That’s it from me, Tom Ambrose, for this evening. Thank you for following along with the live blog. All the latest news will be on the homepage so keep an eye out for any further developments as England moves to ‘Plan B’ Covid restrictions.
In a tweet, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said: “I welcome stronger measures to protect people from Covid.
“But Boris Johnson’s recent actions have undermined public trust. His contempt for the public won’t be forgotten. Serious times call for serious leadership.
“I hope the Prime Minister takes his own guidance this time.”
I welcome stronger measures to protect people from Covid.
— Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) December 8, 2021
But Boris Johnson’s recent actions have undermined public trust.
His contempt for the public won’t be forgotten.
Serious times call for serious leadership.
I hope the Prime Minister takes his own guidance this time.
Scientific advisors provided ministers with a stark outline of what the consequences of inaction could be.
In a consensus statement on Tuesday, the SPI-M advisory committee predicted: “If initial estimates of transmission advantage and immune escape from South Africa are applicable to the UK population, there is the potential for a very substantial peak of infections much larger than occurred during the winter wave of January 2021.”
Even if the severity were half that of Delta, this could be outweighed by the sheer number of infections, the scientists said.
The government’s Sage advisory committee noted that Omicron is on a steep upward trajectory in the UK, with probably thousands of daily infections already occurring and a projection for Omicron to become the dominant variant within a few weeks.
Without any changes to measures in place, the number of hospitalisations from Omicron could reach 1,000 per day or higher in England by the end of the year, with a peak likely to be higher than 1,000 to 2,000 Omicron hospital admissions per day.
“For it to be below this level there would need to be only a small degree of immune escape and very high protection from boosters against Omicron,” the minutes said.
The Sage advice, released on Wednesday, also suggested additional infection control measures should be considered in hospitals, care homes and prisons to help prevent the spread of the highly transmissible variant.
Universities in England are to be told they must continue holding face-to-face seminars or classes where currently planned, despite the requirement for working from home from Monday.
While the teaching term has ended at some universities already, others are continuing for another week.
Meanwhile, schools barely got a mention in the Plan B measures for England, which included none of the additional mask requirements being called for by the teaching unions. Boris Johnson did say:
We don’t want children to be taken out of school before the end of term, not that there is long to go now, we don’t want nativity plays to be cancelled.
Patrick Roach, general secretary of the NASUWT teachers union, said the Omicron variant made it necessary for extended measures in England’s schools and colleges. He said:
Further measures including extending the use of face coverings in classrooms, an immediate and extended programme of onsite Covid testing of pupils, and robust rules and support for close contacts to self-isolate would have a significant impact on helping to break the chain of Covid transmission and minimise further disruption to pupils’ education.
Boris Johnson is responsible for the sudden switch to Plan B because of his decision to scrap all anti-Covid restrictions in England earlier this year and not respond to high infection rates by taking steps to curb the spread of coronavirus, according to the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Coronavirus.
It is made up of MPs and peers from all the main parties at Westminster, including the Conservatives. Key members include Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran, former Conservative health minister Dr Dan Poulter, Labour MP Clive Lewis and Caroline Lucas, the Green Party’s sole MP.
“By deciding to remove restrictions wholesale and refusing to introduce minor mitigation measures when so clearly necessary, the prime minister paved the road to Plan B”, said Moran, the cross-party group’s chair.
But in a swipe at Johnson over the infamous Downing Street party a year ago, Moran added: “While it’s vitally important people observe these new restrictions/guidelines, the public will understandably find it extremely difficult to take instruction from the prime minister when he and those around him continue to show utter disregard for Covid rules.
“We now call on the prime minister to do everything he can to restore public trust by coming clean about what happened and ensuring a full investigation is conducted in a timely manner”.
The new Covid restrictions impose an “unfair double standard” on the live music industry, according to the CEO of LIVE, the group that organises the International Live Music Conference.
Greg Parmley said:
The introduction of Plan B results in an unfair double standard that allows people to go on all-day pub crawls in crowded bars without having to prove their Covid-19 status, whilst live music venues get hit with certification.
Across the country, music venues and events already have tried, tested and workable systems in place to ensure that live events continue to be safe – and these remain effective.
However, after such a prolonged closure throughout the pandemic it is important the industry is able to remain open and that the Government have listened to the industry and included the use of lateral flow testing in Covid certification.
The nightclub industry has accused Boris Johnson of throwing nightclubs and bars “under the bus to save his own skin”.
Michael Kill, chief executive of the Night Time Industries Association, described the prime minister’s announcement that the NHS Covid pass would be mandatory for entry into nightclubs as “devastating news for the nightlife sector”.
Trade in nighttime economy businesses in Scotland and Wales, where passes are already enforced, was down 30% and 26% respectively, Kill said.
Younger people, who make up the bulk of the clientele of the nightclub industry, are the least likely to be vaccinated against Covid, particularly those from minority ethnic groups. According to figures collated by OPENSafely, while about 67% of people aged 18-29 have received two doses of Covid vaccine, the figure drops to just 35% among people of that age group of black Caribbean heritage.
“The Government’s own report on the subject concluded that vaccine passports wouldn’t even have a significant impact on virus transmission – they don’t stop the spread of covid but they do damage trade,” Kill said.
You do, therefore, have to question the timing and rationale for this announcement. Is this sound evidence-based public policy making or is this an attempt to move the news agenda on from a damaging story about the Downing St Christmas party?
It feels that nightclubs and bars have been thrown under the bus by the Prime Minister for him to save his own skin.
And of course these businesses, who have already sacrificed so much during the pandemic, will be asking – ‘why are we being asked to carry more of the burden when it seemed that the most senior Government officials felt they didn’t need to do their bit?’
The sector is already reeling from lengthy closures during the pandemic. Research by the NTIA estimated that 393,000 jobs have been lost across the night-time economy due to Covid-19, including 86,000 in the “night-time cultural economy”, which includes nightclubs and theatres.
Hospital bosses welcomed what they see as the overdue shift to Plan B - but warned that it may have come too late to avoid another lockdown and disruption to NHS care.
“We are relieved the government has finally listened and hope these precautionary measures have not come too late. No one wants another national lockdown or for patient care to become disrupted again, given how hard frontline teams are working, including in tackling the elective care backlog and steering the booster programme”, said Matthew Taylor, the chief executive of the NHS Confederation.
It represents NHS care trusts in England and Wales.
“Health leaders across the country have been very clear with us that it is better to be safe than sorry. If there are additional measures that could be taken that do not drastically interfere with people’s daily lives but could make a big difference to cutting transmission of the disease then it would be reckless not to take them.”
Taylor - who worked in Downing Street as head of the No10 policy unit under Tony Blair - urged the public to play their part in reducing the spread of the virus too.
“As set out in our NotTooMuchToMask campaign, curbing the spread is not just a government responsibility as the public has a vital role to play too,” he said.
“This includes by wearing face coverings, getting vaccinated, keeping indoor spaces ventilated, cleaning their hands regularly and getting tested.”
In a debate on the new Covid measures, Sajid Javid, the health secretary, faced furious calls to “resign” from some Tory MPs in the Commons, while others claimed he had “jumped the gun” on introducing restrictions that were “difficult to justify”.
Several also disparaged the government’s credibility in the wake of recent Downing Street parties.
