Boris Johnson and Carrie's baby daughter Romy hit 'quite badly' by Covid

20 January 2022, 05:57 | Updated: 20 January 2022, 07:45

Boris Johnson's baby daughter Romy was hit 'quite badly' by Covid-19 when she was just five weeks old, it is reported.

Downing Street announced last week that a member of the Prime Minister's family had tested positive for the virus.

It wasn't made clear at the time who the family member was, but the Daily Mail reported today that it was his daughter Romy.

A source told the paper she had suffered with the virus 'quite badly' aged five weeks but was now 'on the mend'.

Mr Johnson was dealing with the illness in his family as he attempted to fight off a plot to topple him by rebel Red Wall Tory MPs over the Partygate scandal.

Mr Johnson is battling on after a senior Tory demanded "in the name of God, go" and a Conservative MP defected to Labour over allegations of rule-breaking parties in Downing Street.

Former Brexit secretary David Davis called for the Prime Minister's resignation in a Commons intervention on Wednesday before later warning the party faces "dying a death of 1,000 cuts" if they do not act swiftly to oust him.

Minutes before Prime Minister's Questions, Bury South MP Christian Wakeford dramatically switched sides, refusing to "defend the indefensible" over alleged breaches of Covid rules.

But Mr Johnson was said to have been handed a fragile reprieve by some colleagues considering forcing a no confidence vote until they hear the result of senior civil servant Sue Gray's inquiry into events in No 10 during restrictions.

He had been holding talks with backbench MPs to shore up support and prevent the 54 letters being sent to Sir Graham Brady, the chair of the 1922 Committee of Conservatives, that are required to trigger a vote of no confidence.

With Mr Wakeford facing anger from former colleagues on the Tory benches, some suspected he had temporarily galvanised support for Mr Johnson ahead of Ms Gray's report, which is now expected next week.

No 10 said Mr Johnson will fight any no-confidence vote launched against him and insisted he expects to fight the next general election.

In another development yesterday, Plan B measures to curb the spread of Omicron were axed.

The Prime Minister told MPs in the Commons that work-from-home guidance would be dropped immediately and rules on face coverings in classrooms would also be scrapped in England from Thursday.

Other measures including the requirement to wear face masks on public transport and in shops will end next Thursday.

The legal requirement for people with coronavirus to self-isolate will also be allowed to lapse when the regulations expire on March 24, and that date could be brought forward.

The move could help appease Mr Johnson's Tory critics at a time when the Prime Minister has been under pressure over Downing Street parties.

It comes after Covid infection levels fell in most parts of the UK for the first time since early December, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).