Scotland Yard is being urged to “explain” why Boris Johnson has not been fined for a No 10 event during England’s second lockdown, as a leaked photograph showed him raising a glass to a departing colleague.

       Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, who said he had “assiduously stayed well away” from the Metropolitan Police’s investigation, said it was now important for the force provide “clarity” on their conclusions.

       It comes after photos published last night by ITV News showed the prime minister with colleagues next to a table with two bottles of champagne or cava, four bottles of wine, and half a bottle of gin.

       There were at least eight other people in the room at a time when people were banned from social mixing, other than to meet one person outside.

       Grant Shapps, the transport secretary, confirmed on LBC on Tuesday that “there were fixed penalty notices issued” for the event on 13 November 2020 as Mr Johnson’s director of communications, Lee Cain, left No 10.

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       However, he highlighted that the prime minister was not sanctioned by police for his appearance related to the leaked photograph.

       Last week, the Met Police, who did issue Mr Johnson with a fixed-penalty notice for a birthday gathering in June 2020, closed its investigation, paving the way for civil servant Sue Gray’s investigation to be released.

       But Mr Khan said there questions for the police, telling BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “I think it’s important, when it comes to trust and confidence, when it comes to policing by consent, when it comes to questions being asked about the integrity of an investigation that the police explain why they’ve reached the conclusions they have.”

       Images obtained by ITV News show Boris Johnson raising a glass at a Downing Street leaving party on 13 November, 2020

       (ITV)

       “Yesterday was the first time I saw the photograph of Boris Johnson raising a glass, clearly bottles of wine laying around, others with wine in their hand, on a day when he said in the House of Commons… that there wasn’t a party,” the London mayor added.

       “Sue Gray will publish her report this week and of course the prime minister will have to answer for himself, but I think the police should explain why they reached their conclusion and provide that clarity”.

       On Monday evening — after ITV News published the photograph — the Liberal Democrats also urged the Independent Office for Police Conduct to examine the Met’s inquiry into events in No 10.

       Deputy leader Daisy Cooper said: “The Met Police need to explain why Boris Johnson wasn’t fined for this event, despite being pictured in an apparent breach of the rules.

       London mayor Sadiq Khan with Boris Johnson

       (PA )

       “If anyone else had been pictured at a party like this during lockdown, surely this would have been enough evidence for them to be fined. It does seem that there has been one rule for the prime minister and another for everyone else.

       She added: “We need urgent clarity from the Met over why Boris Johnson wasn’t fined when others were. If the Met won’t set out the basis on which they made their decisions, then it’s absolutely right that they should face an investigation.”

       However, cabinet minister Mr Shapps told the same programme the Met police did not need to explain why the prime minister escaped a fine for the leaving party on 13 November, 2020.

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       “I don’t think the police should provide running commentaries, no,” he told the BBC.

       Mr Shapps also attempted to argue that Mr Johnson had only “popped down” to toast to his former spin doctor, and claimed the prime minister was “mortified” by the latest revelations.