Mark Harper, a former chief whip who now chairs the Covid Recovery Group, questioned why anyone should “do things that people working in No 10 Downing Street are not prepared to do”.
David Davis, a former cabinet minister, also said there was no evidence introducing vaccine passports would drive take-up of the jab, while Liam Fox said never-ending threats of overloading the NHS should not be used “as a means of maintaining semi-permanent restrictions on our people”.
Javid told the Commons: “I can confirm that the Chancellor, indeed every member of the Cabinet, is fully behind these decisions.”
Updated
Met will not investigate allegations of Christmas party at No 10
Good evening. I’m Tom Ambrose and will continue to bring you all the latest reaction from that Boris Johnson press conference this evening.
We start with some breaking news. The Metropolitan police say they will not investigate allegations of a party at Downing Street due to an “absence of evidence” and a force policy not to investigate retrospective breaches of coronavirus regulations.
This is obviously despite a leaked video yesterday, published by ITV News, in which the prime minister’s former spokesperson Allegra Stratton joked about the party in question, referencing cheese and wine being served and laughing about the lack of social distancing. In a statement, Scotland Yard said:
The Metropolitan Police Service has received a significant amount of correspondence relating to allegations reported in the media that the health protection (coronavirus, restrictions) regulations were breached at gatherings at No 10 Downing Street in November and December 2020.
All this correspondence has been considered by detectives in detail, as well as footage published by ITV News. The correspondence and footage does not provide evidence of a breach of the health protection regulations, but restates allegations made in the media.
Based on the absence of evidence and in line with our policy not to investigate retrospective breaches of such regulations, the Met will not commence an investigation at this time.
The Met has had discussions with the Cabinet Office in relation to the investigation by the cabinet secretary. If any evidence is found as a result of that investigation, it will be passed to the Met for further consideration.
Updated
Summary
Here’s a summary of the key points at the press conference
- Johnson confirmed a move to plan B because of the rapid spread of Omicron. He said early analysis suggested cases could be doubling at a rate of as little as 2.5 to 3 days.
- Face masks are to become compulsory in most public indoor venues, other than hospitality, from Friday.
- The NHS Covid Pass will be mandatory in specific settings.
- From Monday people will be asked to work from home if they can. But Christmas parties can take place if people are careful.
- Johnson said the vaccine programme remained the key method of tackling the pandemic, but conceded “we need to go further and faster” on the booster programme.
- Johnson paid tribute to Allegra Stratton following her resignation over a video in which she was seen joking about a Christmas party in Downing Street last year. The prime minster said she had done an “outstanding” job for the Cop26 climate conference and that he was sorry to lose her.
- Johnson suggested that the cabinet secretary, Simon Case’s investigation into government Christmas parties would not be confined to the party in Downing on 18 December. Case may want to “look at other things”, Johnson said when asked about a party he attended on 27 November.
- Johnson repeated the claim that no Covid rules had been broken based on what he had been told.
Updated
Whitty said: “Inevitably, there have been bumps on the road and things we would do differently if we had done them again, that’s obvious.”
And with that Johnson brought an end to the press conference.
Q: Will Case look at all government parties last year. And will the inquiry conclude by the end of the year? Why has the booster campaign been so slow?
Johnson said the booster campaign has been quicker than any other country but it needs to go faster. If the boosters can hold Omicron we can get back to the road we were on.
On parties, Johnson said Case would be allowed to get to the bottom of what happened, and he repeated the claim that no rules were broken according to everything he had been told.
Updated
Q: What’s your message on Christmas parties and nativities this year?
Johnson said we should go ahead with parties but exercise caution.
Q: Why have you asked Case to investigate the party on 18 December but not the one on 27 November where you gave a speech?
Johnson says Case may want to “look at other things”.
He added:
All the evidence I can see is that people in this building have stayed within the rules. If people wish to bring allegations to my attention or to the police or whoever, and then of course, there will be proper sanctions. But in the meantime, I think that we should let Simon [Case] get on with his job.
Updated
Q: How do you feel about seeing Stratton resign? Does it question your leadership? Are restrictions the reality of living with Covid?
Johnson says Stratton has been “outstanding” and he is sorry to lose her. I take responsibility for what happens in this building, he added.
Vallance said: “We’re on a road from pandemic to endemic where this becomes a more sort of regular infection like flu disease over time, but we’re in a sort of bumpy transition, and that’s going to be difficult.” But he insisted boosters were proving effective.
Whitty said: “We are immeasurably better off now than we were with the vaccines we’ve got, with drugs, with better hospital treatment.”
This was a setback but not back to square one, Whitty added.
Updated
Q: Why is the party being investigated now. Is it because you have been caught out? Did you attend some of those events?
Johnson: “I repeat what I said in the house and earlier today. The cabinet secretary will conduct an inquiry into what took place on December 18.”
Whitty said: “We all know that people get very angry, including colleagues and friends when they feel that it’s unfair.”
Updated
Q: How can you stand at that lectern exactly where some of your team laughed and joked about Covid rules and tell people they must now follow your new instructions. And did you really have no idea what was going on under your own roof?
Johnson starts by paying tribute to Allegra Stratton’s work.
He added: “I think the British public can see the vital importance of the medical instruction that we’re giving.”
Updated
Q: Why not introduce mandatory vaccines?
Johnson said: “I didn’t want us to have a society in a culture where we forced people to get vaccinated.”
But he said further measures could be considered.
Whitty said:
The aim of the measures announced by the prime minister is to slow things down, but it is doubling currently between two and three days. That is an extraordinarily fast rate.
Prof Whitty goes through these slides:
Cases:
People in hospital:
Covid deaths:
Whitty says this slide show just how effective the vaccine has been against the Delta variant:
Whitty said:
The big increase in Covid in South Africa is virtually all the Omicron variant.
Johnson closes by saying: “Play your part and get boosted.”
Updated
Covid pass mandatory for venues
Johnson said:
Will also make the NHS Covid pass mandatory for entry into nightclubs and venues where large crowds gather, including unseated indoor venues with more than 500 people, and seated outdoor venues with more than 4,000 people and any venue with more than 10,000 people.
Updated
Mandatory face masks
Johnson said:
From this Friday we will further extend the legal requirement to wear a face masks in public indoor venues, including theatres and cinemas.
Move to plan B confirmed
Here we go. Johnson says it is clear that Omicron is spreading faster than Delta and that the 568 cases of the variant in the UK is almost certain and underestimate.
Johnson says: “It’s now the proportionate and the responsible thing to move to plan B.” From Monday people must work from home.
Updated
The press conference will take place in the now infamous No 10 briefing room where Downing Street staff were seen joking about the Christmas party last year.
Updated
Prof Chris Whitty, the government’s chief medical adviser, and Sir Patrick Vallance, the chief scientific adviser, will be appearing with the PM at the Downing Street press conference at 6pm.
Watch this evening's press conference on COVID-19 live on our channels from 6pm. pic.twitter.com/KkDuyhFNPJ
— UK Prime Minister (@10DowningStreet) December 8, 2021
There’s too much news for one person today, and my colleague Matthew Weaver will be taking over the blog now to cover the press conference, and the reaction to what gets announced.
