work activity.

Please remember that we all went through this in 2020 and many of us were involved in interpreting the COVID guidance for their employers or businesses. This activity was not allowed. They should have concluded their business and then gone home.