Grant Shapps has admitted that a picture he posted which Boris Johnson was edited out of was a "complete screw-up".
The Welwyn Hatfield MP posted a photo last month of a visit to Spaceport Cornwall, hailing the UK's first rocket launch which ultimately ended in failure.
Eagle-eyed social media users noticed that former Prime Minister Mr Johnson, who also went on the trip back in 2021, had disappeared from the picture, although part of his elbow remains visible.
At the time, Mr Shapps said he was "unaware" Mr Johnson had been removed from the picture, and now he has described it as a "complete screw-up" when asked about the incident by Sky's Sophy Ridge.
READ MORE: Grant Shapps 'unaware' Boris Johnson erased from social media photo
"It was a complete screw-up," he said.
"Somebody at that time, which was I think 18 months, two years ago, had screwed around with the picture.
"Actually, it was somebody with a pixel phone who did it, and it was picked out the file and sent, not deliberately.
"I love Boris Johnson and I enjoyed working with him. I have no reason to want to do that."
In the interview, Mr Shapps also claimed that illegal migrants arriving in the UK "shouldn’t get rights".
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