ITV News uncovered photographs that cast more doubt on Prime Minister Boris Johnsons's assertions that he was unaware of rule-breaking in Downing Street during the outbreak.
The four photographs show Boris raising a glass at a farewell party on November 13, 2020, with bottles of booze and party food on the table in front of him.
They were photographed during a reception honouring Downing Street's then-Director of Communications, Lee Cain, with eight persons, including the photographer, standing close together. Despite the laws at the time only permitting two people from different houses to mix indoors, ITV News knows there were extra attendees at the party, which one source has called "Fizzgate."
Boris Johnson looks to be giving a speech and raising a toast in some of the photos, holding half a glass of fizz. Parties with persons from outside your household were prohibited at the time. England had been placed under extreme lockdown eight days prior due to an increase in Covid cases.
Despite not being able to identify the identities of all the participants, ITV News felt that publishing the photos was in the public interest.
The latest revelation raises more questions about why the Prime Minister was not fined for attending the party, but others in attendance were issued a Fixed Penalty Notice.
However, it calls into question Boris Johnson's repeated assurances in the House of Commons and elsewhere that No 10 followed all laws and that he was unaware of any law-breaking parties.
The Privileges Committee of Parliament will investigate whether he willfully deceived MPs by denying knowledge of the parties. Doing so would be against the ministerial code and would generally result in resigning.
The images also come as civil servant Sue Gray completes her internal study on Number 10's partying culture. When the report is released this week, it's expected that she will include photos from multiple instances.