Eighteen parties, dozens of guests, countless bottles of wine, a DJ and a Union Jack birthday cake - and all during a national lockdown.

This and more will land on British prime minister Boris Johnson's desk today as senior civil servantCivil servants help the government develop and carry out policies. They are non-political.  Sue GrayA senior civil servant who entered the public eye for the first time when she was tasked with investigating lockdown breaches in government. In 2024, she was briefly Keir Starmer's chief of staff. hands in her report into lockdown parties at Downing Street.  

There is no doubt: the inquiry is one of the biggest bombshells to hit British politics in recent years. Now, the nation is divided into two warring armies: those who think Johnson should stay in power, and those who are calling for him to go. 

The case for resignation is obvious, say Johnson's critics. In March 2020, the Prime Minister wrote a letter to Josephine Booth, who missed her birthday party to follow the Covid-19 regulations. "You are setting a great example," he told the seven-year-old. 

But three months later, while restrictions were still in place, up to 30 people watched as Johnson blew out the candles on his own birthday cake. 

"Every single family can relate to this," said one Conservative peerA member of the House of Lords, one of the two houses that makes up the UK parliament. this week. "If you can live with the fact that you were there having socially distanced drinks while someone couldn't say goodbye to their loved ones, that's not only cruel, it's reckless."

The condemnation has come from both sides of the political spectrum. Many MPsMembers of Parliament. MPs are elected to represent people in 650 different geographical areas.  say they are simply echoing the outrage of the nation. One poll, published on Tuesday, found that 62% of Britons think Johnson should resign. 

For journalist Rachel Sylvester, this scandal is about more than just a DJ or a Union Jack cake. Instead, it is about "a culture of contempt for ordinary citizens". 

Johnson's school report famously described him as believing he "should be free of the network of obligation which binds everyone else". Now, Sylvester argues, he is showing the same mindset as prime minister. "That is why his party knows he has to go." 

But others bitterly disagree. "To baffled observers all over the world, Britain must now resemble a nation that has taken leave of its senses," declared an editorial in the Daily Mail, Britain's biggest-selling newspaper. 

While Europe teeters on the brink of war in UkraineA country in Eastern Europe. It was invaded by Russia in February 2022. and rising bills push millions into a cost of living crisis, Britain is obsessing over cheese and wine. "It was never illegal to offer a work colleague a piece of cake." 

The furore over the Downing Street parties is an "absurd over-reaction," adds columnist Stephen Robinson. Reports suggest that Boris Johnson was at the birthday party for just ten minutes. "We must surely keep things in perspective." 

Meanwhile, the prime minister's supporters point out that much of the criticism comes from people who already disliked Johnson. One of his biggest critics, Dominic CummingsCummings, a former chief adviser to UK PM Boris Johnson, was himself widely condemned for breaking lockdown restrictions in 2020., was himself widely condemned for breaking lockdown restrictions in 2020. 

Yesterday, Boris Johnson insisted once again that he would not resign. One thing is clear: if he does leave Downing Street, it will shape the future of British politics for years to come.

Yes: At a time when millions of Britons made huge sacrifices to prevent the spread of Covid-19, Boris Johnson failed to follow his own rules. Nobody should be above the law. Johnson must resign.

No: Boris Johnson's critics have lost all sense of proportion. This is a ridiculous over-reaction. The real crisis is the 100,000 soldiers standing on the Ukrainian border, not some cake and wine.

Or... The decision may be taken out of Johnson's hands. Many Conservative MPs are waiting to read Gray's report in full. They could still trigger a vote of no confidence in the prime minister.