and resign? cheering the prime ministerfaces the prime minister faces a the prime ministerfaces a moment the prime minister faces a moment of great apparel, even calls to quit coming from mps on his own conservative side. we'll be asking laura for her reading of the prime minister's position following today's events. also tonight: prince andrew fails to get a civil case dismissed in the us which accuses him of sexually assaulting a teenage girl. the company that owns british gas warns that soaring energy costs could be with us for the next two years. and a victory over spurs takes chelsea to the final of the carabao cup at wembley. and coming up in the sport on the bbc news channel, chaotic scenes at the africa cup of nations as the referee blows full—time five minutes early in the mali game against tunisia. good evening. for the first time, boris johnson has admitted that he did attend a drinks party in the downing street garden at the height of the first lockdown. in a packed house of commons, the prime minister apologised and said he understood the rage felt by those people who'd obeyed the rules at the time and in some cases were unable to be with loved ones when they died. but he went on to infuriate many mps by suggesting that the gathering had been technically within the rules because he believed it was a work event. the labour leader, sir keir starmer, said the prime minister had run out of road. he said his defence was ridiculous and offensive and called on mrjohnson to resign. and that call was echoed by the leader of the scottish conservatives. our political editor, laura kuenssberg, has the latest. a mess — there is no other word. a prime minister belatedly trying to clean up. with an admission of possible rule—breaking — an apology from a weakened leader. but will the answers to today's prime minister's questions see boris johnson through? mr speaker, i want to apologise. i know that millions of people across this country have made extraordinary sacrifices over the last 18 months, and i know the rage they feel with me and with the government i lead when they think that, in downing street itself, the rules are not being properly followed by the people who make the rules. there were things we simply did not get right. and i must take responsibility. claiming, to disbelief in the commons, that technically a "bring your own booze" organised drinks event was within the lockdown rules. even if it could be said technically to fall within the guidance, there would be millions and millions of people who simply would not see it that way. well, there we have it. after months of deceit and deception, the pathetic spectacle of a man who's run out of road. his defence, his defence, that he didn't realise he was at a party... laughter ..is so ridiculous that it's actually offensive to the british public. labour able to mock the unusually subdued tory showman. when the whole country was in lockdown, he was hosting boozy parties in downing street. is he now going to do the decent thing and resign? i regret very much... i regret very much that we did not do things differently that evening. the prime minister pretended that he had been assured there were no parties. now it turns out he was at the parties all along. can't the prime minister see why the british public think he's lying through his teeth? mr speaker, it's up to the right honourable gentleman to choose how he conducts himself in this place... laughter there was derision — laughter — at the prime minister's defence. six questions later, election—winner borisjohnson looked defeated. this is notjust a westminster drama. it is exactly midday, we are heading over to westminster... it was the must—watch from the morning sofa — the country seeing repeated calls for borisjohnson to quit. will the prime minister, for the good of the country, accept that the party is over and decide to resign? do the decent thing and resign. do the honourable thing and resign. and he must resign. and the concern on his own side is potent. the number of mps saying it's overfor mrjohnson growing in the shadows. and calls for him to quit out in the open now. even from the mp who is also the leader of the conservatives in scotland. i explained to the prime minister today that i felt he should stand down because of this, but that is ultimately his decision. but does the conservative party, let alone the country, really have the appetite for more political turmoil? there was a sprinkling of supportive messages — some loyal friends in government for mrjohnson, too. what is needed above all is a doubling—down and a determination to rebuild trust between the government that the prime minister leads and the british people. borisjohnson�*s admission and apology in there has bought him a little time — a pause until the report into what did or didn't happen in number ten is complete. yet for many on his own side, he's already lost the benefit of the doubt. growing numbers of his own mps want him out, discussing frantically how and when his exit could happen. it is not inevitable, though, that he'll be hastened out of office — but it's no longer impossible to imagine that the prime minister might be gone before too long. look at this, this is a fantastic garden you've got here... it is indeed a beautiful garden. i'm told this was a former bomb crater... a place prime minister was happy to show off in days gone by. do you see yourself being here for the very long term? well, we're working very hard, laura... but his time in residence could be brought to an early close by what happened literally in his own backyard. laura kuenssberg, bbc news, westminster. the official inquiry into a series of alleged parties held during lockdown in number ten and other parts of whitehall is still going on. but it's not known when sue gray, the senior civil servant in charge, will