A second polling organisation has published a poll suggesting more than half of voters want Boris Johnson to resign. Unlike the Opinium poll (see 4.01pm), Savanta ComRes asked people specifically if Johnson should resign over the Christmas party.
🚨SNAP POLL🚨
— Savanta ComRes (@SavantaComRes) December 8, 2021
Over half say Johnson should resign (54%).
A third of Conservative voters also say this (33%).
Almost three in five say party attendees should resign (58%). One in five say they should not (22%).
1,036 UK adults, 8 Dec pic.twitter.com/YK5ihccQBx
Betfair now has the Lib Dems as the favourites to win the North Shropshire byelection next week. If they were to win, that would be an astonishing gain. The Conservatives had a majority of 22,949 there at the last election, and it would take a 26-point swing for the Lib Dems to win.
At the Chesham and Amersham byelection in June the Lib Dems overturned a Tory majority of 16,223, with a 25-point swing. That was a shock result because, outside select Lib Dem circles, it was totally unexpected.
As my colleague Peter Walker reports, the Lib Dems are already leafleting on the Christmas party story in the constituency.
No one can say the Lib Dems don't like a by-election leaflet. This is the one being delivered today to homes in North Shropshire. pic.twitter.com/OwaslxPJ0k
— Peter Walker (@peterwalker99) December 8, 2021
Lib Dems campaigning today in N Shropshire say the No 10 party issue is being raised by voters, with some saying they see it as far worse than Dominic Cummings' lockdown escapades.
— Peter Walker (@peterwalker99) December 8, 2021
Updated
No 10 says Johnson to hold press conference at 6pm
Downing Street has said Boris Johnson will hold a press conference at 6pm.
Updated
Here is the footage of Allegra Stratton announcing her resignation as as spokesperson for Boris Johnson.
Priti Patel, the home secretary, Damian Hinds, the security minister, and Matthew Rycroft, the permanent secretary, were among those attending a Home Office media reception yesterday. People who there have now been advised to take a PCR test, because one of the guests has tested postive on a lateral flow test.
Change.org is close to getting 150,000 names on an online petition saying the Independent Office for Police Conduct should investigate the No 10 Christmas party, on the grounds that officers on duty at Downing Street must have known it was taking place. The Green party peer Jenny Jones has already written to the IOPC calling for an investigation too.
DfE permanent secretary accepts she faces potential disciplinary action over Gavin Williamson party last December
Susan Acland-Hood, the most senior civil servant at the Department for Education, has admitted that she faces potential disciplinary action as a result of the investigation into Whitehall parties announced by the prime minister today.
Acland-Hood told MPs on the public accounts committee that she was present at the staff “gathering” in the DfE canteen last December, revealed by the Daily Mirror, in possible contravention of rules on social events in force at the time.
Acland-Hood was questioned by Ric Holden, the Conservative MP for North West Durham who until the last election was education secretary Gavin Williamson’s special adviser at the DfE.
After the permanent secretary had repeated the DfE’s line that the event was a “work-related” gathering, Holden asked:
Ms Acland-Hood, you say it was work-related but it’s pretty clear from the restrictions at the time that work couldn’t be used as an excuse for socialising. Is that why the department is not denying that the rules were broken at the time?
Acland-Hood said:
What we have said is that we accept that it would have been better not to have gathered in that way at that particular time.
Holden pressed Acland-Hood over the organisation of the party, with the permanent secretary blaming Williamson, the then education secretary, for wanting “to say a few words” to thank staff. “You’re saying it was instigated by the secretary of state [Williamson]?” asked Holden. “Yes,” Acland-Hood replied.
Holden then asked: “What steps are you taking to investigate whether the rules were broken?” Acland Hood said:
I’ve spoken to the cabinet secretary and the gathering that was held will be part of his consideration, as part of the investigation that was announced at PMQs.
Acland-Hood said that a “mixture of grades” were present, with “about two dozen” staff attending.
Meg Hillier, the committee’s chair, asked: “Whose idea was it for everyone to gather in the canteen with a glass of wine?” Acland-Hood replied: “I’m afraid I don’t know.” She then agreed that “if rules were broken, it would” mean she also faces potential disciplinary action as part of the investigation.
Updated
Opinium has published a poll suggesting that more than half of voters now think Boris Johnson should resign.
The poll also suggests that only 9% of people think no party took place in No 10 last Christmas, only 12% think the Covid rules were followed and only 12% think Johnson is telling the truth about what happened. Even among Tory voters, only 20% think he is telling the truth, the poll suggests.
The results are available in a Twitter thread starting here.
🚨SNAP POLL🚨
— Opinium (@OpiniumResearch) December 8, 2021
For the first time, a majority of the public think the Prime Minister should resign.
Do you think Boris Johnson…?
Should resign as leader 53% (+5)
Should remain as leader 28% (-2)
35% of those who voted Tory at the last election now think the PM should go. pic.twitter.com/WpKhRBWO6L
63% think Boris Johnson is not telling the truth about what happened, compared to just 12% who think he is.
— Opinium (@OpiniumResearch) December 8, 2021
46% of Conservative voters think the PM is not telling the truth compared to 85% of Labour voters. pic.twitter.com/RCLR33uedC
Updated
With talk of a plan B for England being instituted, the National Education Union has asked that schools also be included. Kevin Courtney, joint general secretary of the NEU said that more than 200,000 pupils were absent for Covid-related reasons at the end of last month, with the Omicron variant likely to cause further disruption. He said:
Our children need the government to act to keep absences of staff and pupils as low as possible. But the government has so far failed to follow even measures on masks and isolation that are in place in Scotland.
So, the NEU is calling for the government to introduce a plan B for schools and colleges now. They must urgently increase the level of mitigations to slow the spread of Covid in our schools.
The NEU wants face coverings to be mandatory in secondary school classrooms and communal areas, and for staff in primary school communal areas. It also wants children to self-isolate and be tested if their siblings or other family members have Covid, and for the government to invest in classroom air filtration units and allow teachers to receive boosters during working hours without loss of pay.
Updated
Stratton offers ‘profound apologies’ for remarks that ‘seemed to make light of [Covid] rules’
The Times’ Steven Swinford has Allegra Stratton’s resignation statement.
BREAKING:
— Steven Swinford (@Steven_Swinford) December 8, 2021
Allegra Stratton has quit as an adviser to the PM saying leaked video has become a distraction
She offers her 'profound apologies' for her remarks
'My remarks seemed to make light of rules, rules that people were doing everything to obey. That was never my intention'
Allegra Stratton:
— Steven Swinford (@Steven_Swinford) December 8, 2021
'My remarks seemed to make light of the rules, rules that people were doing everything to obey.
'That was never my intention. I will regret those remarks for the rest of my days and offer my profound apologies to all of you for them'
Stratton:
— Steven Swinford (@Steven_Swinford) December 8, 2021
'I understand the anger and frustration that people feel.
'To all of you who lost loved ones, endured intolerable loneliness and struggled with your business - I am sorry and this afternoon I have offered my resignation to Prime Minister'
Stratton continued:
— Steven Swinford (@Steven_Swinford) December 8, 2021
'I will always be proud of what was achieve at COP26 in Glasgow and the progress that was made oni coal, cares, cash and trees
'This country - and the PM's leadership - on climate change and nature will make a lasting difference to the whole world.'
