Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson arrives with his dog Dilyn at the Methodist Hall in central London to cast his vote in local elections on May 5, 2022. Polls opened across the UK in local and regional elections that could prove historic in Northern Ireland and heap further pressure on embattled Johnson. Photo: AFP

Boris Johnson said he was humbled and took responsibility but refused to quit after a damning official report on Wednesday detailed a series of illegal lockdown parties at the Downing Street office.

Opposition politicians and some in his own party have repeatedly called for him to resign over the alcohol-fueled gatherings in violation of COVID-19 rules all but banning people from socializing outside their households.

"I am humbled and I have learned a lesson," Prime Minister Johnson told parliament, saying he would not quit.

The report by senior official Sue Gray did not specifically blame Johnson, but included photographs and gave graphic details from more than a dozen gatherings.

He attended some, including a party to celebrate his 56th birthday on June 19, 2020, for which he was fined but which Gray said he was unaware of in advance. Johnson's wife Carrie and finance minister Rishi Sunak were also fined for that event.

"Many of these events should not have been allowed to happen," Gray said. "The senior leadership ... must bear responsibility for this culture."

Johnson, who commissioned the report, said he was appalled by some of the behavior it had uncovered but that attending leaving events to thank colleagues was part of his job.

Gray's interim findings were published in January, but details were withheld until the end of a police inquiry that concluded last week with 126 fines handed out.

A YouGov opinion poll found 59 percent of Britons thought Johnson should resign following the report, but just 7 percent think he will. Three quarters said they believed he knowingly lied about whether he broke COVID-19 rules.

Reuters