release her findings. our deputy political editor, vicki young, considers the political fallout of the last few weeks and months. it's been a disastrous few months for the prime minister, and he stood here today accused of deception, of treating the british people with contempt. some on his own side think this could be a tipping point that leads to his downfall, but this is a man who's recovered from setbacks before, and cabinet colleagues are rallying round. i think it's right, as he was saying today in the house of commons, that sue gray is given the time to conduct that investigation, there'll be a full accounting, the prime minister will come back to the commons, that's the right way to handle this. and sue gray is a senior civil servant who spent years in whitehall as the head of propriety and ethics. she'll be investigating a long list of allegations that covid rules were broken in downing street, starting during the first lockdown in 2020. a photo taken on may 15th showed the prime minister, his wife and staff in the downing street garden with bottles of wine and cheese. when asked about it, borisjohnson said, "those people were at work, talking about work." a few days later, about 100 people were invited by e—mail to socially distanced drinks in the number ten garden. today, the prime minister admitted he attended for around 25 minutes. and on 15th december, multiple sources told the bbc there was a christmas quiz for number ten staff. borisjohnson took part remotely, but others gathered in one room. a video obtained by itv news showed the prime minister's then press secretary, allegra stratton, joking about reports of an event on 18th december, saying this "fictional party was a business meeting and it was not socially distanced." those that worked with theresa may in downing street say clawing back support can be difficult. the issues that this government are suffering from at the moment are self—inflicted wounds and are about the way in which the prime minister is running his government. it's not clear to me that he's ever going to be able to fully recover his reputation from what's happened. but the starting point, i think, has to be to get all of the facts out there, to be completely honest about what has happened. conservative mps wanted borisjohnson as their leader because they thought he could win him elections — brexit and his unique campaigning style made him a vote winner. but governing brings different challenges — the endless scrutiny, having to watch every word you say. and some fear that it's his flawed judgment that's now being exposed. and on that, his former closest adviser, dominic cummings, has become his harshest critic — accusing him of not being up to the job. for months, there were questions about how mrjohnson paid for a lavish refurbishment of his downing street flat — his standards adviser said he'd acted unwisely. and then when former mninister owen paterson was involved in a row over sleaze, he tried to change the rules to protect him, backtracked... ..and the lib dems then won the safe tory seat. boris johnson's authority has been severely dented, and all this a huge distraction from the policies he promised to deliver. vicki young, bbc news, westminster. as the pressure mounts on borisjohnson at westminster, some mps are reporting deep resentment among voters in their own constituencies. our political correspondent alex forsyth has travelled to the conservative seat of wolverhampton south west to find out what people are saying there. mr speaker, i want to apologise. prime minister's questions isn't usually a blockbuster event at this boutique cafe on the outskirts of wolverhampton, but today some staff did stop to watch. silly boris. all conservative supporters, they were keen to hear what the prime minister had to say. but for millie, it didn't cut it. rm angry. — i think he's broke the rules. everyone who's broke the rules in government have resigned, i and i do think it's time - he needs to resign, personally. i think he's broke the rules, and i think that's i what he's got to do. her colleagues, though, think he deserves another chance, though they are frustrated. kind of could almost excuse the christmas event, but this, like, a0 people in a garden, no. that's not a work meeting or event. i'm angry with him because it's bad, because i really liked him. i thought he was doing a good job. i'm not angry about what's happened, i'm disappointed that they've - had to admit to this. i think all the goodwill they've - built up is beginning to fade away. i'm still a big supporter, _ but i think the mood of the country is turning against them. just over two years ago, this part of wolverhampton turned to the conservatives from labour, as borisjohnson toppled seats across the midlands and north of england. now some tories worry what this politically toxic issue will cost. some people who voted conservative for the first time at the last general election say it was the fact boris johnson wasn't like other politicians. he didn't play by the same rules as others — that was part of his appeal. now it's that same sense that, for some, is causing such anger. i can't stand him, really. how much longer can he go on saying sorry? so many times. he isn't really sorry, is he? he wanted to say thank you for. all the hard work that was done, and i understand that, but in the light - of what was going on in - everybody else's homes, i mean, you know, there's a lot of people that i would have liked _ to say thank you to, _ but we weren't allowed to gather. outside the city centre, retailer mark says he was well supported by the government during the pandemic but now he's frustrated that while his business was locked up, others were meeting up. i do feel quite angry about it, really, the way that we've kind of been almost mistreated in a way and kind of, you know, disregarded a little bit, really. you know, i think a lot of local small businesses are very hard—working, so it's almost like a kick in the teeth a little bit, really. winning in places like this is the reason borisjohnson�*s been popular within his party. be in no doubt, if the voters turn away, that support will soon fade too. alex forsyth, bbc news, wolverhampton. 