‘They broke the rules without a care while my daughter died in lockdown’ | UK News
On 15 May, 2020, Boris Johnson and his Cabinet colleagues dined on wine and cheese in his Downing Street garden.
They’d rushed outside to make the most of the sun after a press conference where Matt Hancock had described the ‘shared sacrifice’ the British public were making during the pandemic.
On the same day, just four miles away, the family of 18-year-old Ruby Fuller felt the full impact of that “shared sacrifice”, as their beloved daughter’s life ebbed away at home in Herne Hill, South London.
Her mum, dad and sister were by her side as she passed away, but Ruby had been forced to say goodbye to her wider family – including her grandparents – and friends on Zoom as she was determined not to put anyone at risk by breaking lockdown restrictions.
‘Ruby knew she was going to die,’ her mum Emma tells Metro.
‘Three weeks and one day after we were told her cancer had come back, she was gone. It came back with astonishing aggression and power.
‘Her friends, cousins and grandparents had all been desperate to say goodbye before she died.
‘I told Ruby “your situation is special. I think if we asked, people would be happy to break the rules to see you.”
‘But the number of Covid deaths were rising at an alarming rate. The order to stay at home put the fear of God into us.
‘Ruby wouldn’t break the rules and put anyone at risk. At one point she kind of laughed about it and said “Imagine I took my grandparents out with me, that would be awful. No, we have to follow the rules. I’ll speak to them on Zoom.’
Ruby’s farewells were issued over a small screen to her friends and family – she didn’t hug them goodbye or dare hold a socially-distanced meeting.
There was no funeral when she died.
Choosing ten people to attend – given the restrictions at the time – was too unbearable for her family.
Instead, they decorated their front garden in tribute to the teenager. Emma created bunting which spelled out the words ‘Live Kindly, Live Loudly.’
It was a motto Ruby had embraced and had asked her family to demonstrate after her death.
Before her cancer battle, the teenager had volunteered with Greenpeace, took to the streets of London to protest against the construction of a dam in South Africa and persuaded her family to become vegetarian to reduce their carbon footprint.
‘She had a clear vision of making the world a better place’, Emma recalls.
‘I went on my first ever march with her when she was 15. It was an anti-Brexit march and she’d brought a sign – she was brilliant at making signs – that said ‘Eton Mess.’ It showed David Cameron with devil horns and Boris Johnson with a clown nose.’
In the months after Ruby’s death, the rumour mill began to churn with murmurs of illegal gatherings behind closed doors at Downing Street.
A clip leaked of then-press secretary Angela Stratton joking about a Christmas party attended by staff.
The Daily Mirror and ITV had obtained photos from inside the lockdown gatherings and, soon, the term ‘Partygate’ was coined.
10 months on, the scandal has now been adapted into a television docu-drama, which mixes contemporary news footage with dramatisations of the drunken parties in Downing Street during the first national lockdown.
Suitcases of wine, Tesco sandwiches and even a karaoke machine were among the items smuggled in via suitcases to avoid the watchful eye of the country’s media.
Emma shares Ruby’s story as part of the new film, released by Channel 4 today.
She says: ‘Finding out about the parties myself was utterly maddening. Ruby died the same day of one of the “cheese and wine” gatherings.
‘To think they were breaking the rules without a care while my daughter lay dying is infuriating. It was like it hadn’t occurred to Boris Johnson that the rules he put in place actually related to him.
‘He hasn’t ever given a heartfelt apology. There’s no indication he understands how devastating his behaviour was to everyone who had been terrified of Covid and followed the rules.’
The nation’s first lockdown was implemented in March 2020, two months after Ruby had a stem cell transplant.
On April 23 that year – after a routine blood test – she found out her blood cancer had returned despite the operation.
‘The cancer had come back so quickly after her transplant that there was nothing more they could do. She was going to die,’ Emma says.
‘The fact we were in lockdown became excruciating because she hadn’t seen any friends since before her transplant in January. She’d been so careful with her health and didn’t want to catch anything.
‘It was so hard seeing her say goodbye to everyone over Zoom. It didn’t feel right.’
The teenager had dreamed of going to Hawaii – the money Ruby had saved for the trip was later donated to charity – so Emma and husband Dylan desperately worked to recreate the holiday that would never be.
A neighbour lent the family a hot tub and Ruby’s godmother sent inflatable palm trees and blow-up flamingos.
In the last picture before her death, the 18-year-old smiles weakly as the hot water soothes her aching muscles.
She died on May 15 surrounded by her family and beloved cat, Pacifica.
