TRANSPORT SECRETARY Grant Shapps’ failure to give an accurate starting date for his own quarantine rule changes was described as a “complete shambles” by transport union TSSA today.

In an interview on Thursday night the minister said that 14-day quarantine measures affecting six additional countries would come into effect at midnight on Sunday — 20 hours later than was actually the case.

He corrected his mistake later that night via a tweet that has since been deleted, saying: “It’s Saturday at 4am, meaning that anyone returning on Sunday onwards will need to quarantine.”