Judy Murray: Another week of spin, apologies, and chaos. How long can it, how long can he, go on?

Last Christmas was all but cancelled when, on the Saturday before, we were told the green light for family get-togethers had just turned red.

We had been locked down but assured that, if we played by the rules to curb the spread of Covid, restrictions would be eased over the festive period… so we did.

Well, most of us did – not it seems the politicians and those who work for them, making the rules and implementing the restrictions.

We’ve now learned that over the course of last December, a string of parties were held at Downing Street, with one bash described as having at least 40 or 50 people crammed “cheek by jowl” into a medium-sized room. Multiple sources say the event, held on December 18, saw Secret Santa gifts exchanged, refreshments served, and even party games for the guests.

Of course, they never actually denied a party had taken place but have instead repeated the mantra that “all guidance was followed”. Well, was it? How could it have been when the guidance at the time was that people were not allowed to mix indoors with anyone outside their household or support bubble, never mind host a party for four dozen.

Listening to these excuses and prevarications all last week, quite frankly, made me sick, especially as, at the same time, we heard so many heartbreaking stories from people who, following the rules, were separated from loved ones in care homes and hospitals.

While advisors have been busy trying to deflect attention and cover up, a leaked video showed No 10 staff joking about holding a Christmas party during a mock press conference – days after the contested event (again allegedly) took place. Allegra Stratton, then the Prime Minister’s press secretary, laughs when asked about a fictional party, described as: “It wasn’t a party, it was cheese and wine”, saying: “Is cheese and wine all right? This fictional party was a business meeting and it was not socially distanced.”

Yet again it seems like the Tories believe it is one rule for them and one rule for the rest of the country. The complete disregard for the people they serve is truly astounding.

The parties haven’t been the only headache for Boris over the past week, as staff at No 10 seem to be just as fed up with the government as the public. Taking a leaf out of the Dominic Cummings playbook, whistleblowers have popped up all over the news, revealing everything from drug misuse in Parliament to the “dysfunctional and chaotic” handling of the evacuation of Kabul.

After the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August, the UK airlifted 15,000 people out of the country, but former civil servant Raphael Marshall revealed the process for choosing who could get on a flight was arbitrary, as thousands of emails pleading for help went unread.

This all comes hard on the heels of other scandals: the pictures of the Prime Minister walking through a hospital without a mask; the private plane from the Cop26 summit in Glasgow; the attempts to save a backbencher caught lobbying on behalf of firms he was paid by? I could go on. And on.

Boris Johnson tries to pass off every controversy as if it is inconsequential, as if nothing really matters. He fails to lead by example. Most often, he fails to lead at all and is interested only in saving his own skin until the next scandal erupts. I don’t know how much longer his party, let alone our country, can suffer him.

Influential women who still have to hide

© Action Press/Shutterstock

The BBC has released its list of 100 inspiring and influential women from around the world, and I absolutely loved seeing such a variety of nationalities – women like Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, the Nigerian author and feminist icon – being celebrated for helping “reinvent our society, our culture and our world”.

Half of the list featured female activists, protestors, politicians and even sportswomen from Afghanistan, which is not only a sign of the times but also a sad indictment of just how precarious the situation is for women under the re-imposed Taliban rule. After all, it was only a few days ago that a high level official confirmed girls will not be allowed to attend secondary school under the new regime.

One woman who caught my eye was Muqadasa Ahmadzai, a social and political activist in Afghanistan, who organised a network of more than 400 young women to help survivors of domestic violence. So many of the other inspiring women on the BBC’s list could only be included under a pseudonym, their faces replaced by illustrations – both essential to ensure they don’t face reprisals. It is so sad to think we are celebrating these women here, yet in their own country they are still silenced.