I’m not sure what Starkey is attempting to do here. Is he attempting to suggest that Johnson should be treated lightly because Helen MacNamara (now former) Head of Propriety and Ethics, Mark Sedwill (now former) Cabinet Secretary and Kate Josephs (now former) Director General of the Covid Task Force were all guilt of attending, indeed instigating parties in Downing Street. He is absolutely correct in his assertion that they all betrayed their functions and all demonstrated a sense of entitlement and arrogance BUT the buck must stop somewhere and it stops with Johnson.
The responsibilities of the Prime Minister are writ large at the top of www.gov.uk/government/ministers/prime-minister and include a duty to oversee the operation of the Civil Service and government agencies.
To oversee is to supervise especially in an official capacity.
Starkey contrasts Thatcher’s eye for detail with Johnson's big picture approach but that does not excuse the latter. Johnson (or one of his cabinet) was on television every night telling the public what the rules (laws) were. He knew what they were, knew that the most senior civil servants were breaking them and he did not stop them. Starkey said it himself, Macnamara’s raucous karaoke party (the night before the birthday party for Johnson) went on until 3:00am and was likely to have woken Johnson. Why was he not censuring the staff he has a duty to supervise? Their seniority is irrelevant. He is the Prime Minister.
I agree with Starkey, these senior civil servants have all gone on to prestigious jobs elsewhere and as law-breakers along with Johnson one must question their right to be in those jobs as one should question their right to honours. But none of this gets Johnson off the hook. And he still lied to the House of Commons - a clear breach of the Ministerial Code.
I do urge people to watch this. The style is slow and ponderous with more than a whiff of misogyny and Richard Littlejohn at his most unpleasant but paints a very clear picture of the culture in Downing Street under Johnson’s leadership.
