Sue Gray report: We look back at what was happening in Bucks while Downing Street 'parties' were held

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has faced fresh calls to resign after Sue Gray’s limited inquiry outlined at least 12 events across government and criticised “failures of leadership and judgment”.

Ms Gray’s limited report listed 16 events she examined as part of her inquiry, but she said only four of those were not now being investigated by the police.

We have listed the date of each reported party, and the stories we were reporting on the same day they happened.

They include the death of a nurse from Covid-19, businesses struggling to stay open, isolated birthdays and the announcement of Tier 2 and Tier 3 restrictions for Buckinghamshire.

May 15, 2020

On Friday, May 15, 2020, while groups of people were allegedly photographed gathering in the garden of Number 10, the Bucks Free Press shared tributes to Stoke Mandeville Hospital nurse Jun Terre, who died after testing positive for Covid-19.

Jun, 52, died on May 14, 2020, with Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust paying tribute to the “quiet and kind nurse”, while chief executive Neil Macdonald said he was a “gracious, quiet and kind gentleman with a smile that would light up a room”.

We also carried a story about a pensioner who had been sent more than 100 birthday cards because the pandemic had stopped her 90th birthday celebrations.

Joyce Merrett, from Marlow, turned 90 on May 4 that year but couldn’t celebrate with loved ones due to the Covid restrictions in place.

Meanwhile, the owner of a Marlow fish and chip shop opened up to the Free Press about the struggles his business had faced due to the lockdown restrictions. Kedar Gore said he was “trying to be positive and optimistic in this crisis”.

Wycombe Wanderers also revealed one of their club doctors, Dr Carl Waldmann, had returned to the NHS frontline to help fight the pandemic.

Elsewhere that day, the Free Press reported how families could take a “virtual trip” to Disney World, which was still shut to visitors for safety reasons, and how to craft your own face mask.

May 20, 2020

On the same day that there was a gathering in the garden of Number 10 for staff, the Free Press was reporting how the Thames Valley Air Ambulance was fearful for its future amid a £1 million funding blackhole caused by the pandemic.

With fundraising and community events cancelled due to coronavirus restrictions, the life-saving charity was struggling to see how it would keep going without more cash.

The charity had deployed its paramedics and doctors to serve alongside NHS colleagues in the region as they fought Covid-19.

We also shared a heart-warming tribute from TV star Ross Kemp to hardworking volunteers who were helping the community during lockdown.

Ross had visited a string of areas in Bucks, including Downley and Marlow, to see how an army of volunteers had been helping protect the vulnerable.

The same day, we were reporting nine new Covid-19 cases had been diagnosed in the county in the previous 24 hours, while there had been 84 deaths involving Covid-19 up until May 16.

June 18, 2020

As a Number 10 private secretary prepared to leave the role, there was reportedly a gathering in the cabinet office at 70 Whitehall to mark his departure.

The same day, we shared how Wycombe Wanderers fans were waiving their season ticket refunds in a bid to support the club through the tough time.

That week (June 13 to June 19, 2020), there were two Covid-19 deaths in the county.

June 19, 2020

Boris Johnson’s 56th birthday apparently saw a gathering in the cabinet room at Number 10 to celebrate. The same day, we told how Welcome Gym at Wycombe Retail Park would not be reopening after trying its best to “keep the business viable” throughout the Covid outbreak.

At this point, all gyms had been shut since March 23, with no clear idea when they would be able to reopen.

We also shared the news of the launch of a new food hub to feed hungry High Wycombe residents. The Wycombe Food Hub has since helped thousands of people, negatively affected by the pandemic, get access to food.

Wycombe Wanderers had also shared with the Bucks Free Press how they managed to run a football club – with no football and no fans.

At the same time, we reported how Stoke Mandeville Hospital Radio Station had been awarded a £22,500 grant to help patients battle loneliness and isolation during the pandemic.

November 13, 2020

With Sue Gray’s report alleging a gathering in the Number 10 Downing Street flat and a gathering in Number 10 for the departure of a special adviser, the Free Press was reporting how the performance of Buckinghamshire’s Covid ‘Test and Trace’ success rate had fallen for the sixth week running.

Data from the Department for Health and Social care showed 3,596 people who tested positive for Covid-19 in Buckinghamshire were transferred to the Test and Trace service between May 28 and November 4 that year.

That means 735 new cases were transferred in the latest seven-day period.

Contact tracers ask new patients to give details for anyone they were in close contact with in the 48 hours before their symptoms started.

This led to 9,064 close contacts being identified over the period – those not managed by local health protection teams, which are dealt with through a call centre or online.

But just 61.8 per cent were reached – a figure that has fallen steadily over a six-week period.

Meanwhile, we were reporting a surge in demand for online Christmas delivery slots and we shared a list of independent businesses who were struggling to keep trading during lockdown 2.0 so we could also continue to support them.

Also, campaigners in Amersham and Chesham who doubted the efficacy of face masks in schools to combat coronavirus vowed to take their campaign to council leader Martin Tett’s door.

The same day, we also shared news of how thousands of people from across the world tuned in on Remembrance Sunday to watch Marlow’s online-only Remembrance Day service.

November 27, 2020

This day saw another gathering at Number 10 on the departure of a special adviser. We were reporting how there had been 77 more coronavirus cases diagnosed in Bucks in the past 24 hours, taking the total to 7,176 since the beginning of the pandemic.

We also shared council leader Martin Tett’s “disappointment” as Buckinghamshire was plunged into Tier 2 restrictions.

He urged every Bucks resident to “work together” following Tier 2 rules, and hopefully the county could return to Tier 1.

The Free Press also announced how a Covid-19 tracing service was set to be launched in Bucks because the NHS ‘Test and Trace’ system was not working well enough.

