PM’s father accused of flouting travel advice

Boris Johnson’s father has been accused of ignoring coronavirus travel advice after it emerged that he flew to Greece to visit his holiday home. Stanley Johnson yesterday said he made the trip for ‘‘essential business’’ reasons, to ‘‘Covid-proof’’ his coastal villa before the holiday season. The former Conservative MEP revealed he had arrived in Athens on Wednesday evening, having travelled to the country indirectly via Bulgaria, owing to Greece operating a ban on direct flights from the UK. Johnson, 79, shared a video on Instagram of his plane landing in the Greek capital and a photograph of himself wearing a face mask, which appeared to have been taken in the airport. While the Foreign Office currently advises Britons against ‘‘all but essential international travel’’, Johnson said the trip was necessary in order to make his villa safe for guests staying this summer. ‘‘I’m in Pelion on essential business trying to Covidproof my property in view of the upcoming letting season,’’ he told the Daily Mail. ‘‘I need to set up distancing measures at the property because they’re taking it very seriously here.’’