Photo posted to Twitter by Grant Shapps on Monday
British Affairs Secretary Grant Shapps has denied manipulating a photo he posted on his Twitter account to remove former Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Shapps had published a photo taken during a working visit to Space Cornwall, praising the first space mission to launch from British soil.
However, social media users found that Johnson, who had also visited the center in 2021, had disappeared from sight.
Shapps said he was unaware the photo had been edited, adding that he had now deleted it.
The original photo is still available on the Prime Minister’s account on the “Flickr” platform, on June 9, 2021.
Johnson and Shapps are pictured side by side at the Cornwall Center during a visit to Launcher One.
And he (Johnson), the leader of the Conservative Party at the time, wore a jacket that read: “Prime Minister”.
image copyright Virgin orbit
The original photo published on the Prime Minister’s account in June 2021
A source close to Shapps said, “Grant didn’t know anyone had edited the photo.”
He added: “He (Shapps) removed the image as soon as he pointed this out. He clearly doesn’t endorse anyone who rewrites history by removing the former prime minister from the image.”
The first mission to launch a satellite from British soil failed on Monday after the rocket suffered a “technical defect”.
A giant aircraft operated by the American Virgin Orbit carried the missile from Newquay, Cornwall to launch it over the Atlantic Ocean, and after launching the missile, which appeared to rise correctly, the mission failed.
The experts could not launch the satellites on board and got lost.
