The Prime Minister and wife Carrie took their children Wilf and Romy to the beach in Porthminster, St Ives, during their weekend visit to the South West. Downing Street insisted the “sole reason” for the flight was to ferry Johnson and staff back from state business. The government aircraft was sent from London to Royal Naval Air Station Culdrose, near Helston, on the morning of Monday June 13, the Sunday Mirror first reported. Last Friday, Mr Johnson went to the Royal Cornwall Show, where he visited cattle and sheep tents and spoke to local traders. He also met farmers with Tory candidate Helen Hurford ahead of the Tiverton and Honiton by-election on June 23, which the Lib Dems won in a major blow to the prime minister. Over the weekend, Mr Johnson was spotted soaking up the sun on St Ives beach. On Monday’s flight, he went to Southern England Farms in Hayle, where he was photographed driving a tractor, cutting a courgette and weighing broccoli, before flying back to London. Emily Thornberry, Labour’s shadow attorney-general, accused the prime minister of “treating the government’s official plane as his personal taxi service, regardless of the cost to the environment or the taxpayer”. “It’s the act of a man drunk on power, who needs to be told he’s had enough,” he added. A No 10 spokesman said: “All travel decisions are made with safety and time constraints in mind. “The Prime Minister is accompanied on government business by a delegation of staff, which is considered as part of ensuring value for money for taxpayers. “That was the sole reason the plane was used to transport the Prime Minister and his staff back from this particular visit.” Boris Johnson was accused of “stunning hypocrisy” last year after flying back by private jet from the Cop26 climate summit to attend a private members’ club dinner in London. His trip to Cornwall also raises questions about whether the flight was justified under the ministerial code. “Ministers must ensure that they always make efficient and cost-effective travel arrangements,” the Regulations state. “Official transport should not normally be used for travel arrangements arising from parties or private business unless justified by security reasons.” Family members are allowed to join ministers on trips “provided it is clearly in the public interest”. The same plane was used for Mr Johnson’s diplomatic visit to Rwanda, Germany and Spain. During the G7 summit at Schloss Elmau, Prime Minister and Canadian Justin Trudeau compared the relative sizes of their jets. Johnson said he had seen “Canada Force One” on the tarmac, and Trudeau joked that the prime minister’s plane was bigger. “Very modest” was how Mr Johnson described his own jet.
