Keir Starmer ‘may have face-to-face police interview’ over beergate

The Labour leader has vowed to resign if fined for sharing a takeaway with activists at a time when indoor mixing was banned, aside from at work.

He has repeatedly said no Covid rules were broken, insisting last night he is ‘different’ to Boris Johnson and ‘politicians are not all the same’.

Questionnaires are expected to be sent to at least 15 people thought to be present at the alleged Covid breach in Durham in April 2021.

A leaked memo previously appeared to show the politician’s meal was pre-planned, calling into question his version of events.

But the Labour party is prepared to fight – and is ‘ready to hand over time-stamped WhatsApp conversions, video edits and other documents that prove the team worked until 1am’.

An insider claims this included Labour’s admission that Deputy Leader Angela Rayner was present at the gathering in Durham, following initial denials. They said a ‘genuine mistake’ had been made.

It comes after the same police force concluded Dominic Cummings’ journey to Barnard Castle probably amounted to a ‘minor’ breach of the rules.

No further action was taken and the former top political adviser was reportedly not interviewed for the case.

His statement and questioning by journalists in the rose garden of Downing Street was taken as a witness statement by police.

But he later admitted he did not ‘tell the full story’, saying security threats against his family were the reason they left London.