A West Lothian vaccine firm visited by Boris Johnson suffered a Covid-19 outbreak, with public health officials visiting the site just 24-hours before his arrival.
The Prime Minister stopped off at the production firm Valneva last Thursday during a flying visit to Scotland.
However the Daily Record reports that the visit came after 14 coronavirus cases were identified at the Livingston facility. This accounts for about one in eight workers.
Neil Findlay, Labour MSP for Lothian, blasted the trip, saying that it represents a "flagrant disregard" of public health advice.
He said: “This is beyond reckless and verges on being criminally irresponsible.
“What credibility does Johnson now have in lecturing others to stay at home while he flagrantly disregards public health advice?”
Valneva say that Downing Street were aware of the outbreak in advance of the trip.
Chief financial officer, David Lawrence, said: “They were made aware we’d had some reported cases and had implemented our control procedures.”
The Record reports that an incident management team (IMT) intervention took place last Wednesday after a suspected outbreak. This identified 14 positive cases dating to January 16.
Valneva said that there were some reported cases in mid January and staff were sent home to isolate. He added: “Our team had approved all the aspects of his visit from a safety perspective and his visit was Covid-compliant.”
A UK Government spokesperson said: “The visit to the Valneva Livingston plant was Covid-compliant. Valneva had approved all aspects of the visit from a safety perspective and the site director is comfortable that no risks were taken."
No officials are believed to be self-isolating as a result of the trip.