Allegra Stratton resigns as aide to PM following release of No 10 Christmas party videeo
Allegra Stratton, the PM’s spokesperson on Cop26, who was his press secretary in December last year when she was filmed joking about a lockdown-busting No 10 party, has resigned.
Allegra Stratton is resigning - she's just made a statement outside her house
— Laura Kuenssberg (@bbclaurak) December 8, 2021
Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross says Johnson should resign if he misled MPs about Christmas party
Douglas Ross, the Scottish Conservative leader, has told the BBC that, if Boris Johnson knew there was a party in Downing Street last December and misled parliament about it, he should resign. Ross said:
If the prime minister knew about this party last December, knew about this party last week, and was still denying it, then that is the most serious allegation.
There is absolutely no way you can mislead parliament and think you could get off with that.
No one should continue in their post if they mislead parliament in that way.
This is similar to what Roger Gale told the BBC this morning. (See 11.44am.)
Updated
Sage thinks Omicron hospitalisations could reach 1,000 per day by end of month unless rules tighten, BBC reports
Sage, the government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies, is now estimating that unless new restrictions are introduced, 1,000 people a day in England may be needing hospital treatment because of the Omicron variant by the end of the year, according to Jim Reed, the BBC’s health reporter. He says the figure is from minutes of a Sage meeting held yesterday.
BBC exclusive: The number of people needing hospital treatment from the Omicron variant may reach at least 1,000 a day in England by the end of the year without extra restrictions being put in place - Sage scientists have told ministers. 1/n
— Jim Reed (@jim_reed) December 8, 2021
They say, given the speed of increase in infections, the government needs to “urgently” consider the need for response measures to reduce transmissions of the virus "if the aim is to reduce the likelihood of unsustainable pressure on the NHS". 2/n
— Jim Reed (@jim_reed) December 8, 2021
Worth saying that, in minutes from yesterday's meeting seen by the BBC, they constantly stress the high level of uncertainty over hospitalisations linked to Omicron. 3/n
— Jim Reed (@jim_reed) December 8, 2021
But they say peak of the omicron wave is “highly likely to be higher” than 1,000-2,000 Omicron admissions per day without new rules to slow the spread of rising infections. 4/n
— Jim Reed (@jim_reed) December 8, 2021
At moment there are around 680 delta admissions per day in England. At peak of January wave there around 3,800 admissions per day. 5/n
— Jim Reed (@jim_reed) December 8, 2021
One key thing they DON'T know yet is whether Omicron and Delta waves will run separately for a while (if they infect different cohorts) or if Omicron will quickly displace Delta. This is, obviously, important for hospital pressure. 6/n
— Jim Reed (@jim_reed) December 8, 2021
Updated
Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s first minister, has said that Boris Johnson needs to “come clean” about what happened at Downing Street last Christmas. She told the BBC:
The prime minister appears to be not being straight and truthful about it.
That really matters because he is likely to be asking people to do difficult things again over this Christmas and it’s really important that he’s straight and honest with people - if mistakes were made, to own them, to apologise for them.
I think this is a really serious issue for the prime minister and I think he has to come clean.
She also said she remembered the period around 18 December (when the party took place) very well.
This was last Christmas - 18 and 19 December are dates engraved on my mind as perhaps one of, if not the lowest, darkest point in the whole pandemic.
We had told people they could have some very limited normality over Christmas then at the last minute we had to snatch that away and dash people’s hopes.
That is what makes people so angry about what was allegedly happening in Downing Street.
From ITV’s Anushka Asthana
Minister now responds to say. “Mood is sulphurous. Most people angry and resentful at having been let down. Not good.” And it sounds like plan B press conference may now not happen.
— Anushka Asthana (@AnushkaAsthana) December 8, 2021
Top UK health officials call for stricter Covid isolation and testing rules
Senior health officials have drawn up advice saying the UK should bring back stricter isolation and testing rules for contacts of Covid cases, amid concerns that triggering plan B is not enough to stop the spread of Omicron, my colleague Rowena Mason reports.
And Douglas Ross, the current Scottish Conservative leader, says there are still “serious questions to answer” about the Christmas party affair. This is from STV’s Colin Mackay.
Scottish Conservative leader @Douglas4Moray says “there was a party of sorts” and he still has confidence in the PM but “he has serious questions to answer on this”.
— Colin Mackay (@STVColin) December 8, 2021
Ruth Davidson, the former Scottish Conservative leader, says she and others in the party are still furious about No 10’s handling of the Christmas party story.
None of this is remotely defensible. Not having busy, boozy not-parties while others were sticking to the rules, unable to visit ill or dying loved ones.
— Ruth Davidson (@RuthDavidsonPC) December 8, 2021
Nor flat-out denying things that are easily provable. Not taking the public for fools. 1/2
And today's "we'll investigate what we've spent a week saying didn't happen and discipline staff for rules we continue to say weren't broken" was pathetic. As a Tory, I was brought up to believe in playing with a straight bat. Believe me, colleagues are furious at this, too. 2/2
— Ruth Davidson (@RuthDavidsonPC) December 8, 2021
No 10 won't confirm that cabinet secretary investigating Christmas party didn't attend himself
At the Downing Street post-PMQs lobby briefing No 10 confirmed that Boris Johnson did not attend the party on 18 December last year.
But, as my colleague Jessica Elgot reports, No 10 would not say whether Simon Case, the cabinet secretary asked to investigate the party, attended himself.
New - No10 briefing declines to confirm or deny if their spokesmen or indeed the cabinet Secretary Simon Case were at the gatherings last winter. The only investigation is into the Dec 18 party - the one they will confirm the PM did not attend. No investigations into others.
— Jessica Elgot (@jessicaelgot) December 8, 2021
The Mirror’s Kevin Maguire thinks this position is untenable.
No 10 refusing to say whether or not Cabinet Secretary Simon Case was at the party he’s now investigating.
— Kevin Maguire (@Kevin_Maguire) December 8, 2021
Another untenable Downing Street position.
So did or didn’t he go?
Because if Case went, he can’t head an inquiry though he could supply a guest list.
If Case did attend, then asking him to investigate could be designed to force him to produce a report either saying it was all fine, or recommending his own resignation. Neither motive seems 100% implausible, although, as Maguire argues, presumably Case would see that it was unacceptable for him to investigate an event he attended himself.
On Monday the PM’s spokesperson said that there was no party in Downing Streeet on 18 December last year. It was an odd thing to say, as even Boris Johnson himself had not gone that far.
But today the PM’s press secretary refused to repeat that statement. She said:
You have our previous statement on this. Now, the prime minister has asked the cabinet secretary to establish the facts. While that process is ongoing, it wouldn’t be right to comment further.
At the briefing No 10 also said the PM still had full confidence in Allegra Stratton, his spokesperson on Cop26 who was his press secretary last December when she was filmed making light of a question about a lockdown-busting No 10 party in a filmed press conference rehearsal never intended to be broadcast.
The spokesman also said Allegra Stratton - the spokeswoman seen laughing in a mock press briefing about the party - had not been suspended and the PM had full confidence in her.
— Dan Bloom (@danbloom1) December 8, 2021
Updated
No 10 signals inquiry into Downing Street partying will not cover leaving do at which PM reportedly gave speech
The Downing Street Christmas party inquiry will only investigate the event on 18 December, the prime minister’s spokesman has indicated.
