WYRE Forest MP Mark Garnier has reacted to the party gate fines being handed out to Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak.

The PM, his wife Carrie, and the Chancellor all apologised on Tuesday and confirmed they had paid fines imposed by the Metropolitan Police over a party held on June, 19 2020 to mark Mr Johnson’s 56th birthday.

Reacting to the incident, MP Mark Garnier said: "I can’t begin to pretend that this is anything other than very bad. A sitting Prime Minister has received a fixed penalty notice for breaking the law. There will be opposition questions about the ministerial code, and if the PM lied to Parliament.

"This fixed penalty, as I understand it, refers to just one event – the impromptu birthday party. But what of the other parties that were allegedly attended? Will there be more fines?

"And the full Sue Gray report is due to be published at some point. When? What will it say?

"I am already receiving loads of emails about this. I can understand why.

"I didn’t support Boris Johnson in the leadership elections – I was worried about character flaws and I haven’t been disappointed.

"But I have been surprised. The reality is that, despite these problems, he has led us well through the pandemic. We had the best vaccine roll-out and the best support for the economy anywhere in the world. With the war in Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky has praised our Prime Minister for his gifted leadership in sanctioning Russia. And Boris’s ambitions for levelling up and his One Nation credentials are values I support.

"So, a kneejerk reaction to the latest revelations may result in a self-indulgent period of introspection whilst the rest of the world gets on with things without us. Is that really what we want?"