A FORMER Penrith and the Border MP and Tory minister said it serves people right if they "cram themselves into a ghastly Ryanair flight or pack a pub and get Covid-19."

Lord Blencathra, former MP David Maclean, was speaking in the House of Lords on Friday in a debate about face coverings.

He said he did not care if people made those choices but said he cared "very deeply indeed" that they might infect other innocent people, including their elderly relatives, friends and colleagues.

The Tory Peer believes the rules around face coverings should be simplified and that they should be worn by everyone, except for those with medical exemptions, at all times other than when they are in their own home or when eating or drinking in a properly socially distanced establishment.

Lord Blencathra added that if medical professionals must wear face masks, then so too should everyone else.

He also said the media should "stop whingeing about not meeting granny at Christmas. Christmas is three months away and anything can happen in the meantime."