Boris Johnson became the first sitting prime minister to be criminally sanctioned when he was fined for breaking his own Covid laws by attending a party for his birthday in No 10. While the development prompted renewed calls for his resignation, loyal ministers and Downing Street sources have reached for some creative and elaborate defences of his law breaking. Partygate penalties ‘like parking fines’ As Johnson prepared to argue he did not mislead parliament, the Northern Ireland secretary, Brandon Lewis, told Sky News on Tuesday morning: I think we do see consistently, whether it is through parking fines or speeding fines, ministers of both parties over the years have been in that position. ‘It’s not as if he walked into a rave in Ibiza’ A senior government source told the Financial Times he had “no idea” what was guiding the Met police investigation after Johnson was given a fixed-penalty notice for attending a party for his birthday in No 10. He added: It’s not as if [Johnson] walked into a rave in Ibiza. He was there for ‘a very short time’ eating ‘a salad lunch’ Is another defence for Johnson, who was fined for breaching the rules by attending his 56th birthday party in June 2020. Sources told the Daily Mail Johnson was only there “for 10 minutes” and the cake “did not even leave the Tupperware box”. The prime minister was there for a very short time. He was eating a salad lunch in the Cabinet room with people he worked with all day. People kept popping in. It’s not as if “pole dancers” were present Tory MP Michael Fabricant dismissed the fines on BBC Radio 5 Live, saying lots of people, ranging from civil servants to nurses and others, “did at the end of the day have a quiet drink”. He also said: The ways it’s been characterised, you would think there were pole dancers. An exemption for ‘people working in close proximity’ A source told The Times there was an exemption for those working in No 10, in close proximity and for long hours. There was always an exemption around work but the prime minister accepted mistakes were made. If you’re going from meeting to meeting and it’s something at 2pm in the afternoon, people wouldn’t particularly call that a party. You don’t tend to call that a party. Johnson was ‘ambushed with cake’ This was the line that came from a Tory MP in January on Channel 4 News in January. Conor Burns said it was not a “premeditated” party and that Johnson was working in the room before staff came in and presented him with a birthday cake. He was, in a sense, ambushed with a cake. He has ‘not robbed a bank’ Those were the words of the Conservative MP Andrew Rosindell in January, saying there are ministers who get parking tickets and speed fines. “Lots of people break the law in small ways, sometimes unintentionally” he said, adding: He’s not robbed a bank. This is getting out of control. Boris Johnson doesn’t ‘own his own diary’ Stepping to Johnson’s defence January, the Conservative MP James Heappey told the BBC no prime minister can possibly own all that is put into their diary, adding they rely entirely on those around them for briefs and support for what goes into diaries in the first place. He said: My take as someone who has worked in Downing Street is that the prime minister doesn’t really own his own diary. ‘I don’t recognise this as a party’ In January, the Conservative MP Peter Bone described the party for Johnson to BBC Newsnight as “a very funny party” with colleagues for less than 10 minutes. He added that “political people alike” likely spoke about work while eating their “bit of cake”. He added: Well, I just don’t recognise that as a party. And if that’s the sort of parties you go to they’re not much fun, are they?