Margaret Ferrier MP has admitted to travelling back and forth from Scotland to London despite awaiting a coronavirus diagnosis that later proved positive.
Ferrier, a member of the leftist, separatist Scottish National Party (SNP), had said she had taken a COVID-19 test on Saturday after experiencing “mild symptoms”, but made the journey south on Monday because she said she was feeling “much better”.
Potentially risking infection to other MPs in Parliament, she then entered the chamber and used her time to praise the NHS for its handling of the pandemic, according to the Metro. It was after her appearance in the House of Commons that evening she received the news she had coronavirus. Rather than self-isolating at her London home as legally mandated, she took the train back to Scotland on Tuesday morning, failing to inform the Speaker of the House of Commons until Wednesday afternoon.
The MP apologised for her actions, and the SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford announced on Thursday that he would be suspending the whip for Ferrier, effectively suspending her from the party. On Friday, party leader Nicola Sturgeon called for Ferrier to “do the right thing” and resign as MP.
The Telegraph said that as Ms Ferrier had broken coronavirus laws, the police were now involved and she may face a £4,000 fine. The Commons chamber is now also having a deep clean as parliamentary authorities attempt to trace everyone the SNP MP had had contact with.
The MP for Rutherglen and Hamilton West was one of several leftist MPs to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s senior advisor Dominic Cummings in May after he took a drive while isolating for the virus to test his eyesight.
Speaking at the time, Ferrier had said: “The public health advice is crystal clear. For the safety of others, anyone with coronavirus symptoms must self-isolate, in line with Government guidance. They should not leave the house for any reason.
“Dominic Cummings’ actions have undermined the sacrifices that we have all been making in lockdown to protect each other from coronavirus. His position is untenable, and he must be removed from his post now.”
Ferrier is not the only high-profile figure in British politics to have been caught out this week for failing to follow the coronavirus rules that Britons have been threatened with fines over.
It was also revealed on Thursday that former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn had broken the ‘rule of six’ by having eight guests over for a dinner party last week, according to The Sun. The memorial dinner was reportedly held in honour of a recently-passed “anarchist” friend who was a member of the Occupy Wall Street movement. The breach was revealed after a photograph was taken of the party-goers and later leaked.
Mr Corbyn apologised; however, Guido Fawkes reports that this is not the first breach of coronavirus rules for the 71-year-old, having reportedly committed another five since March.
Meanwhile, Stanley Johnson, the father of the prime minister who is keeping the UK subject to oppressive social distancing and localised lockdown laws, was caught without wearing a mask in a newsagent.
The prime minister’s father apologised, telling The Mirror on Wednesday that he had been out of the country for a few weeks and was not “100 per cent up to speed” with the rapidly-changing coronavirus rules.
Stanley Johnson was caught earlier this year flying out to his second home in Greece despite the Foreign Office recommending against non-essential travel.
While both men faced fines starting at £200 for breaching coronavirus rules, police told media that neither Mr Corbyn nor the senior Mr Johnson would be punished.
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