Downing Street said that Mr Johnson, who was installed last month as foreign secretary, would be the “senior minister in charge” this week while Theresa May continued her holiday in the Swiss mountains.
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Whitehall uses a stand-in rota when the Prime Minister is away and her spokesman said it was “standard practice” for a senior duty minister to be appointed, adding: “They can attend to urgent business or meetings if required”.
The Foreign Secretary takes over from Chancellor Philip Hammond as he goes on holiday.
In a letter to Mr Johnson, Dr Fox suggested that British trade with other countries will not “flourish” if responsibility for future policy rests with the Foreign Office.
“The Prime Minister is very much in charge and is constantly kept abreast of what is going on”, the spokesman said.
Ms May was “unimpressed” with Dr Fox’s behaviour and sources said she wants her ministers to “stop wasting time” and instead focus on delivering Brexit.
Lib Dems leader Tim Farron commented: “It’s like putting the Chuckle Brothers in charge of Newsnight”. The previous prime minister was also more likely to leave colleagues in charge of running the country – although not always successfully. “Perhaps he can do something useful, like finding the £350million a week for the NHS that he promised”. I forgot about that.
“Someone else will have to do it then”.
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Labour deputy prime minister John Prescott was lambasted for being pictured playing croquet at the grace and favour country retreat Dorneywood while he was supposed to be running the country from Whitehall.