0ur political editor laura kuenssberg is at westminster. as we heard, the prime minister has, of course, come back from setbacks in the past. this time, though, the stakes seem to be much, much higher? it's a terrible position for boris johnson at downing street to be in, no question about that. you are right, though, to say that boris johnson has been a big dipper politician. he has had tremendous highs, tremendous lows, and been able to zoom back to the top again. but there is a real poison spreading among conservative mps in the last 24 among conservative mps in the last 2a hours that calls into question whether that kind of recovery will be possible this time. first, he knows, and he admitted as much at the dispatch box, that they will be millions of people, many viewers tonight, you might have listened to him and felt genuine rage about exact what was going on in downing street during lockdown, during that period of emergency in such pain for many, many millions of people. second of all, when it comes to his party, those people who have the power, if they so choose, to usher him out of office, outside of a normal general election, for many conservative mps, the question is not whether status quo can be allowed to continue, it is how and when the status quo can be called to an end. now, it is important to say there are still mps who think boris johnson can scrape through this. there are mps who believe there could be some comfort for him in the technicality or the formal verdict of the senior civil servant to sue gray, who will report on exactly what happened in the next ten days or so. but in a funny way, the particularities of this party, the particularities of this party, the particularities of this party, the particularities of the various shenanigans that may or may not have happened at downing street over the last couple of years, seem to have been replaced. they are a proxy now, for a long—running argument in the conservative party that is being fought out again. is borisjohnson the right kind of person, with the character and integrity to lead the country from number 10? and there are more and more conservative mps for whom the answer to that is no. i'm borisjohnson, it seems to me, is standing at the edge of a very tall cliff. it is not clear that he will be able to take a step back from this, but it is also not clear if there is anyone in his party yet who will be willing to be the person to give him a shove. but it is a moment of genuine peril for the prime minister, no question about that tonight. prime minister, no question about that tonight-— prime minister, no question about that tonight. many thanks again for the analysis- _ that tonight. many thanks again for the analysis. laura _ that tonight. many thanks again for the analysis. laura kuenssberg. - the duke of york has failed to get a civil case dismissed in the united states which accuses him of sexually assaulting a teenage girl. virginia giuffre is suing prince andrew, claiming that he abused her when she was 17 at the homes ofjeffrey epstein and ghislaine maxwell. the prince has strenuously denied the allegations. but the ruling by the judge in new york today means the civil trial can now go ahead. 0ur royal correspondent nicholas witchell reports. everything for andrew had rested on this ruling, and it has gone against him. in his 43—page ruling in the case of virginia giuffre, plaintiff, and prince andrew, duke of york, defendant, the judge's conclusion was very straightforward. "the defendant's motion to dismiss the complaint is denied in all respects," the judge wrote. the possibility of appealing at this stage appears to be remote, so these are andrew's basic options. he can settle out of court — there'd be no admission of liability, but he would pay a perhaps substantial sum to virginia giuffre. he can default — that is ignore the court case, and by default there would be a finding against him. finally, he could fight it out in court. he'd have to give a deposition under oath, the rival stories would be tested, the matter would be decided in open court. lawyers who've been following the case say none of the options will be attractive to him. andrew's got no good options now. he can't make things better, so, essentially, i think he's either going to have to engage in the trial process or he's going to have to settle, and that may well be his least—worst option. but it would be up to virginia giuffre to decide whether to accept any article settlement. at the moment, she doesn't seem inclined to do so. in a statement, her lawyer said, "virginia giuffre is, of course, pleased that prince andrew's motion to dismiss has been denied and that evidence will now be taken concerning her claims against him." "she looks forward to a judicial determination of the merits of these claims." all of which leaves andrew facing the prospect of a bruising court case and the queen, in this, her platinum jubilee year, of enduring months of upset. in his newsnight interview, the one in which he said he couldn't remember meeting the then 17—year—old virginia giuffre, andrew was asked whether he felt his behaviour had damaged the queen and the royal family. i don't believe it's been damaging to the queen at all. it has to me. if i was in a position to be able to answer all these questions in a way that gave sensible answers, other than the ones that i've given that gave closure, i'd love it, but i'm afraid i can't, because i'm just as much in the dark as many