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Stanley Johnson has been criticised by MPs after flying to Greece despite Government advice urging Britons against all but essential international travel. Transport Secretary Grant Shapps argued Boris Johnson ‘s father was within his right to travel abroad. He insisted that he will have to quarantine for 14 days on his return as Greece is not on the UK’s list of safe countries.

Speaking to Sky News, Mr Shapps said: “When you say restrictions, he will have ignored travel advice, not restrictions.

“The advice says you have to make your own decision about whether to travel.

“What he won’t be able to ignore of course is everyone returning to this country from a country not on the list will have to quarantine for 14 days.

“That would apply to him the same as anybody else who has left the country.”

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Grant Shapps was grilled over ‘optional’ travel advice (Image: SKY)

Boris Johnson’s father travelled to Greece despite advice (Image: SKY)

Host Gillian Joseph interjected: “But the question was your view on him ignoring the advice.”

Mr Shapps continued: “It’s advice, everyone can decide what to do with the advice.”

Ms Joseph added: “So, the advice is optional?”

The Transport Secretary said: “The quarantine isn’t so he will still have to quarantine.”

Stanley Johnson flew to Greece on his private plane (Image: GETTY)

Stanley Johnson shared a of his plane landing in Athens on Wednesday on social media platform Instagram.

He also posted a picture of himself wearing a face mask, which appeared to be taken in an airport.

Mr Johnson flew to Athens via Bulgaria, the Daily Mail said, because the Greek government has banned direct flights from the UK until mid-July.

He told the paper he was visiting the country on “essential business trying to COVID-proof my property in view of the upcoming letting season”.

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He said: “I need to set up distancing measures at the property because they’re taking it very seriously here. The Greeks are trying to stop bulk arrivals from the UK but they were quite happy to have me coming in.

“All they wanted to know was where I was coming from and what I was doing. Then I had my temperature taken and was swabbed twice.”

Mr Johnson said air bridges must be set up “as soon as possible”, adding: “From what I’ve seen the arrival of the British will not be a danger to the Greeks because they’re so careful here.”

But his trip has angered MPs, with shadow minister Rosena Allin-Khan tweeting: “Most people have been following the guidelines and socially distancing – not everyone will get a holiday this year.”

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Ruth Davidson shuts down Nicola Sturgeon during fiery FMQs

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said her government will propose the timescale and question for a second referendum on Scottish independence by next spring. Ms Sturgeon claimed challenges of the coronavirus pandemic will act as an accelerant rather than as a brake on the Scottish National Party ( SNP )’s ambitions. She promised that by next spring she will publish a draft bill for an independence referendum, which will set out “clearly and unambiguously to the people of Scotland” both the question to be asked and the timing of the vote.

The question will be subject to appropriate testing by the Electoral Commission, and the timescale will be “within the next term of parliament”, which lasts until 2026, and also “taking account of the development of the Covid-19 pandemic at the time of publication”.

She added that at next May’s Holyrood elections – in which the SNP are already predicted to win a majority as support for independence continues to rise – her party will make the case for Scotland to become “an independent country, and seek a clear endorsement of Scotland’s right to choose our own future”.

It is no secret that the Scots feel like they are a “second-class country” where Westminster overlords decide on everything from their finance to defence policies.

Ms Sturgeon has often complained about how Scotland “always” votes one way in UK general elections but gets the opposite result.

During the 2019 general election campaign, the First Minister said: “Scotland hasn’t voted for a Conservative Westminster government for 60 years, but for 36 of those years we’ve had to put up with a Tory government.

Nicola Sturgeon blunder: SNP to get ‘taste of their own medicine’ with Shetland (Image: GETTY / PA)

Should Scotland be an independent country? (Image: EXPRESS.CO.UK)

“And now we face being dragged out of Europe against our will.”

The same thing would happen in Holyrood if Scotland leaves the Union, though; meaning Ms Sturgeon might soon get a taste of her own medicine.

The Shetland Islands could vote for the Liberal Democrats but be ruled by the SNP.

Since the creation of the Scottish Parliament in 1999, Shetland has been represented by the Scottish Liberal Democrats; first by Tavish Scott and then by Beatrice Wishart.

Should a referendum happen then, the chances of the Shetland Islands looking for independence could also increase.

