The Covid isolation shambles is what we have come to expect from Boris Johnson – and that is shameful

That the prime minister is self-isolating at his Chequers country retreat on ‘freedom day’ is full of irony, writes Andrew Grice

Boris Johnson, left, with Rishi Sunak. Both men are currently isolating (PA)

Boris Johnson was right all along, according to one joke doing the rounds in Whitehall: when he cancelled last Christmas, he said we would be free by Easter. We will be. The only problem is that it will be Easter 2022.

The gallows humour will intensify after the shambolic attempt by the prime minister and the chancellor, Rishi Sunak to get around self-isolation rules by conveniently joining a trial under which people are tested daily for Covid-19 instead of staying at home. After more damaging allegations of “one rule for us, another for everyone else”, they beat an embarrassing retreat almost three hours later.

The official line is that the prime minister and chancellor “briefly” considered whether they should join the scheme, and then decided not to. But that doesn’t square with sending Robert Jenrick, the housing secretary, on to the Sunday TV programmes to defend the indefensible decision.