Government dismiss Raab criticism after allegations he broke Covid rules

The Government has dismissed criticism of Dominic Raab in a newspaper report which turned the spotlight on the Foreign Secretary for allegedly avoiding quarantine rules.

The Sunday Mirror says Mr Raab dodged the Government’s travel stipulations by not going into quarantine after a visit to France late last month.

France is on the UK’s amber-plus list. While rules covering quarantining after visiting France have now been relaxed, at the time of Mr Raab’s visit the Government advice said people arriving from the country had to quarantine for 10 days.

However, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has responded to the Sunday Mirror’s report by saying Mr Raab acted within the rules.

Government ministers are exempt from quarantine on account of conducting essential state business for the UK outside of the country. The exemptions cover both red list and non-red list countries.

“The Foreign Secretary travels on diplomatic business within the rules,” an FCDO spokesman said in a statement.

“It is his job to pursue the UK’s interests abroad, including on security, trade, and international development.”