Dominic Raab has been forced to backtrack after he contradicted government guidance in a press appearance this morning.
The Foreign Secretary contradicted the Prime Minister two key points of guidance on the BBC, saying you can meet both parents in the park if you are socially distanced and that some people should return to work on Wednesday.
Boris Johnson said last night that you can only meet one person at a distance while some workers should return to work today.
Mixed and confusing
The PM’s messages were criticised for being “mixed” and “confusing” immediately after the briefing, and so it has shown today.
Raab had the unenviable job of facing the media to fill in the many blanks in government’s plan and struggled to understand much of it himself.
"If you're out in the park and you're 2 metres apart… you can meet up with other people"
— BBC News (UK) (@BBCNews) May 11, 2020
Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab says two people from different households can meet outside in England under plans to reopen society announced by the PM https://t.co/uSz88PsBBh #BBCBreakfast pic.twitter.com/cE5zNo1aUU
After contradicting the government’s advice it appears the Foreign Secretary has confirmed he fudged some remarks, implying, as Robert Peston says here, that we “are as we were”.
So a source close to @DominicRaab confirms that we are as we were, which is that even when out of doors we are not supposed to see mum and dad together. Maybe the foreign secretary was thinking this rule was likely to be honoured in the breach. All quite confusing and stressful https://t.co/6emjw6DaOR
— Robert Peston (@Peston) May 11, 2020
Piers Morgan cleared up the statement on GMB this morning, after being snubbed for an interview in favour of the BBC.
The government has clarified that people cannot see their parents at the same after Dominic Raab said that they could see both if they stay two metres apart in an interview.@piersmorgan | @susannareid100 | #GMB pic.twitter.com/fahcJLvt1k
— Good Morning Britain (@GMB) May 11, 2020
Related: Reports of “packed” public transport and “rammed” roads in London this morning
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