UNMASKED ON THE TRAIN
As PM is due to announce new lockdown plans, one of his MPs flouts the rules
A TORY MP has been caught taking a 60-mile train journey without wearing a mask – less than two weeks after telling his constituents they ‘must’ wear face coverings on public transport.
Danny Kruger, a former aide to fellow Old Etonian Boris Johnson, was photographed flouting the law while on the hour-long trip from Hungerford in Berkshire to London Paddington last Friday. The son of Great British Bake Off judge Prue Leith has since apologised, saying he ‘forgot’ to wear a mask – and criticised the passenger who took the picture and posted it online, despite the government encouraging the public to snitch on Covid-19 rule-breakers.
The photo emerged as the prime minister prepared to announce new lockdown plans following a stark ‘second
wave’ warning from the country’s chief scientific and medical advisers, Sir Patrick Vallance and Prof Chris Whitty.
The pair suggested there could be 50,000 cases a day by the middle of next month if infections continued to double every 24 hours, with 200 daily deaths by November.
Yesterday, the number of new infections was 4,268, while the death toll rose by 11 to 41,788.
Mr Johnson is expected to announce a new crackdown today after a meeting of the emergency Cobra committee. All pubs, bars and hospitality venues will have to close by 10pm from Thursday. It will be table service only. Last night, the Covid-19 alert level was raised from three to four, indicating ‘transmission is high or rising exponentially’ – paving the way for greater restrictions.
Face coverings on public transport were made compulsory in England on June 15, punishable by on-the-spot fines of £100, rising to a maximum of £3,200 for repeat offenders. The train passenger who took the photo of Mr Kruger posted it on Twitter, along with the words: ‘Don’t blame it on the young people Boris when your own party aren’t even following your rules.’
Mr Kruger said in a statement: ‘I boarded an almost-empty carriage at Hungerford and quite simply forgot to put on my mask. When I got to Paddington I realised my mistake and covered up for the rest of my journey.
‘If the person had reminded me rather than taking a photo and posting it on social media, I would of course have put on my mask then and there. I do apologise for my mistake.’
Before being elected as MP for Devizes in Wiltshire last December, Mr Kruger’s previous jobs included being David Cameron’s speechwriter and Mr Johnson’s political secretary. He also worked with the PM’s chief adviser Dominic Cummings – and defended him against criticism over his lockdown-breaking trip to his parents’ farm in Durham and drive to Barnard Castle ‘to check his vision’.
Fewer than eight per cent of Britons are believed to have coronavirus antibodies, leaving the ‘vast majority’ of people still ‘susceptible’, Prof Whitty said. Infection rates were rising across all ages and areas, he added.
Health secretary Matt Hancock told the Commons: ‘There can be no doubt that this virus is accelerating.’ He also confirmed compulsory self-isolating for anyone testing positive for Covid-19 and fines of up to £10,000 for repeat offenders and serious breaches. ‘ It is vital that all people follow the rules we’ve put in place,’ he told MPs.
Workers on low-incomes who need to self-isolate will be eligible for a £500 payment from next Monday.
People in local lockdown areas will be able to mix households to offer childcare for under-14s, potentially allowing grandparents to look after youngsters while their parents work.