December 10, 2020

While there was a gathering at the Department for Education ahead of the Christmas break, Buckinghamshire had been put into Tier 2 restrictions days before on December 2.

This meant we could only meet in groups of up to six outdoors, pubs and bars would be closed unless operating as a restaurant, venues had to close by 11pm and stop taking orders at 10pm, everyone was asked to work from home if possible and overnight stays were only permitted as part of a support bubble.

We also reported how more than 200 coronavirus cases had been diagnosed in the previous 24 hours, and we shared a review of attending a panto in a pandemic – complete with strict face-mask and social distancing rules and a plea for young children not to shout out as they normally would at a pantomime.

December 15, 2020

On this day, there was reportedly a gathering at Number 10 for an online Christmas quiz. At the same time, we were reporting council leader Martin Tett’s fears that Bucks would be going into much stricter Tier 3 restriction after a “rapid rise” in Covid cases.

We also reported how there had been five new coronavirus deaths at Buckinghamshire Healthcare Trust hospitals in the last day and 174 new cases diagnosed.

It was also an historic day for the county, as 90-year-old grandfather Brian Horne, from Chalfont St Peter, was the first in Bucks to be vaccinated against Covid-19. He received his Pfizer jab at the Hall Practice.

One of the things Mr Horne said he was looking forward to the most, other than being able to see his family again, was going back to the ‘friendship lunch club’ that he has been involved with for the past 10 years.

December 17, 2020

While a string of gatherings were held at both 70 Whitehall and Number 10 Downing Street on December 17, 2020, Buckinghamshire was told it was going into Tier 3 restrictions in three days time.

According to Sue Gray’s report, there was an online Christmas quiz for the cabinet secretary’s private office at 70 Whitehall, a gathering at 70 Whitehall on the departure of a senior cabinet office official, and a gathering at Number 10 on the departure of a Number 10 official all on this day.

Meanwhile, Bucks council leader Martin Tett vowed to help struggling local businesses amid the blow of Tier 3, which he branded “the worst news” that left him “desperately concerned”.

In a cabinet meeting earlier that week, he said that while many Bucks residents were following the rules, “a significant minority are not”.

Tier 3 saw pubs and restaurants close except for delivery and takeaway only, no mixing with anyone you don’t live with either indoors or outdoors, rule of six outdoors and indoor entertainment venues like cinemas had to stay shut.

Only up to 30 people were allowed to funerals, while there were only 15 guests allowed at weddings.

In just over a week, Cllr Tett said he had witnessed the infection rates per 100,000 people rise from 118 to 142 for ‘all ages across Buckinghamshire’.

At the time, the weekly rate stood at 211, according to Buckinghamshire Council’s Covid-19 Dashboard. Confirmed cases in Buckinghamshire, as of December 16, 2020, were 9,790.

December 18, 2020

While Bucks residents were preparing to go into strict Tier 3 rules, there was reportedly a party at Number 10 ahead of the Christmas break.

On this day, we shared Wycombe Wanderers Chief Financial Officer Pete Couhig’s anger that football fans would not be allowed to attend games at Adams Park due to Tier 3 restrictions.

He said the club had done everything possible to make the fixtures as safe as possible for fans and voiced his concern about the economic problems the decision would leave football clubs with.

He said: “For the government to shift the sand beneath our feet makes it really difficult to run a football club right now.”

Meanwhile, council leader Martin Tett stressed that while up to three households may “bubble” for five days over Christmas, “it doesn’t mean we should” – adding we are at a “very dangerous point”.

He acknowledged the need to see loved ones at this time of year, but urged people to follow the government advice to “keep it small, keep it short and keep it local”.

He said: “All I want to do is to reiterate the messages coming from the government about Christmas; that while the temporary rules will allow three households to bubble December 23-27, it’s down to us all individually to make our own choices about what we actually will do, and the level of risk we want to take.”

But just days later, Buckinghamshire would actually be plunged into Tier 4, cancelling many people’s Christmas plans completely.

Those under tier 4 restrictions were advised to stay at home unless they had a “reasonable excuse” to leave their home, with travel to and from Tier 4 severely restricted.

January 14, 2021

After a tough Christmas period, which many Bucks residents had to spend without loved ones, there were reports of a gathering at Number 10 to mark the departure of two Number 10 private secretaries.

Meanwhile, the Bucks Free Press was reporting eight new Covid-19 deaths in the space of 24 hours, taking the total in Bucks hospitals to 225.

At the same time, we were sharing advice on fighting loneliness and isolation in lockdown for elderly residents, and reporting claims by the Prime Minister that Intensive Care Units at hospitals across the country faced being “overwhelmed” as Covid cases soared again.

We also shared an article detailing how there had been more than 1,000 attacks on police officers since the pandemic began, how the Adams Park vaccine centre was being “run like clockwork” by hard-working volunteers and how signage across Buckinghamshire urging people to follow the rules cost £70,000.

April 16, 2021

There were two reported gatherings at Number 10 on this day, marking the departure of two senior officials.

On April 16, we reported how Buckinghamshire New University Vice Chancellor Professor Nick Braisby had slammed the government for leaving thousands of students “in limbo” without any clear return dates.

That week, Boris Johnson gave the green light for stage two of his ‘roadmap’ out of lockdown, allowing shops, hairdressers, gyms, spas, and theme parks to reopen – but there was no mention of when university students could resume their studies in Covid-safe university facilities.

Prof Braisby said: “Since the start of the pandemic, university students have suffered considerable disruption, with a change to online learning, reduced employment opportunities, and restrictions on movement.

"We have seen increased levels of financial hardship and rising concern around mental health. At a critical time in the academic year, they are now being forgotten and left in limbo with no return date in sight.”