Boris Johnson has denied that he was mocking the public for following the government’s own Covid rules in a toe-curling interview.
The former prime minister spoke to Sky News to promote his new memoir Unleashed, where he discusses how his government tried to manage the pandemic and the strict lockdown which was put in place.
But his own writing was then put to him in a tense exchange with journalist Wilfred Frost.
The presenter said: “At times [in the book] you seem to mock the public for how closely they followed the rules.
“You write, ’The real question I suppose –”
“No, I totally reject that –,” a clearly-annoyed Johnson cut in, but Frost continued reading from the book: ‘Why on earth the public so avidly crave these rules, why they were so willing to have their doings circumscribed in such rabbinical detail.’
“You go on to say, ‘the rules for people were questioned –’”
Johnson said: “I totally reject what you just said.”
The former MP claimed that quote was talking about a “particular phase” during the pandemic, when the UK was approaching autumn of 2020 when the tiered lockdown system was introduced.
The former prime minister said: “I marvelled at the way that the public – at least at first – willing to try and observe these rules in all their detail, and I pay tribute to them.”
But he claimed the tiering system was just “impossible”.
Frost reminded him of his quote from Unleashed, and asked: “I don’t think anybody craved these rules, did they?”
“No I think you’re wrong, I think they did, I think if you look historically at the way pandemics work –” Johnson said.
Frost interrupted to remind the ex-PM that he instructed people to stay home and they did not necessarily want to do so.
“It does sound like you have some disdain for people who followed the rules to the letter,” he said.
Johnson himself received £50 fine from the Met Police for breaking lockdown rules by attending a gathering in Downing Street rather than practising social distancing.
“Those are your words,” Johnson hit back. “If you look at the way people historically have responded to pandemics, I remember [chief medical adviser] Chris Whitty talking to me about this right at the beginning, people want government to come in and lay down the law.”
The tense exchange comes after Johnson already came under fire last week for saying in his memoir that he regrets apologising over partygate.
He told Sky News he was “of course” sorry for breaching the rules.