people. if andrew does fight on, he'll have to answer all the other side's questions under oath, and he will be able to declare his innocence, and his lawyers will be able to test virginia giuffre's allegations. but at what price to the reputation of the royal family? as lawyers are saying, he has no good options. nicholas witchell, bbc news. in a moment we'll talk to nick, but first let'sjoin our north america correspondent nada tawfik, who's in new york. nada, what could happen next? we are waiting to see if prince andrew's legal team will attempt an appeal. that would require the judge's permission, and legal experts say it is a long shot. now, either way, the arduous discovery process will get under way, with deadlines this summer. and that is where each side will have to disclose key information and documents. we already know that virginia giuffre's lawyers have demanded to see prince andrew's medical records, after he said that her claims have to be false because her claims have to be false because he cannot sweat, claims made on that newsnight interview. and it is worth noting that if the duke of york is five to this in court, he will have to sit for a lengthy deposition by virginia giuffre's lawyer, a man who is considered one of the greatest trial lawyers in america. he will be asked about private and intimate details of his life under oath, and if this does go to trial, one in the united states of a royal member, will certainly spark a media frenzy. while prince andrew has long denied all of the allegations against him, time is now running out to make key legal decisions.— legal decisions. nada, many thanks. nada tawfik— legal decisions. nada, many thanks. nada tawfik in _ legal decisions. nada, many thanks. nada tawfik in new _ legal decisions. nada, many thanks. nada tawfik in new york. _ legal decisions. nada, many thanks. nada tawfik in new york. nicholas l nada tawfik in new york. nicholas witchell is with me. at the end of your report you included the phrase no good options. it looks like a real mess? it no good options. it looks like a real mess?— no good options. it looks like a real mess? ., , ., real mess? it does. today's ruling is a pretty — real mess? it does. today's ruling is a pretty comprehensive - real mess? it does. today's ruling is a pretty comprehensive defeat i real mess? it does. today's ruling l is a pretty comprehensive defeat for andrew. the clock is ticking for him to face this civil lawsuit in the united states, alleging sexual assault, which he denies. but no good options. if he continues, as nada was saying, he will have to give a deposition under oath, he will be cross—examined in britain by virginia giuffre's lawyers. most lawyers, i think, virginia giuffre's lawyers. most lawyers, ithink, will feel that virginia giuffre's lawyers. most lawyers, i think, will feel that he has to seek an out—of—court settlement, but will virginia giuffre accept such a settlement, or does she now want her day in court? and all of this, of course, a couple of days after buckingham palace confirmed the programme for the queen's platinumjubilee. it confirmed the programme for the queen's platinum jubilee. it should be a year when she is able to celebrate and enjoy. but what is the first event of the june weekend? trooping the colour. andrew remains the honorary colonel of the grenadier guards. he could, if he chose, ryder not parade, representing the grenadier guards. i think we can say safely that the grenadier guards do not want him. but the queen is reluctant to replace him. it is a new mental mass for andrew, it is damaging i think, for andrew, it is damaging i think, for the royalfamily, for andrew, it is damaging i think, for the royal family, little for andrew, it is damaging i think, for the royalfamily, little doubt about that. it is difficult and embarrassing for all of those involved. —— a monumental mess for andrew. there is a real risk it could get worse. the head of the company which owns british gas has warned that soaring energy costs could affect household bills for the next two years. bills are expected to rise to up to £2000 per household from april when a new energy price cap takes effect. the chief executive of centrica, chris 0'shea, says there's no suggestion that prices will come down any time soon. he's been speaking to our business editor, simonjack. millions of households may see any disposable income go up in flames this spring, as average energy bills rise by an estimated 50%. households like sean's, in the forest of dean. and we're not talking 5,10,15 quid here. this is catastrophic, really, for me, as i will have no more money in my personal income to do anything. this wipes out my spare money. we'll have nothing left. this is no short—term price shock, according to the uk's biggest energy supplier, who says an international scramble for gas means higher prices are here to stay. i can't say that this will be done in six months or nine months, in a year. i can simply look at what the market says at the moment, and the market suggests the high gas prices will be here for the next 18 months to two years. he says customers are rightly concerned, and something must be done to protect them. when i talk to our customers and i hear how distressed they are at the increase in prices that are coming, then i think it's inconceivable that we don't do something to help those people. and when he says "we", he, like other providers, is looking mainly at the government. options for the treasury include scrapping vat of 5% on energy bills. that will be worth about £100 a year. quick, easy, but blunt. better—off households would benefit too. more targeted, reform the warm home discount — a one—off payment of £140, available to a limited number of people on certain benefits. make that more generous and widen the eligibility. then there are green charges