Boris Johnson refuses to self-isolate after staff member tests positive for Covid-19

UK prime minister had been on a visit to Scotland with the employee

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson meets officers during a visit to the Scottish Police College at Tulliallan near Kincardine, Scotland. James Glossop / Pool via Reuters / File Photo

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has refused to self-isolate after a member of his team tested positive for Covid-19.

Mr Johnson had been on a trip to Scotland, visiting a police college in Fife and a wind farm off Aberdeenshire, when the employee tested positive.

The staff member had been on a plane with the prime minister, but a spokesperson at Downing Street said Mr Johnson will not be self-isolating.

“The prime minister regularly visits communities across the UK and all aspects of visits are carried out in line with Covid guidance," a Downing Street spokesperson said.

“The prime minister has not come into close contact with anyone who has tested positive.”

Last month Mr Johnson and finance minister Rishi Sunak both self-isolated in line with national guidance, abandoning heavily criticised plans to take part in a pilot scheme that would have allowed them to continue working.

“It’s clear the Prime Minister has not learned anything from what happened last time he tried to cook up a reason to be above the rules everyone else has to follow," said Anneliese Dodds, chairwoman of the opposition Labour Party.

“Senior Conservatives are really taking the public for fools. This is yet another example of one rule for them and another for everyone else.”

Earlier this year, Cabinet minister Michael Gove used the pilot scheme to avoid isolation after returning from the Champions League final in Portugal.