Will there be more fines for No 10 parties?

Claims of lockdown parties at Downing Street have gone from Westminster rumor to cold hard fact.

Since the Metropolitan Police launched their investigation in January, the force has issued more than 50 fixed notices (FPNs) for breaching Covid laws in No 10 and Whitehall.

Among the recipients were Prime Minister Boris Johnson, his wife Carrie and Chancellor Rishi Sunak.

Ministers have rallied around the couple and even Tory MPs, who had urged Mr Johnson to resign when Partygate last dominated the headlines, say now is not the time for him to go.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps told the BBC his boss was “shamed” by the fine but added that “everyone is human, people make mistakes” and “overall you should judge someone on their performance”.

Some Tory MPs have argued that Mr Johnson has apologized for what one put it, “spent nine minutes in his office at 2pm when work colleagues came in and wished him a happy birthday” and that he is now “with the work continues”. was elected to do so.

But more fines could be coming for those who live and work in Downing Street, including the Prime Minister.

The BBC is aware of three events that have led to FPNs so far – two publicly confirmed and one from our sources – so fines have been imposed on those who took part:

But the Met Police investigation covers a total of 12 events, meaning there are nine other gatherings on the force’s list that could result in sanctions:

The Prime Minister is known to have attended at least two of these – the garden party and the departure of the Spad – and reportedly may have attended as many as three others.

Theoretically, Mr Johnson could face further fines depending on the outcome of the police investigation.

The force has said they will not name those who receive FPNs, so many who receive them will remain unknown.

But No 10 vowed to reveal whether the Prime Minister was fined – as they did on Tuesday.

And 24 hours later, they pledged to update the press on “significant developments,” so we’d expect that to include further fines as well.

We’ve pressed the Met to give us more details on the investigation, but they’ve repeatedly declined to provide what it calls “running comment.”

They have also refused to tell us how long they think the investigation will take.

However, following Tuesday’s headline-grabbing fines, they released a statement saying their work “continues to move forward.”

They added that they “continue to evaluate significant amounts of assay material from which further referrals to ACRO can be made [Criminal Records Office]“ – which in plain language means that there is still a lot of evidence from the gatherings to sift through and further fines could hit the doormats of the party-goers.

And even at the end of the investigation, there is still the small matter of an official report.

Sue Gray became a household name when the Prime Minister commissioned her to conduct her own inquiry into Downing Street gatherings during lockdown.

However, her much-anticipated report was delayed after the Met said it was investigating the events based on information that Ms Gray’s team had shared with officials.

Ms Gray released an interim report blaming a “management failure” for allowing parties to take place and criticizing “excessive drinking”.

However, their full findings will be released when the police’s job is done.

Keep in mind that her report is not limited to the 12 who reached the criminal investigation threshold — it will cover all allegations made.

And some close to the trial have told BBC political correspondent Nick Eardley the findings are likely to be detailed and damaging to those who attended the parties.

Mr Johnson and Mr Sunak have apologized to the public and promised to refocus on voter priorities – including the cost of living crisis and the war on Ukraine.

However, it remains uncertain whether her determination to remain in office will overcome future twists in this saga, be it fines or more damning details.