That means a leaving do in Downing Street on 27 November, at which the PM reportedly gave a speech and which also appears to have been in breach of lockdown rules, will not be investigated. And there won’t be an inquiry into claims that there was another party on 13 November.
At the post-PMQs lobby briefing the PM’s spokesman said:
[Simon Case, the cabinet secretary] has been asked to establish the facts on any events on [December] 18, and that’s what he will start work on.
Asked how long the Case inquiry would take, the spokesman said:
It is obviously rightly for them to dictate the timescale. I don’t have a set period but obviously we want it to be as soon as possible.
The spokesman also said the inquiry would be “an independent process carried out by Cabinet Office staff, under the leadership of the cabinet secretary”.
PMQs - snap verdict
Apologies are one of the most underrated devices in politics. It is convention to argue that apologising is a sign of weaknesss, but people don’t expect politicians to get everything right, they know we all make mistakes, and if used sincerely (a big if – we’ll come back to it in a moment) they can wipe the slate clean, restore trust and provide a bit of a reset.
Today Johnson opened with a very full apology for the behaviour of his staff caught on film laughing about a lockdown-busting party. It probably won him some credit with his backbenchers, and it made the subsequent exchanges a bit easier than they otherwise would have been. The other obvious option (see 9.38am) would have been a lot worse.
But that is about as much as can be said for his ploy, because it failed the sincerity/credibility test. This morning I suggested that Johnson could either own up and apologise, or blame others for something of which he was not aware. At PMQs he combined both approaches. His apology was of the Irish famine variety; what happened was awful, and he apologises unreservedly, but that apology is divorced from responsibility, because others were to blame. On responsibility, he clearly implied that he had sought reassurances about no rules being broken, and had been given them. He also announced an inquiry, which may well allow him to report in the future that, “alas”, he was misled. Junior heads may well have to roll.
The problem with this, of course, is that the notion that Johnson (the most anti-lockdown, rule-averse member of the government) was being kept in the dark about lockdown-busting partying by dozens of staffers fearful of his response is implausible. Starmer made this point very effectively, with humour and moral force. He even managed to pray in aid the Queen.
Her Majesty the Queen sat alone when she marked the passing of the man she’d been married to for 73 years. Leadership, sacrifice – that’s what gives leaders the moral authority to lead. Does the prime minister think he has the moral authority to lead and to ask the British people to stick to the rules?
Afterwards, during points of order, a Tory MP complained about this reference to the Queen, who is normally not discussed during parliamentary proceedings. The Speaker gave him short shrift, and the exchange suggests Starmer struck a nerve.
Johnson made things worse for himself by accusing Starmer of playing politics with the issue. He would have been better off just repeating the apology line six times, but by his third response to Starmer he seemed to have had enough of apologising and instead brought up the “playing politics” charge. Even at the best of times this is a feeble political attack line (it only ever impresses ultra-partisans, who will back you anyway) and on a day when Johnson seems to be planning a cat massacre on a scale so blatant even his backbenchers have noticed (see 11.18am and 12.40pm), it seemed even less appropriate.
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Christopher Chope (Con) asks if the Speaker will allow an urgent question to be tabled, for answer today, if the government does not offer a ministerial statement on the move to plan B.
Hoyle says he will look into whether this is possible. He says he hopes the government will offer a statement.
Ministerial statments normally come early during Commons proceedings, after questions, but it is possible for one to take place much later. That may well happen today.
Speaker says it would be 'very, very offensive' for government to announce plan B at press conference, not to MPs
Wes Streeting, the shadow health secretary, makes a point of order. He asks about reports that the government will announce plan B at a press conference this afternoon, and says MPs should be told first.
Hoyle says the government has not said it wants to make a Commons statement.
But he says statements should be made in this chamber first. He says he finds it “very, very offensive” when the government makes announcements outside the chamber first. The government should respect its own backbenchers; he does, even if the government doesn’t. He says he hopes this message has been heard.
PMQs is over, but on a point of order Ian Blackford, the SNP leader at Westminster, says there have now been reports of three parties at Downing Street last winter, including one in the PM’s flat. He asks what can be done to make sure the PM takes responsibility.
Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the Speaker, says Blackford has made its point.
Rosena Allin-Khan (Lab) says she has been working in A&E during the pandemic, and been in tears. How can the PM sleep at night?
Johnson says he knows how difficult it has been for people. He says he takes responsibility for everything the government has done.
Tory MP William Wragg says announcing plan B would be 'diversionary tactic'
William Wragg (Con) says there are media reports of a cabinet meeting and press conference this afternoon to announce plan B, without reference to MPs. He says Covid passes (a plan B measure) will create a segregated society. He says “very few will be convinced by this diversionary tactic”.
Johnson says no decision will be taken without the cabinet being consulted.
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Johnson confirms UK will stage diplomtic boycott of Winter Olympics
Iain Duncan Smith (Con) says the PM’s answer on the Winter Olympics was not strong enough. Will the UK follow the US, the Australians and the Lithuanians and make a diplomatic boycott of these games?
Johnson says there will effectively be a diplomatic boycott for the Winter Olympics. No minister or officials will attend.
But he does not support sporting boycotts, he says (meaning athletes will attend).
Johnson says cyberflashing will be addressed in the online harms bill.
Jack Dromey (Lab) refers to a constituent whose father and sister died from Covid. She is devastated by what happened in No 10. She wants to know if trust still matter in politics.
Johnson says it does.
Luke Evans (Con) asks if it is necessary for people to wait 15 minutes in a clinic for 15 minutes after having had a Pfizer booster. Could this be reduced?
Johnson says this is being reviewed. He says the government will follow the advice of the JCVI.
Catherine West (Lab) asks if there was a party in Downing Street on 13 November.
No, says Johnson. But, whatever happened, the rules were followed at all times, he claims.
Johnson says no plans for British ministers to attend Winter Olympics in China
Johnson says there are no plans for ministers to attend the Winter Olympics in China.
Yesterday No 10 said it had not decided whether there would be a diplomatic boycott of the Winter Olympics. Johnson’s comment implied the government definitely will not be sending ministers.
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How Johnson apologised for No 10 Christmas party video
Here is the apology Johnson delivered at the start of PMQs.
I understand and share the anger up and down the country at seeing No 10 staff seeming to make light of lockdown measures, and I can understand how infuriating it must be to think that people who have been setting the rules have not been following the rules because I was also furious to see that clip.
I apologise unreservedly for the offence that it has caused up and down the country and I apologise for the impression that it gives.
But I repeat that I have been repeatedly assured since these allegations emerged that there was no party and that no Covid rules were broken, and that is what I have been repeatedly assured.
I have asked the cabinet secretary to establish all the facts and to report back as soon as possible - and it goes without saying that if those rules were broken then there will be disciplinary action for all those involved.
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SNP's Ian Blackford says Johnson should resign
Ian Blackford, the SNP leader at Westminster, says trust in leadership is a matter of life and death. The PM has lost the trust of the public. He can no longer lead on these issues. The only right and moral thing to do is to resign, he says.
Johnson says he will get on with the job.
