Rishi Sunak has admitted not wearing a seatbelt while filming a video for his Instagram account in the back of a moving vehicle – an apparent violation of the law.
According to his government’s own safety campaign, any driver or passenger not wearing a seat belt is breaking the law and is liable to a fine of up to £500.
Downing Street said the prime minister apologized for what it described as a “brief lapse in judgement” by taking off his seatbelt to record the video message on social media while he was a passenger in the back seat of a car.
A spokesman for Number 10 said: “This was a brief error of judgement. The prime minister took off his seat belt to film a short clip.
Sunak “fully accepts it was a mistake and apologises,” the spokesman said, adding: “The Prime Minister believes everyone should wear a seat belt. It was an error in judgment; he removed it for a short period of time to capture a clip you watched, but he accepts it was a mistake.
The video was posted on Sunak’s own Instagram account, but no longer appears there.
Labor criticized Sunak for the act, with a spokesman saying: “Rishi Sunak doesn’t know how to run his seatbelt, his debit card, the train service, the economy, this country. This list grows daily and makes for endlessly painful viewing.”
There are several exceptions to the seat belt requirement, including when the car is used for police, fire and rescue services and for people with certified medical conditions. None appeared to apply to Sunak, whose car was escorted by police motorcycles.
The government is considering tightening seatbelt rules to ensure drivers who don’t wear them get penalty points. Recent figures from the Department for Transport suggest that around 30% of people killed in cars on Britain’s roads in 2021 were not wearing seat belts.
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Lancashire Police sent a request for comment to Scotland Yard, which has not yet responded.
Sunak was previously fined for flouting Covid restrictions while chancellor.
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