‘You haven’t got a clue’: Piers Morgan attacks Tory MP who gives confused advice over visiting family

ITV host calls government’s handling of coronavirus crisis ‘absolute national disgrace’

Piers Morgan attacked a Conservative MP for giving confused advice over the new lockdown rules on live television, the day after Boris Johnson gave an address laying out the government’s plans.

The Good Morning Britain host asked Andrew Bridgen, the Tory MP for North West Leicestershire, whether he can now visit his two sons who do not live in his household.

Mr Bridgen replied by saying he could visit them as long as he abided by social distancing.

The ITV presenter said Mr Bridgen’s response was “completely against the new rules”.

In a withering rebuke, he told the Conservative MP: ”What you have just said is completely against the new rules as stated. There you are, as a Conservative member of parliament, who thinks you know exactly what Boris Johnson has been saying and yet you just told me to do something that I am not allowed to do.”

“You, as a leading, high-profile Conservative politician, haven’t got a clue about what these rules actually mean,” he added.

In response, Mr Bridgen accused his interviewer of launching a ”diatribe” against the prime minister.

The GMB journalist said in reply that the government’s handling of the coronavirus crisis had been “an absolute national disgrace” compared to “almost any other country in the world”.

As evidence, he pointed to the fact that the UK has the second highest death toll in the world. He also criticised the lack of testing and the lack of PPE provided for frontline workers.

“The diatribe is because so many people have died. And so many people are continuing to die,” Mr Morgan added.

The heated exchange came amidst criticism that the prime minister’s televised message on Sunday was ambiguous and confusing.

Keir Starmer, the leader of the opposition, said replacing the “stay-at-home” slogan with the “stay alert” message raised more questions than it answered.

“What the country wanted tonight was clarity and consensus, but we haven’t got either of those,” he said in a statement on Sunday.

Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s First Minister, also roundly condemned the government’s announcement and said that Scotland would continue to stress the “stay-at-home” message.