on our bills of £170 a year. you could scrap those, or move them into general taxation. it may be fairer, because higher earners would pay more. and how to pay for all of this? maybe a windfall tax on the gas producers making big profits as prices soar. chancellors, both conservative and labour, have done it before. that would deter investment in domestic gas sources like the north sea, says 0'shea. one way or another, the uk's rising energy bill has to be paid. ultimately, everybody in the uk is a taxpayer and an energy consumer. so, the cost of this is going to have to be paid by uk citizens. the question as to whether that's paid for through the energy bill or through general taxation is one for the government. the government has promised answers before the new price cap is set in early—february. simon jack, bbc news. nato's secretary—general has warned there's still a real risk of new armed conflict in europe. jens stoltenberg spoke after talks with russia, which left significant differences unresolved. he said nato was ready for more dialogue over ukraine, where 100,000 russian troops have massed at the border. 0ur defence correspondent jonathan beale has been following events and joins us now from brussels. what is your sense of the way the talks have gone, the prospect of resolving some of these differences? well, first, the talks lasted four hours, longerthan well, first, the talks lasted four hours, longer than expected. well, first, the talks lasted four hours, longerthan expected. i'd like the talks between the us and russia earlier in the week, they ended without a breakthrough. both sides not budging on their demands. for russia, that is a guarantee from nato not to enlarge. nato emphatically saying that it will keep the door open for new member states. and for nato, it is de—escalation. they want to see russia withdraw the 100,000 troops that they have amassed on ukraine's border. no indication that russia would do that. that is whyjens stoltenberg said today it was a dangerous situation, with a very real risk of a new armed conflict in europe. that is why the russians have warned of unpredictable consequences if relations don't improve. the one glimmer of hope is that talks might still continue. nato has made that offer, russia is yet to agree. diplomacy isn't dead yet, that said, the threat of war hasn't gone away either. jonathan, many thanks _ hasn't gone away either. jonathan, many thanks for— hasn't gone away either. jonathan, many thanks for the _ hasn't gone away either. jonathan, many thanks for the latest - hasn't gone away either. jonathan, many thanks for the latest on - hasn't gone away either. jonathan, | many thanks for the latest on those talks in brussels. let's look at the latest official uk data on the pandemic. they show another fall in new cases, 129,587 new infections in the latest 24—hour period. so “18,357 new cases on average per day in the last week. 19,735 people are in hospital with covid — a slight fall since yesterday. and the number on ventilators has also fallen to its lowest since the middle of october — just under 800. but deaths have risen again — another 398 were reported of people who died within 28 days of a positive test — the highest for almost a year. on average in the past week, there were 246 deaths per day. 0n vaccinations, almost 36 million people have had a boosterjab, that's more than 62.5% of those aged 12 and over. in london, the high court has ruled that the uk government's use of a so—called "vip lane" to award contracts for personal protective equipment to two companies was unlawful. the case was brought by the campaign groups, the good law project and everydoctor, who claimed a hedge fund and a supplier of pest control products were prioritised because of their political connections. our special correspondent lucy manning is here. can you tell us about this case and what led to it? it can you tell us about this case and what led to it?— what led to it? it is all about how the government _ what led to it? it is all about how the government has _ what led to it? it is all about how the government has been - what led to it? it is all about how l the government has been spending money, taxpayer money, and protective equipment for doctors and nurses, particularly at the height of the pandemic. for more than a year we have been revealing that some items like masks and gowns have not been able to be used in the nhs, despite the government spending hundreds of millions on them. this case specifically, as you say, was about the so—called vip lane. what it meant was that if you are a company trying to bid for lucrative deals, if you had an in with mps or civil servants, you could get put on a vip list and it would mean that your bid would get an earlier look, they would look at it earlier. the campaign group said that was unfair. thejudge agreed with campaign group said that was unfair. the judge agreed with them and said that this vip lane was unlawful, that this vip lane was unlawful, that the tobacco companies did get preferential treatment by being on the vip lane. there is another side to this, as always. —— that the two companies. thejudge did also decide that while they may have got the preferential treatment by being on it, they did not get the contracts because they were on it. and it is probably likely that they would have got the contract anyway, without the vip lane. both sides claiming success. but frankly it is not a great look for the government that this scheme has been found by the high court to be unlawful. malia; high court to be unlawful. many thanks once _ high court to be unlawful. many thanks once again. _ chelsea are through to the final of the carabao cup. they beat spurs 3—0 on aggregate. they'll face either liverpool or arsenal at wembley next month. 0ur sports correspondent natalie pirks reports.