It was built in 1565 and costs taxpayers nearly £1 million a year. The Checkers Trust received a £916,000 ‘grant in assistance’ from the Cabinet in 2020-21 – up from £882,000 last year and £879,000 the year before. The Grade I-listed mansion has walled gardens, a vast art collection and a half-kilometre drive through a valley, lined with beech trees donated by Winston Churchill. The planned wedding party isn’t the first time Johnson’s ties to Checkers have proved controversial. In March 2020, it was claimed that the then Mrs Symonds traveled between the country shelter and No 10 despite strict quarantine rules. The couple were also accused of hosting a baby shower there, six weeks before the birth of their son Wilfred and just days before Johnson banned non-essential contact with others and all non-essential travel. Meanwhile, the shelter’s top housekeeper is said to have resigned in 2020, just six months after Mr Johnson was elected, amid allegations of conflict with Mrs Johnson. Charlotte Vine reportedly received a payoff after signing a non-disclosure agreement. Sources claimed there were wider tensions between the prime minister and his wife and the Checkers staff. One told the Mirror: “It was chaos, ‘Can we come now?’ or “We’re coming tomorrow.” “They were told they couldn’t because there was no staff.” A representative for Ms Johnson insisted there was no dispute.
