The girlfriend of a lovestruck Scotsman who broke border restrictions by jet skiing his way to the island says he should be allowed to stay after his release from jail.

Jessica Radcliffe, 30, says the government is contradicting itself by sending Dale McLaughlan home, but allowing him to come back for work in January.

Her lover, a 28-year-old roofer from Irvine, Scotland, made headlines worldwide after he was jailed for illegally travelling to Ramsey from the Isle of Whithorn by jet ski. He made the four-and-a-half hour trip on Friday, December 11, to see Jessica, with no navigation or knowledge of riding a jet ski, just the determination to see his girlfriend for Christmas.

McLaughlan was sentenced to four weeks in jail for failing to comply with the emergency powers regulations by entering the island without an exemption notice or prior permit. He will serve half that sentence behind bars.

Speaking from her home in Cushag Road, Anagh Coar, where she is currently self-isolating, Miss Radcliffe said she had no prior knowledge of her boyfriend coming to the island until he turned up on her doorstep.

She said: ’He arrived at my house at about 1pm. He just turned up and I heard the door and I nearly fell off the bed because I hadn’t seen him for so long.

’I was like a giddy little child at Christmas. He gave me the biggest kiss and cuddle that I’ve ever had in my life.

’Then we just stayed together all day and I was just flabbergasted at the fact that I was getting to see him because of all this coronavirus stuff. I thought that he’d just got off the boat.

’I was made-up - it was overwhelming and there were so many emotions seeing him.

’When I saw him, I didn’t know that he’d done all that [travelled so far]. Speaking to him now, he said that if he had to do it again, he would cross the ocean for me.’

The mum-of-two said she first met him on September 19 on a night out, during his time lawfully working here, and wasn’t keen on him to begin with.

’I thought he was a weirdo so I ran off from him,’ she said.

’I thought he was weird, because he was being so persistent, but after talking to him, he was so calming and it was like melting butter in a microwave. The next time I met him was September 25 and that’s when I gave him a chance.’

She said that during their night out on December 12 at the 1886 bar in Regent Street, Douglas, there was a brief incident with a bouncer but did not recall any interaction with police.

She said: ’The bouncer at 1886 bumped into Dale and said: "Move out of my way."

’Dale went up to him and said: "What’s your problem?" Then the next minute, I said to him we would just go, and one of the other bouncers apologised and said that the rude bouncer needed to apologise to us.

’We said it’s fine, we’re going and then as far as I was aware, there hasn’t been any interaction with the police.’

It was mentioned during McLaughlan’s court appearance that police had ’interacted’ with him on Regent Street that night.

When asked how McLaughlan is doing now, Miss Radcliffe said: ’He’s struggling. He misses me a lot and he’s just found out that the borders have closed in Scotland and he’s worried that even for work, he doesn’t think that he’ll be able to come back here. The Chief Minister said that he’s been "advised" to leave the island to go back home, but he’s not been told that he "should" leave, or been forced.

’I don’t understand why he’s been told to leave when he’s isolated two weeks before he came over with a negative test, he had a negative test in jail, he didn’t put any of the public at risk, and he’s done isolation in jail - that’s four weeks already - so why does he need to leave the island? He’s got to come back over here for roofing work on January 11 anyway.

’The government have done a good enough job of proving people can’t break Covid rules, but it’s a contradiction sending him back and allowing him here for work,’ she said.

’They’ve allowed someone accused of being a paedophile to walk away from court. They’re prosecuting a man that tried to come over for me - fair enough, it was selfish and it was very dangerous what he did - but how heroic and what he has done, out of pure love, he shouldn’t be punished.’

Miss Radcliffe said she will probably have to wait until Scotland reopens its borders to see him next.

’I understand that government need to make everyone aware that people shouldn’t be breaking Covid rules, but in hindsight, out of all this - families being destroyed and people passing away - they should see the bigger story that he’s risked his life to come and see me. To punish him this much, they shouldn’t be doing that.’