India-origin British minister Alok Sharma met PM Boris Johnson, Rishi Sunak before his coronavirus test

Britain’s Business Secretary Alok Sharma had met UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Chancellor Rishi Sunak at 10 Downing Street just before he was tested for coronavirus after feeling unwell at the despatch box in the House of Commons on Wednesday.

The 52-year-old Indian-origin minister, seen feeling uneasy and sweating during a debate on the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Bill in parliament, is self-isolating at home while he waits for the test results.

If it comes back positive, Johnson and Indian-origin finance minister Sunak would also have to self-isolate for 14 days under the UK government guidance.

"He did attend a meeting in Number 10... That was a discussion on the economy and in terms of who was present, it was the Prime Minister, the Chancellor and the Business Secretary," a Downing Street spokesperson said, adding that the two-metre distance rule had been met as all meetings at the UK PM’s office are “socially distanced”.

"He does not yet have his test results. Should the Secretary of State [Sharma] receive a positive test then he will work with the test and trace service to share information about his recent interactions,” the spokesperson said.

Under the test and trace system, the government advice is for all "close contacts" who would have been in an infected person's vicinity for more than 15 minutes must get tested and go into self-isolation at home.

Senior government figures have tried to downplay the issue, saying the Reading West Conservative Party MP, who was born in Agra, may have a severe case of hay fever or a seasonal allergic reaction.

However, if the test result comes back positive for the novel coronavirus, Sharma will join Johnson and UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock as yet another senior member of the UK government to be struck by Covid-19.

“Alok Sharma began feeling unwell when in the Chamber delivering the second reading of the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Bill,” a spokesperson for the minister said.

“In line with guidance he has been tested for coronavirus and is returning home to self isolate,” the spokesperson said.

Shadow business secretary, Labour’s Ed Miliband, was seen passing the minister a glass of water as he looked visibly unwell.

The minister was among hundreds of MPs seen queuing for hours on Tuesday to cast their votes under new social distance rules as parliament returned to a physical setting after a hybrid version, which involved remote attendance by MPs via screens set up in the chamber.

Sharma’s illness will renew concerns expressed by several MPs over the return of physical voting after digital voting was discontinued.

While only a limited number of MPs are allowed to sit within the Commons chamber at any given point, Leader of the Commons Jacob Rees-Mogg had stipulated the return of all parliamentarians to the Palace of Westminster in central London.

He has faced backlash from all sides of the House over the decision to abandon digital voting options, including from MPs with health conditions who are unable to participate in proceedings.

Lisa Nandy, Labour’s Indian-origin shadow foreign secretary, was among those who expressed concern following Sharma’s illness.

“The government stopped MPs from working from home and asked us to return to a building where social distancing is impossible. MPs are travelling home to every part of the country tonight. Reckless doesn’t even begin to describe it.”

Many of the MPs had posted images on social media of the long snaking queue across the Parliament complex on Tuesday as they lined up to cast their vote while trying to maintain the requisite two-metre distance to prevent the transmission of the deadly virus.

A House of Commons spokesperson said: “The House’s priority is to ensure that those on the estate are safe while business is facilitated.

“We have closely followed guidance from PHE [Public Health England] on action to take following a suspected case of Covid-19 on site, including additional cleaning. Our risk assessment outlines the measures we have already put in place to reduce the risk of transmission in parliament.”