In September, the Shetland Islands Council voted overwhelmingly in favour of looking into ways of obtaining financial and political independence from Scotland.

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Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon (Image: GETTY)

Beatrice Wishart MSP (Image: PA)

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Councillors voted 18 to two in favour of the motion seeking “financial and political self-determination”.

Funding cuts and centralised decision-making by the Scottish National Party (SNP) were argued as reasons to explore independence.

Steven Coutts, the council leader, said “the status quo is not working” as “devolution and the Islands Act have not made any tangible difference to the quality of life”.

He added that the Scottish Parliament also feels “remote” to Shetland, which has a population of 23,000.

Plans intend to look into the option of Shetland being governed as a Crown Dependency, similar to Jersey and the Isle of Man, rather than becoming an independent nation.

In an exclusive interview with Express.co.uk, Ronald MacDonald, research professor of macroeconomics and international finance at Glasgow University’s Adam Smith Business School, claimed that their bid for independence would complicate things for the Scottish First Minister .

If independence was obtained, the Shetland Islands would be able to retain the revenue from oil in their waters, negatively impacting Scotland’s finances.

However, Mr MacDonald noted that the economic consequences would not be the most crucial issue.

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Professor Ronald MacDonald (Image: EXPRESS.CO.UK)

The Shetland Islands (Image: GETTY)

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He said: “Oil is still significant but not as significant as it was 10 years ago, or as it was in 2014.

“It is going to continue to be less important going forward.

“It is more what it signals rather than the economics of it.

“It would signal to other parts of Scotland that if they don’t vote for Scottish independence, maybe they could be separate and enclosed within Scotland.

“Areas from the border to the North East may not want Scottish independence.”

Mr MacDonald added: “It could be a very important national sovereignty issue.”

Any move for Shetland to become self-determining would need to be supported by an island-wide referendum.

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Room 2806: The Accusation trailer revealed by Netflix

All four episodes of Room 2806: The Accusation are available to stream and download on Netflix now. The docuseries concluded in 2015 and viewers are curious to know more about Dominque Strauss Kahn (DSK) today. Express.co.uk has everything you need to know.

Where is Dominque Strauss Kahn today?

Dominque Strauss Kahn was once considered a likely candidate for the French presidency.

He previously served as the former head of the International Monetary Fund from 2007 until 2011, and France’s Finance Minister from 1997 until 1999.

But in 2011, he lost his foot in the 2012 French presidential running and resigned as head of the IMF after he was charged with sexually assaulting a maid at the Sofitel Hotel in New York City.

Nafissatou Diallo, who appears in the Netflix documentary, recalls her alleged sexual encounter in detail with DSK in detail on May 14, 2011.

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Room 2806 The Accusation: Dominique Strauss Khan was arrested for sexual assault in 2011 (Image: NETFLIX)

Room 2806 The Accusation: Dominique Strauss Kahn was the former head of the IMF (Image: GETTY)

Room 2806 The Accusation: Dominique Strauss Kahn has teased his own documentary on Twitter (Image: TWITTER @dstrausskahn)

In October 2011, French public prosecutors dropped the investigation into Banon’s case.

Just two years later, French prosecutors announced that Strauss-Kahn was to stand trial concerning allegations of aggravated pimping at the Carlton hotel in Lille.

He was acquitted of the charges on June 12, 2015.

DSK has always denied all sexual misconduct charges against him and claimed his encounter with Diallo in New York was ‘consensual’ and a ‘moral failure’ in an interview with French media in 2011.

Since then, however, the 71-year-old has kept his private life out of the spotlight and very little is known about him today.

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Room 2806 The Accusation: Dominique Strauss Kahn and his wife Myriam L’Aouffir (Image: GETTY)

Since 2012, DSK has mainly worked in economic roles in Eastern Europe and other countries across the globe.

In July 2013, he was appointed to the board of the Russian Regional Development Bank and the Russian Direct Investment Fund.

In September 2013, CNN reported DSK was appointed to the position of economic adviser to the Serbian government and also played a role in setting up South Sudan’s National Credit Bank.

DSK is believed to have returned to lecturing in Asia in 2014.

He split from his wife, journalist Anne Sinclar in 2012 and was spotted with new partner PR executive Myriam L’Aouffir at the Cannes Festival in 2013.

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