Pressure is mounting on Sir Keir Starmer as a student who filmed Beergate video has told Durham police they will testify in court, claiming the event was ‘completely social’
- Beergate witnesses asked to testify in court
- The Mail On Sunday says the student who revealed the scandal agreed
- Police could release conclusions of its investigation into whether Sir Keir has broken lockdown rules this week if Labor holds its breath
Pressure on Sir Keir Starmer is mounting over Beergate, as Durham police have asked a witness if they are willing to testify in court.
The Mail on Sunday can reveal that one of the students who filmed the video of the Labor leader drinking beer has already agreed to testify in court, in the event that any fixed fines are challenged. The witness stated that the meeting was ‘very social’.
Police could release the conclusions of its investigation into whether Sir Keir has broken lockdown rules this week. Both he and his deputy, Angela Rayner, have pledged to resign if they are fined last year over the ‘curry and beer’ meeting at Labor MP Mary Foy’s office in Durham Miners Hall.
Richard Holden, Conservative MP for North West Durham, said: ‘The fact that legal action has been called is a sign of how seriously both police and witnesses are taking this.
Pressure on Sir Keir Starmer is mounting over Beergate as Durham police have asked a witness if they are willing to testify in court
“It goes to show that all bases are being properly dealt with should Sir Keir Starmer, or the other Labor MPs and supporters present, decide to challenge any targets in court.”
Two university students filmed Sir Keir drinking beer and chatting with colleagues just after 10pm on April 30 last year, when socializing indoors was banned.
One of them told The Mail on Sunday that they had been asked by police to testify in court. The student previously told this newspaper: ‘I’ve never seen a work meeting with people sitting at tables, drinking San Miguel and eating from plates. There is a clear difference between a meeting and what happened there, it was very social.’
The Labor leader insists no laws were broken and he returned to work after drinks.
Police launched an investigation in early May. Sir Keir returned his questionnaire two weeks ago, after 18 days to complete it. His spokesperson confirmed that he had received legal advice on his responses. A Labor source said: ‘The longer this goes on and the more people are willing to testify, the worse things look for Keir. The last thing we need is for the PvdA to tear itself to pieces in another internal debate, while the government is in the background and we should be making real progress.”
The source said any move by Sir Keir to challenge the fine “would seem like a desperate attempt to persevere, which would completely undermine the promises he has made”.
A source with knowledge of the police investigation said Durham detectives have been ‘in total lockdown’ over the Beergate probe, adding: ‘There is concern about how long it will take now, concern that this is dragging on as they only have one investigating an event and an evening.’ The event took place when a meeting had to be ‘reasonably necessary for work’. Sir Keir not only drank beer with Labor colleagues, but also posed with a football shirt handed to him by an activist. Police are said to have sent Sir Keir detailed questions about the working purpose of this interaction.
When asked whether Sir Keir plans to challenge a fine he will face in court, Labor declined to comment, pointing to his promise to quit. Sir Keir said in May: ‘If the police decide to impose a fixed fine on me, of course I would do the right thing and resign.’
A spokesman for the Durham Police Department said: “This is an ongoing investigation and we do not plan to make an ongoing comment.”