SINCE the UK Government has now banned ministers from appearing on Good Morning Britain, the most relevant Tory able to take part in the programme this morning was … Edwina Currie.

The former MP, who was a junior health minister for two years in the 1980s but resigned during the salmonella-in-eggs controversy, clashed with Piers Morgan this morning as she struggled to explain England’s new coronavirus lockdown guidelines – while insisting they were easy to understand.

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On Twitter, one writer said the exchange was the “ridiculous vagueness of the new lockdown guidelines made flesh.”

During the clash, Currie appeared to suggest that the journalist’s son could come and visit him as long as he was cleaning his father’s home. However in England people are being told to use common sense and only see their loved ones outdoors – here in Scotland the stay at home message still applies.

The new guidelines were revealed on Sunday night alongside the new “stay alert” slogan – both have been criticised for a lack of clarity.

Seeking answers from Currie, Morgan asked her: “Why can a cleaner come into my house several times a week but neither of the two sons I haven’t seen in 10 weeks can do the same. Explain to me.”

Currie responded: “Right because your cleaner’s supposed to be cleaning and making your house a much healthier place – making sure all the surfaces, the door knobs the toilets everywhere else …”

Morgan then suggested his son is a “great cleaner” and asked what the guidelines would be then.

The former MP replied: “Fine, well if your son’s a cleaner that’s lovely.”

Morgan told her: “You’ve just said to me my youngest son is a good cleaner can come into my house, as long as he does a bit of cleaning, he can come and see me. Is that what you just said?”

Currie accused the journalist of “haranguing” her before telling him: “You can have your cleaner in your house because cleaning is important. Your son is important. People from two different households starting to take the risk of spreading the ….”

But Morgan wasn’t satisfied with the answer, again pushing: “Just a straight yes or no, you like a straight answer. Can my son as a good cleaner come and clean my house and I see him in my house?”

Currie said simply: “Yes.”

Online people felt the clash showed how the new “stay alert” messaging could be interpreted differently by people.

Edwin Hayward tweeted: “This is the ridiculous vagueness of the new lockdown guidelines made flesh. Yes, the conversation was extremely Piers Morgan-y, if you know what I mean, but he still got Edwina Currie to say - several times - things that seemed to directly contradict the new government advice.”

Another Twitter user replied: “Tories, get together, decide on the rules, THEN tell us.”

And the Black Saltire account posted: “Dear English friends you have my deepest sympathy. Edwina Currie on #GMB said to Piers you can have a member of your family from a different household in your house as long as they are cleaning. The weird and bizarre messages from the Tories is getting weirder by the day.”