DOUGLAS Ross has refused to defend Boris Johnson over the latest Downing Street party scandal, saying he took part in what seemed “absolutely the wrong thing to do”.

The Scottish Tory leader also struggled on TV to name any positive qualities possessed by the Prime Minister, merely saying he was leading the country “at the moment”.

He said he was personally “angry” and there were “serious questions” to answer about what had actually happened and what the public had been told.

He spoke of “the serious concerns and anger I have over the Downing Street issues”.

Mr Ross distanced himself from Mr Johnson after the Sunday Mirror printed a picture of the PM hosting a virtual Christmas quiz in Number 10 during last year’s Covid lockdown.

Mr Johnson was seen flanked by two officials, one in a party hat and one in a tinsel scarf, despite a ban on social gatherings of two of more people in London at the time.

The Sunday Mirror reported the December 15 event included four other groups of six people in other parts of Downing Street, and that staff had been drinking beer and wine.

On the BBC Scotland’s Sunday Show, Mr Ross was asked what should happen if the public had been misled about partying through lockdown in Downing Street.

He said: “You said this would cause difficulties for the Scottish Conservatives. 

“It causes me no difficulties at all to call out irresponsible behaviour that potentially causes a huge impact in terms of compliance by the rest of the public to follow Government advice.

“That’s one still picture [in the Sunday Mirror]. We need to get more information. 

“But if, as it portrays, there was a party in Downing Street and the Prime Minister attended it, I’m not going to defend that. 

“It’s absolutely the wrong thing to do when everyone else here in Scotland and across the UK were not having these parties, they were following the guidance to the letter of the law to suppress this virus.”

Downing Street has said Mr Johnson took part in the virtual quiz for around 10 to 15 minutes to thank staff for their work through the pandemic.

Earlier this week, Mr Ross said Mr Johnson should resign if he was shown to have misled parliament about another Number 10 party, on December 18 last year.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer today said the newly reported quiz appeared to have broken the law.

Asked if Mr Johnson should quit if the rules had been broken by the quiz, Mr Ross said: “it’s a big if because we don’t know what the Prime Minister could see. We haven’t seen the pictures of the groups of six or seven [players] and alcohol and such.

“We’ve only seen one still picture at the moment. But that picture alone raises many serious questions that we need answers to.”

Asked if Mr Johnson was still the person to lead the Tory party, the Moray MP said: “I believe he’s the right person to lead the country at a time of very difficult circumstances while we are dealing with this new variant, but that doesn’t dismiss my serious concerns that there are questions that must be answered, and a number of questions that need serious answers.

“That’s what I’m looking for. I’ve been calling for that all week. We need clarity. We need to be honest with the public about what happened, why it happened, and what has been said since then. Because the public are rightly angry, I’m angry. 

“My family didn’t have the Christmas we expected last year. It looks like there si a possibility we won’t have he Christmas we expected this year.

“The public rightly expect those at the top of Government and their advisers to follow the rules them themselves wrote.”

Asked if he was angry at Mr Johnson, Mr Ross said: “I’m angry with everyone. Just look at these pictures. Look at people laughing about parties in Downing Street and how they would cover it up.

"The whole thing does make me angry, and it makes me angry because I know the people I represent in Moray and across the Highlands and Islands followed that guidance to the letter of the law because they were told to do it in the national interest.

“If the people telling them to do that couldn’t follow that guidance, then we are right to be angry at them.”

Mr Ross then floundered badly when asked several times by interviewer Martin Geissler to name some of Mr Johnson’s attributes.

Mr Ross replied: “Well, he is the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.”

Told that wasn’t an attribute, Mr Ross said: “I’m saying that along with saying that he needs to answer very serious questions. Not just about what’s in the papers today.”

Pressed again to name Mr Johnson’s attributes, Mr Ross said: “Well, he’s the leader of the main party in the United Kingdom parliament, and he is the Prime Minister who has been elected to lead the country.

“But that does not mean he or his officials are allowed to do whatever they want without any scrutiny, and that scrutiny will come from all sides, including myself here in Scotland.”

Pressed on why we was unable to name any of Mr Johnson’s good qualities, Mr Ross said: “Well, Martin, you’re asking me about what he’s doing as Prime Minister, and I’m saying he’s leading the country at the moment.

“He obviously has good enough qualities to have an 80-seat majority, but that 80-seat does not allow you to do whatever you want with your officials in Number 10.”

SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford said he would use "all levers available" to ensure Mr Johnson was held accountable for misleading the public and parliament.

He said: “The latest damning evidence looks like a clear breach of the rules by the very person who set them. 

“The Prime Minister’s constant misleading of Parliament - but more importantly, the public - cannot stand. It’s time for him to finally correct the record and resign.

“People in Scotland have looked on in horror as leak after leak confirms this Tory government wasn’t just breaking the rules - they were flagrantly flouting them at Westminster, while the public made important sacrifices for the good of us all.

“On the final week in the Commons before Christmas, the SNP will use all levers available to us to ensure that the Prime Minister is held accountable for his actions.”

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar said: “After weeks of barefaced lies Boris Johnson has nowhere left to hide.

“This shameful scandal tells you everything you need to know about Boris Johnson and his corrupt government.

“He has lost all credibility - at this time of crisis we need serious leadership and he is not fit to lead this country.”