A secret party in Downing Street at the height of lockdown. The prime minister in crisis. The people up in arms about the hypocrisy of their politicians. Does this seem familiar? 

It was first revealed that Downing Street had broken its own lockdown rules back in December. ITV released a video of a rehearsal for a press conferenceA media event in which politicians, individuals or organisations invite journalists to ask them questions. . In it, staff made jokes about their office Christmas party.

Soon afterwards, Boris Johnson himself was in trouble: there were photos of him drinking wine with colleagues in the garden in May 2020.

Now, an email has been leakedShown to people without permission. . It is from the prime minister's private secretary. The email is an invitation to "socially distanced drinks" at Number 10. More than 100 people were invited. 

At the time of the party, normal people in the UK were not allowed to meet more than one other person outdoors. And it had to be in public. 

After so many scandals, is this one any different? Before, Johnson said that the photos showed a business meeting taking place outdoors. Now there is proof it was actually a party. The police may get involved.

But some think the problem is deeper. They believe scandals like this are affecting democracy.

They suggest that people are already questioning the system. The world is hugely unequal. According to Oxfam, just 26 billionaires own half the world's wealth.

Critics say that there is no future for young people. Two-thirds of people in higher-income countries think the next generation will have a poorer future. 

So when a scandal like this emerges, some fear it cuts people off further. It makes it seem as though there is one rule for them and one rule for us. This might break down all trust in democracy. 

Yes. Democracy is only as strong as the public's faith in it. If they believe the system is rigged against them, they will stop engaging, or even start to support authoritarian alternatives.

No. Governments have been hit by worse scandals before, and gone on to be re-elected. People just expect that politicians are in it for themselves; this is unlikely to change their public image drastically.

Or...? This is not a problem with democracy, it is a problem with Boris Johnson. The Tory Party will let him absorb the public anger and then give him the boot. The system will carry on.