Northern Ireland minister Steve Baker has jetted off on holiday to Greece less than a week after Rishi Sunak called a general election.
Baker told The Mirror that he was going ahead with his plans because the prime minister previously MPs it was fine for them to book holidays during this week.
He told the newspaper: “The prime minister told everyone we could go on holiday and then called a snap election. So I’ve chosen to do my campaign work in Greece.”
Baker added that voters who support him had told him “good for you”, and that this is “the only holiday we’ve got planned for this summer”.
But the Labour candidate for his seat, Emma Reynolds, told The Mirror she was “staggered” by his decision, adding: “He clearly doesn’t care about his constituents.”
Sunak’s announcement last week came as a surprise to many, as he was expected to call the election around autumn.
Parliament was scheduled to be in recess this week, too.
Baker also raised eyebrows on Monday when publicly criticised Sunak’s flagship plan of introducing National Service.
He wrote on X that the the policy had been “sprung on” Tory candidates, and developed by political advisers rather than the collectively agreed by ministers.
It comes after a leaked Tory memo reveals CCHQ has named and shamed some MPs in the party for supposedly refusing to “get behind” the campaign.
Baker caused a stir online last week when he was asked on camera what he would do if he was not re-elected.
Without even missing a beat, he said: “Skydiving, motorcycling, fast catamaran sailing, there are a wide range of things I’ll do. I think you were talking about work, though...
“The first thing I’ll do if I don’t win my seat, is have a long break.”
Baker secured his Wycombe seat with a narrow majority of less than 4,500 votes in 2019, and has admitted his seat is at risk.