Johnson had gone to Somerset, and Raab was in Cyprus until Sunday, hours before the fall of Kabul, after being absent from public debate for more than a week. “In view of that I find the prime minister’s decision to go on holiday surprising. “He has been monitoring the situation in Afghanistan throughout.” No 10 also said Raab had attended meetings while away and spoken to ambassadors and senior staff. Starmer said Raab should have returned sooner from his holiday, and described the speed of the government’s response to the situation in Afghanistan as slow. You can see what we’ve delivered with 150 British nationals who are going to be arriving back in the UK tomorrow [Tuesday] morning.”

Source: The Guardian August 16, 2021 14:36 UTC