Boris Johnson cannot let his standing with Tory MPs impact the government’s Covid response

Editorial: If the prime minister wants to regain the public’s rapidly diminishing trust, he has to protect the nation’s health at another dangerous moment

(Brian Adcock)

Boris Johnson and his remaining allies are deploying a new tactic to try to deflect attention away from the social events held in Downing Street in the run-up to last Christmas.

Nadhim Zahawi, regarded in No 10 as one of the government’s most dependable media performers, was sent out on a tricky round of TV and radio interviews on Sunday to defend the indefensible. The latest revelation showed Mr Johnson taking part in a quiz for staff – not a hanging offence in itself, but further evidence of what ministers euphemistically call “gatherings” in Downing Street.

On Sky News, Mr Zahawi questioned whether the media had got “the right balance” by focusing on the “hype” about parties rather than the risk from the omicron variant of Covid-19. On the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show, the education secretary repeatedly answered questions about “partygate” with statements about omicron.