Boris Johnson fielded questions from MPs in the House of Commons after announcing coronavirus restrictions would be dropped over the next few days. But SNP MP Stephen Flynn seized an opportunity to deliver a sly dig at Mr Johnson, asking whether the rules were being dropped because the Prime Minister “did not understand them”. Backbenchers loudly laughed at the jibe which caught Mr Johnson off-guard as he began rambling about Scotland and England’s position on the pandemic.
Speaking in the House of Commons, Mr Johnson told MPs that coronavirus restrictions would be dropped on Wednesday and next Thursday and revealed 90 percent of over-60s have come forward to receive their booster.
But Mr Flynn bluntly asked the Prime Minister: “Can I have confirmation from the Prime Minister, is he getting rid of the Covid rules simply because he doesn’t understand them?”
The SNP politician was referring to the Partygate scandal which has engulfed the Conservative Party with backbenchers laughing at the attack.
A sheepish Mr Johnson replied: “We were able to make progress on the Covid rules and to get rid of them because of our deep understanding of the pandemic.
“And I thank all our Scottish colleagues for the way they’ve helped to communicate… for the way they helped us communicate what we’re doing… in such a way as the British people across the whole of the UK… move forward more or less together.
“So that says the differences between us are far smaller than the similarities and I’m very proud of that.”
During the reply, Mr Flynn could be seen sarcastically waving goodbye to Mr Johnson as his Tories rebel against him.
Mr Johnson suffered a disastrous PMQs this week after red wall Tory backbencher, Christian Wakeford, defected to the Labour Party.
The so-called “Pork Pie Plot” involves around 20 MPs who won red wall seats in the 2019 election and are discussing the Prime Minister’s leadership challenges.
From next Thursday, mandatory mask-wearing and Covid certification will be dropped although some premises may choose to keep them if they desire.
Working from home rules will also be dropped from Wednesday.
Health Secretary Sajid Javid announced the UK must learn to live with COVID-19 like flu and warned they could not “eradicate” the virus.
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