Emma continues: ‘After her death, Ruby’s friends and family couldn’t come together to support each other.
‘But at the time we understood why it had to be like that. It was terrifying and the message was loud and clear – it would be irresponsible and dangerous to put other people in danger.
‘We did what was right, Ruby wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. She showed more maturity than any of the adults involved in those parties.’
Before she died, Ruby asked that her family get a puppy, to help ease the pain for her sister.
Halloumi the beagle cross – a rescue from Cyprus – was adopted into the family as a result.
‘Ruby was right, a dog really helped us’, Emma says.
Halloumi – named after Ruby’s favourite food – also plays a part in carrying on her legacy of helping others.
The dog has been registered with Pets as Therapy UK and goes with Emma to visit a children’s home in Croydon every fortnight.
Seeing the positivity come from her daughter’s tragic death is an incredibly bittersweet feeling to deal with.
Emma continues: ‘People say it gets easier with time. It’s been three and a half years and I don’t think it does. I think you just get better at learning to live with grief.
‘Rob Delaney [American actor and comedian] lost his son Henry at two-years-old. He has three other boys. He said something I really connect with, that 25% of his parenting effort still goes into being Henry’s dad. Just because a child dies, it doesn’t mean you’re no longer their parent.
‘I connect with Ruby every day by living a life she would have wanted. She wanted people to be kind and make a difference, to live loud and call out injustice.
‘I am acutely aware people had it harder than we did during the pandemic. Ruby was surrounded by me, her father and her sister when she died. Love was all around. Others weren’t that lucky and it is unimaginable to think about the people who died alone.
‘The Partygate scandal revealed to everyone that we hadn’t been “all in it together” and “sharing a sacrifice” as a nation.
‘Normal people were working together to follow the rules. But the people in charge didn’t follow their own instructions. It was a betrayal like no other.
‘Today, it’s as though we’re accustomed to the Government making excuses and lying through their teeth.
‘Why are we all putting up with it?’
‘I still haven’t paid my Covid fine – I don’t know how I will.’
Through the months Downing Street staff were having ‘work parties’ – thousands of Covid fines were handed out.
The financial punishments for breaking lockdown restrictions could range from £200 to £20,000.
One student was forced to cough up £10,000 after a house party while one woman was fined £850 for having no valid reason to ride a train.
Toriano Reid, who shares his story in Channel 4’s Partygate, was charged even more.
‘I can’t lie to you, I’ve thought about suicide. If it wasn’t for my children, I don’t know what could have happened.’ Toriano tells Metro.
The 46-year-old, who lives in Enfield, North London, still hasn’t paid his Covid fine. He says he doesn’t earn enough to.
He worked as a Tesco delivery driver during the first national lockdown.
When he wasn’t at work, he would drop off home-made food outside the doors of people in his community.
But upon returning from work in Spring 2020, he found a situation unfolding that would change his life – for the worse.
Toriano’s niece was celebrating her birthday party in his garden with a small number of loved ones.
He wasn’t actually there for the celebration, it was only when police arrived he realised the extent of the incident.
As the homeowner of the property the rule-breaking event had taken place at, he later received a Covid fine through the post.
‘I thought it was some sort of scam’, Toriano admits.
‘I tried to call and explain I hadn’t been at the gathering. I’ve been at court twice. But no-one has listened. I was told if I don’t pay then I could go to prison for three months.
‘It’s hugely affecting my mental health. I wake up worried and I go to bed worried. I just can’t afford to pay the fine.
‘I have 12 children and I work hard to care for them, six days a week. I’ve lived in this country for 25 years and I haven’t had a holiday in that time.
‘I didn’t stop throughout Covid. I was delivering to people to make sure they had their food and picked up shopping for my elderly neighbour. I took it all seriously and wanted to look after people.’
Toriano, who is originally from Jamaica, also has been left questioning the reasoning behind the fines – why was he hit with £14,000, while Boris only had to pay £50?
Toriano acknowledges the party – even though it was outdoors – broke rules in place.But he’s still been less ‘furious’ that ‘normal people’ were treated in such a different fashion to the politicians engineering the Covid rules.
‘Boris paying £50 was a slap in the face. The government set out rules they had no intention of following. It is disgraceful,’ he says.
‘I got penalised for a party in the garden. So did lots of other people. Then Boris and the others did the exact same thing and got away with it.
‘I don’t understand. I’m angry, I’m not going to sit here and pretend I’m not.’
Partygate will air on Channel 4 on Tueday, 3 Oct at 9.30pm
To donate to Ruby’s fund to help find a potential cure for blood cancers – click here
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