Blackford says people followed the rules even when it meant missing meetings with loved ones, including at their dying moments. He says the PM has lost the support even of his own benches. Tories must decide if Johnson is the man to lead these islands when lives are at stake. He says he has no more to say to a man he cannot trust. If he does not resign, he should be removed.
Johnson says he will get on with the job. It is very sad that, when the public need clarity, the opposition parties are trying to muddy the waters over events, or not, of a year ago.
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Johnson says No 10 will cooperate with any police investigation into Christmas party
Starmer says the justice secretary said the police do not investigate events from over a year ago. As a former head of the CPS, he can say that’s nonsense. Will No 10 hand over all it knows about this to the police?
Of course, says Johnson. He goes on to accuse Labour of not backing the government over the border bill, and of playing politics.
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Starmer says the Queen sat alone at the funeral of her husband. “Leadership, sacrifice - that is what gives leaders the moral authority to lead,” he says. Does the PM think he has the moral authority to lead?
Johnson says Labour has been playing politics at every stage of this pandemic.
The Speaker reprimands Wes Streeting for heckling Johnson particularly loudly.
Johnson says Omicron variant spreading 'much faster' than previous ones
Starmer says the British people put the health of others above themselves and followed the rules. Isn’t the PM ashamed his staff could not do the same?
Johnson says he has said what he’s said. He will publish the cabinet secretary’s report, he says.
He says the Omicron variant is spreading “much faster” than previous variants. That is what we should focus on.
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Johnson accuses Labour of trying to 'play politics' with Christmas party issue
Starmer says:
This pretence that further information has come to light - give me a break.
They are still taking the public for fools, he says.
He quotes the case of a woman not allowed to visit her dying mother at the same time the party took place.
Johnson says he understands the pain the woman felt. He says it is a mistake for Labour “to try to play politics with this issue”. The public do not want to see confidence in Covid measures undermined. The government is taking the steps necessary to protect the public.
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Starmer says the PM cannot pretend he first knew about this last night. His personal spokesperson was involved. They thought it was funny. It is obvious what happened. “Ant and Dec are ahead of the prime minister on this.”
Johnson says he has been “repeatedly assured” that no rules were broken. But there is a risk of doing an injustice to those breaking the rules.
Keir Starmer says the PM spent the week telling the country there was no party. Millions of people know they the PM was taking them for fools and they were lied to. They were right, weren’t they?
Johnson says he apologises for the impression that No 10 staff take this less then seriously. He is furious himself. The cabinet secretary is investigating, and there will be consequences if rules were broken.
Johnson says he was 'furious' to see TV party clip, apologises, and says claims now being investigated
Boris Johnson start by saying he understands and shares the anger of people around the country at seeing No 10 staff making light of lockdown measures. He says he was also “furious to see that clip”. He apologises unreservedly for the impression it gives.
But he says he has been repeatedly reassured, since that clip emerged, that there was no party and no rules were broken.
He says he has asked the cabinet secretary to investigate.
If rules were broken, there will be disciplinary investigation.
UPDATE: Johnson said:
I understand and share the anger up and down the country at seeing No 10 staff seeming to make light of lockdown measures, and I can understand how infuriating it must be to think that people who have been setting the rules have not been following the rules because I was also furious to see that clip.
I apologise unreservedly for the offence that it has caused up and down the country and I apologise for the impression that it gives.
But I repeat that I have been repeatedly assured since these allegations emerged that there was no party and that no Covid rules were broken, and that is what I have been repeatedly assured.
I have asked the cabinet secretary to establish all the facts and to report back as soon as possible - and it goes without saying that if those rules were broken then there will be disciplinary action for all those involved.
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From Sky’s Joe Pike
Cheers for the PM from (some of) his backbenchers as he arrives. He has been standing behind the speaker's chair leafing through his handwritten notes.#PMQs
— Joe Pike (@joepike) December 8, 2021
The Sun’s Harry Cole says Tory MPs seem reluctant to turn up for PMQs today.
Swathes of empty seats on government benches with four mins to go until #PMQs
— Harry Cole (@MrHarryCole) December 8, 2021
PMQs
PMQs is starting soon.
Here is the list of MPs down to ask a question.
The Downing Street Christmas party story will probably have an impact on next week’s North Shropshire byelection. This is from the Telegraph’s Tony Diver.
This Christmas party story is an absolute gift to opposition parties on the doorstep in North Shropshire ahead of next Thursday’s by-election.
— Tony Diver (@Tony_Diver) December 8, 2021
I hear the Lib Dems are already designing a leaflet about Allegra Stratton to send out to voters.
And this is from the Independent’s Rob Merrick.
One senior Tory MP on next week’s North Shropshire by-election….
— Rob Merrick (@Rob_Merrick) December 8, 2021
“We wrote that off a week ago"
This is from my colleague Peter Walker on the possible consequences of announcing a move to plan B today.
Even if there is a very good public health case for the government moving to its tougher Covid plan B immediately, I can hardly imagine a more damaging perception for compliance than the idea it's being introduced today to take attention away from the Downing Street party story.
— Peter Walker (@peterwalker99) December 8, 2021
Tory MP Roger Gale says Johnson should resign if he's misled MPs about Christmas party
Sir Roger Gale, a Conservative backbencher, told Victoria Derbyshire on BBC News this morning that, if Boris Johnson has misled the Commons about the Christmas party at No 10 last year, he should resign.
Asked if misleading the Commons would be a resigning issue for Johnson, he replied:
I think the chairman of the 1922 Committee, Sir Graham Brady, would have to carry a very clear message to the prime minister under those circumstances.
Asked what he meant by that, Gale went on: “Meaning, the game’s up.”
Although the No 10 media spokespeople (who take their orders from Johnson) have said there was no Christmas party, Johnson himself was a bit more circumspect in what he said in the Commons at PMQs last week. He did not deny that a party took place, although he did claim that all the Covid guidance was followed (a claim that is hard to credit if there was a party, because a party itself would have been against the rules).
From the BBC’s political editor, Laura Kuenssberg
Senior Tory MP this morning - ‘Every lie just compounds the problem. But lying eventually catches people out. Another awful mess created out of Downing St. Question now in tea room is Boris reaching a tipping point - where he is becoming a liability and no longer an asset?’
— Laura Kuenssberg (@bbclaurak) December 8, 2021
The Conservative MP Anne Marie Morris clearly does not believe the No 10 line about no party taking place and all rules being followed. She says that it is clear there was a Christmas party last year, and that those involved should apologise.
Clearly there were rules in place that most of us were diligently following (despite how difficult they were) and they decided to break them. It's not on and, at the very least, they should admit their blatant error and apologise for breaking the rules they imposed on society.
— Anne Marie Morris MP (@AnneMarieMorris) December 8, 2021
Downing Street sources are saying this morning that “no decisions have been made” on a move to plan B. But, frankly, an FT story carries more credibility in the Westminster media village.
Ben Riley-Smith, the Telegraph political editor, thinks the timing of such a move would be suspicious.
Talked to a dozen+ government figures yesterday afternoon about Covid policy and no one was suggesting Plan B would be announced today. All pinned on next week.
— Ben Riley-Smith (@benrileysmith) December 8, 2021
Less than 24 hours later...suddenly an announcement is imminent. What sped up the thinking overnight I wonder?
Johnson accused of planning plan B as 'dead cat' distraction from Christmas party row
Dominic Cummings, Boris Johnson’s former chief adviser who is now one of his most acerbic critics, suggests the move to plan B is a “dead cat”. He has posted this on Twitter.
Lots of 🛒 action today - Martin need a fucking dead cat army matey, yeah yeah Plan B great.... [thumbs up run from room] CRASH. Noooooo that will make the party story worrrrrse Martin, need something else. SMASH. [183 whatsapps in 4 mins from flat] Argh poor MEEEEEEE CRASH 🛒🛒
— Dominic Cummings (@Dominic2306) December 8, 2021
Martin is probably Martin Reynolds, Boris Johnson’s principal private secretary.
“Dead cat” is now one of the most over-used clichés in British politics because people often assume that something is being announced to distract attention from a negative news story when almost certainly that is not the motive at all. But sometimes what looks like a dead cat is a dead cat. It was Johnson himself who first publicised the term, quoting (but not by name) the political strategist Lynton Crosby in a Telegraph column in 2013. Johnson wrote:
To understand what has happened in Europe in the last week, we must borrow from the rich and fruity vocabulary of Australian political analysis. Let us suppose you are losing an argument. The facts are overwhelmingly against you, and the more people focus on the reality the worse it is for you and your case. Your best bet in these circumstances is to perform a manoeuvre that a great campaigner describes as “throwing a dead cat on the table, mate”.
That is because there is one thing that is absolutely certain about throwing a dead cat on the dining room table – and I don’t mean that people will be outraged, alarmed, disgusted. That is true, but irrelevant. The key point, says my Australian friend, is that everyone will shout “Jeez, mate, there’s a dead cat on the table!”; in other words they will be talking about the dead cat, the thing you want them to talk about, and they will not be talking about the issue that has been causing you so much grief.
Would announcing plan B be a dead cat? Johnson is certainly losing the argument on partygate, and this would be an enormous distraction.
But anyone who heard Prof Neil Ferguson on the Today programme this morning (see 10.02am) will understand why ministers might feel further Covid measures are needed urgently, regardless of the Christmas party row.
And, as Cummings acknowledges in his tweet, trying to get Tory MPs to support further Covid measures when the government has not answered charges of lockdown hypocrisy creates a new set of problems.
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Johnson about to announce plan B Covid measures for England, FT reports
Boris Johnson is about to announce that England will move to plan B, with people being told to work from home, and vaccine passports being introduced for large venues, the Financial Times is reporting. In their story (paywall) Sebastian Payne, Laura Hughes and George Parker report:
Three senior Whitehall officials told the Financial Times that the government had decided to implement the so-called Plan B of further restrictions, including requiring vaccine passports for large venues and an order to work from home.
Johnson’s decision to act reflects growing concern at the rapid spread of the Omicron variant, but government officials also said he wanted to regain the initiative after days of disastrous coverage over a Downing Street Christmas party last year.
One said the move to plan B — much earlier than expected — was a “dead cat” move by Johnson to distract attention from the row over a leaked video of a mock Downing Street press conference showing staff laughing about the party, which breached Covid-19 rules.
Ministers on the Covid operations committee met on Wednesday to decide on the exact measures. One government insider suggested the work from home order could be implemented as soon as Wednesday night.
As my colleague Libby Brooks points out, a work-from-home instruction from the government would be another example of England catching up with Scotland and Wales.
Worth noting that Nicola Sturgeon yesterday urged WFH til mid-Jan and trailed possible hospitality extension to Scotland's vaccine passport scheme, while Welsh gov on Tuesday emphasised it has never actively encouraged folk back to the office https://t.co/kprJBdXi1o
— Libby Brooks (@libby_brooks) December 8, 2021
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Come clean, apologise, resign - what opposition parties want PM to do about No 10 Christmas party
The opposition parties have all been fiercely critical of Boris Johnson over the Downing Street Christmas party, but they are not all saying the same thing.
Yesterday, in an interview before the video of No 10 staffers laughing about a lockdown-busting party was released, Keir Starmer said Boris Johnson needed to be honest about what happened. But he did not call for a police investigation. “We don’t need a criminal investigation, we need a prime minister who is honest about it,” he said.
This morning David Lammy, the shadow foreign secretary, was on the Today programme for Labour. Like Starmer yesterday, he said Johnson has “got to come clean with the British public”. But Lammy did call for a police investigation. “There, of course, also needs to be a proper police investigation,” he said. “Rules were breached.”
The SNP has gone one further and said that if there was a party at No 10 last Christmas (and the SNP does not seem to be in much doubt that there was one) Johnson should resign. Ian Blackford, the party’s leader at Westminster, said last night:
This video is damning and leaves the prime minister with a lot to answer for. When every individual up and down the country was told to stay at home in order to protect the NHS, the Tories were instead having a Christmas party which, as a senior staff member has now confirmed, was “not socially distanced”.
If this is true, then the prime minister’s position is untenable and he must remove himself from office immediately.
And the Lib Dems are demanding an apology. This is what Ed Davey, the party leader, said last night.
It’s clear that Boris Johnson has never believed the rules apply to him; around self isolation, mask wearing, or throwing social events.
The prime minister must fess up and apologise both to the nation and the bereaved families still mourning loved ones they lost.
The Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice group has described the No 10 Christmas party video as a “bullet to the chest” for families who have lost loved ones during the pandemic.
Dr Saleyha Ahsan, a representative of the group, told BBC Breakfast:
Numerous people around the country couldn’t spend those precious last few days, hours, minutes with loved ones. It was heartbreaking. In 14 years in the NHS I’ve never seen anything like it.
And this latest revelation is just a bullet to the chest, it really is. It just demonstrates the lack of regard for the rest of us.
"I want to say thank to whoever found their moral compass"
— BBC Breakfast (@BBCBreakfast) December 8, 2021
On #BBCBreakfast Dr Saleyha Ashan, from Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice says the video of senior government staff joking about a Christmas party last year is 'a bullet to the chest'https://t.co/d27aXHwIay pic.twitter.com/e6ujFFbt0g
Met police considering No 10 Christmas party video
The Metropolitan police have confirmed they are looking at the video showing Downing Street staff joking about a lockdown-busting party. The force said in a statement:
We are aware of footage obtained by ITV News relating to alleged breaches of the Health Protection Regulations at a government building in December 2020.
It is our policy not to routinely investigate retrospective breaches of the Covid-19 regulations, however the footage will form part of our considerations.
Updated
Former Tory minister Tracey Crouch says she's 'fuming' about No 10 Christmas party video
My colleague Aubrey Allegretti has more on the Tory reaction to the No 10 Christmas party video obtained by ITV last night.
He says Sajid Javid is not the only minister to have cancelled media appearances this morning.
Cabinet ministers refusing to carry the can for No 10 party:
— Aubrey Allegretti (@breeallegretti) December 8, 2021
- Javid lined up for morning broadcast round but pulled out
- Raab and Eustice had events and broadcast clips today cancelled
Vaccines minister Maggie Throup also meant to be doing a regional round - won’t anymore.
And he has posted these comments from Tories, including a quote from Tracey Crouch, a former minister, who says she is “fuming” about the video.
Top Tory says Paterson showed PM “didn’t think the rules applied to his friends” and video tonight demonstrates other No 10 staff share that view.
— Aubrey Allegretti (@breeallegretti) December 7, 2021
“People prevented by the govt from seeing their loved ones at the end of their life will feel like they’re being taken for fools.”
When Tory MPs are quoting Labour atttack lines (see 9.38am) as fact, then you can be sure the government is in a terrible place.
Major frustration among some Tories that this will - again - erode public trust in Covid rules.
— Aubrey Allegretti (@breeallegretti) December 7, 2021
An important reminder that this isn’t about party politics but a potential undermining of important messaging about health restrictions - with big consequences.
Another senior Tory MP says Xmas party video is “absolutely disgraceful” and suggests: “Drain the swamp [in] No 10.”
— Aubrey Allegretti (@breeallegretti) December 8, 2021
Furious on-record reaction from Tory MP Tracey Crouch in the Kent Messenger.
— Aubrey Allegretti (@breeallegretti) December 8, 2021
She calls for a fulsome and swift explanation and apology, adds she won’t justify or defend Downing Street. pic.twitter.com/epYZ3j25L6
Omicron likely to overtake Delta as dominant variant in UK by Christmas, says Prof Ferguson
Sir Charles Walker, one of the most lockdown sceptic Tory MPs, has been arguing this morning that partygate will make it “almost impossible” for the government to introduce new mandatory Covid restrictions. (See 9.38am.)
But it is starting to look as if some toughening of the rules or guidance for England is likely. In an interview on the Today programme this morning Prof Neil Ferguson, the leading epidemiologist, said Omicron is likely to overtake Delta and become the dominant variant in the UK before Christmas. He said it was doubling every two or three days. He went on:
It’s likely to overtake Delta before Christmas at this rate, precisely when is hard to say.
We’ll start seeing an impact on overall case numbers – it’s still probably only 2%, 3% of all cases so it’s kind of swamped, but within a week or two we’ll start seeing overall case numbers accelerate quite markedly as well.
We have the full story here.
The Daily Telegraph (which used to employ Boris Johnson) ignored the story about the No 10 Christmas party video on its front page this morning. But instead it has splashed on a story (paywall) saying ministers are drawing up plans for working at home (one of the plan B measures in the autumn and winter plan). Ben Riley-Smith and Joe Pinkstone report:
New work from home plans are being drawn up by the government as Boris Johnson considers tougher measures to slow the spread of the omicron variant.
Officials working on Covid policy have carried out modelling on the economic impact of urging people to work from home over the Christmas and New Year period, The Telegraph understands.
Vaccine passports could also be introduced, prompting a cabinet split on Tuesday over whether to adopt them.
Updated
'A sick joke’: what the papers say about the No 10 Christmas party video
This, from my colleague Archie Bland, explains what today’s papers are saying about the No 10 Christmas party video story.
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‘They’re laughing at you’: Labour steps up pressure on Boris Johnson over No 10 Christmas party
Good morning. PMQs can sometimes come across as a tedious and pointless hoopla, but it is the hardest diary engagement for a PM to avoid, and so it can be a catalyst for decision. With a big question looming, the PM has to have an answer. And by 12pm today Boris Johnson will have to have decided what to say about the partygate crisis.
The story has been running now for a week, but last night’s revelation that Downing Street aides were privately laughing about a lockdown-busting party at rehearsal for a televised press briefing has elevated this from a moderately-damaging irritation to a full-on disaster, with the potential to deliver a big hit to the government’s ratings. Here is our overnight story.
Broadly, Johnson has three options.
- Stick with the denials? No 10 has said that no party took place (although Johnson personally has not said that) and that all the rules were followed. This seems unlikely, because this line has never been plausible, and now it is more threadbare than ever.
- Own up and apologise? This would be out of character, but it is what many reputation management experts would advise.
- Explain, and blame? Johnson could argue that, until very recently, he was misled about what happened, and he could identify a culprit and perhaps insist on a resignation. This might not be entirely honest, but given that this is how often how political organisations respond to a crisis like this, it does not seem improbable.
For Labour, Christmas has come early, and the party probably delivered its best attack line on Twitter last night. People seem strangely tolerant of politicians lying to them (they have had a lot of practice in recent years), but no one likes being laughed at.
They’re lying to you and they’re laughing at you. pic.twitter.com/6VRaDRa3Nl
— The Labour Party (@UKLabour) December 7, 2021
The party has resurrected the line again this morning.
Millions of families took Government advice last Christmas and stayed at home - even if it meant being apart from loved ones.
— The Labour Party (@UKLabour) December 8, 2021
Meanwhile the Government threw parties which they lied about.
Then they laughed about lying to you. pic.twitter.com/urYYafTaFI
Here are some of the overnight developments on this story.
- The Department for Education has admitted that it was a mistake to hold an office party in December last year. It was responding to an inquiry from the Daily Mirror, which revealed that Gavin Williamson, the then education secretary, held a thank you reception for around two dozen staff. Williamson has gone, and so the DfE can admit the party should not have happened without the secretary of state coming under pressure to quit. But the DfE’s response is very different to No 10’s, and it makes Downing Street’s decision to continue to deny it held a party last December look every more futile.
- Sajid Javid, the health secretary, has pulled out of a morning interview round. It is not clear yet whether he was told not to appear by No 10, or whether he refused, on the grounds that he did not feel able to defend the government over the Downing Street party.
- Tory MPs and peers are getting increasingly angry about the party. The most outspoken of them so far is probably Sayeeda Warsi, the former Conservative party chair, who posted this on Twitter this morning.
Every minister , parliamentarian & staffer at the #downingstreetparty must resign NOW.
— Sayeeda Warsi (@SayeedaWarsi) December 8, 2021
No ifs no buts
The rule of law is a fundamental value , the glue that hold us together as a nation.
Once that is trashed by those in power the very essence of our democracy is at stake.
-
The row has emboldened Conservative lockdown sceptics - just at the moment when it seems increasingly like that Johnson may have to implement his plan B because of the threat posed by Omicron. One of the backbenchers most critical of the lockdown, Sir Charles Walker, told Times Radio this morning that it would be “very difficult” for the government to introduce new mandatory measures. He explained:
To be very proscriptive about this now, particularly as we’ve had such a successful vaccine rollout... is much more difficult, and was always going to be much more difficult. And the events of the last 24 hours make it probably almost impossible now.
Here is the agenda for the day.
9.15am: Thérèse Coffey, the work and pensions secretary, gives evidence to the Commons work and pensions committee.
9.30am: The ONS publishes new data on Covid antibody levels, on the impact of Covid on students, and on personal wellbeing.
10am: Liz Truss, the foreign secretary, gives at speech at Chatham House.
12pm: Boris Johnson faces Keir Starmer at PMQs.
3pm: Dominic Raab, deputy prime minister and justice secretary, gives evidence to the joint committee on human rights.
I try to monitor the comments below the line (BTL) but it is impossible to read them all. If you have a direct question, do include “Andrew” in it somewhere and I’m more likely to find it. I do try to answer questions, and if they are of general interest, I will post the question and reply above the line (ATL), although I can’t promise to do this for everyone.
If you want to attract my attention quickly, it is probably better to use Twitter. I’m on @AndrewSparrow.
Alternatively, you can email me at andrew.sparrow@theguardian.com
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