Boris Johnson's press conference - Summary and analysis
In March, shortly before he announced the full lockdown, Boris Johnson said that he thought that within the next 12 weeks the UK could “turn the tide of this disease”. It sounded a bit rash, but three months later deaths and infection rates were falling sharply, and the prospect of the lockdown being eased lay ahead. But tides turn, and then turn again, and today it felt as if the clock was going backwards. Johnson, whose entire political persona seems at times to be founded on supercharged optimism, did not look happy.
Here are the main points.
- Johnson said that from Monday a new “rule of six” was being enforced in England, tightening the rules on where people can meet up significantly. He explained:
It is safer to meet outdoors and you should keep your distance from anyone you don’t live with, even if they are close friends or family.
So in England, from Monday, we are introducing the rule of six. You must not meet socially in groups of more than six - and if you do, you will be breaking the law.
This will apply in any setting, indoors or outdoors, at home or in the pub.
The ban will be set out in law and it will be enforced by the police - anyone breaking the rules risks being dispersed, fined and possibly arrested.
As PA Media reports, he also announced:
- Venues where people meet socially, such as pubs and restaurants, will be legally required to request contact details of every member of a party and retain the information for 21 days. Fines of £1,000 could be levied against hospitality venues if they fail to comply.
- Passengers travelling to the UK will need to fill out a simplified form with their contact details before they depart, while the Border Force will step up enforcement efforts to ensure compliance with quarantine rules.
- Plans to pilot larger audiences in venues later this month will be revised, and the government is reviewing its intention to return audiences to stadiums and conference centres from 1 October.
- Opening hours of some venues could be restricted in some local areas. It comes after hospitality venues in Bolton were required to close between 10pm and 5am.
- “Covid-secure marshals” will be introduced to help ensure social distancing in town and city centres in a bid to improve the enforcement capacity of local authorities.
- Prof Chris Whitty, the UK government’s chief medical adviser, signalled that the new restrictions could be in force for months rather than weeks. He said:
I think in terms of the existing restrictions, people should see this as the next block of time that may not last for many months, but it is very unlikely to be over in just two or three weeks.
- Johnson said that he was “hopeful” that by next spring it would be easy for people to use simple, quick tests to show that they were Covid-free, allowing them to attend theatres and sports venues etc. He described these at one point as “passports”, and said they could be the “moonshot” allowing life to return to normal. He said:
Our plan – this moonshot that I am describing – will require a giant, collaborative effort from government, business, public health professionals, scientists, logistics experts and many, many more.
Work is under way – and we will get on at pace until we get there, round the clock.
We are hopeful this approach will be widespread by the spring and, if everything comes together, it may be possible even for challenging sectors like theatres to have life much closer to normal before Christmas.
At a press conference in July, Johnson said he hoped Britons would be able to start abandoning social distancing from November. At the time that sounded optimistic, and today it looks fanciful and naive, but Johnson’s “moonshot” comment suggest he is unwilling to let go of the dream of a return to some sort of normality by Christmas.
- Whitty and Sir Patrick Vallance, the government’s chief scientific adviser, sounded much more cautious about the prospect of mass testing providing Covid-free passports for events. Whitty said you would need a “huge” increase in testing for this to happen. He said:
My own view is that I think it is likely that we will have tests of this sort at some point in the not too distant future, but that not too distant future covers quite a wide time range.
And Vallance said:
There are prototypes which look as though they have some effect, but they’ve got to be tested properly and so there are, as always with technologies, unknowns and we would be completely wrong to assume this is a slam dunk that can definitely happen. I think this needs to be tested carefully.
The government’s Scientific Advisory Committee for Emergencies has expressed some reservations about the plan too. (See 5.40pm.)
- Johnson said the government had to impose restrictions because people were not aware of the risk they posed to others. He said:
The trouble is, people who think that they can take responsibility for their own health and their own risk are, I’m afraid, misunderstanding the situation. It’s not just the risk to yourself, alas, but at any age you can be a vehicle, a vector for the disease. So young people now are overwhelmingly getting it. But they are more than capable of transmitting it to the much more vulnerable older generation.
This is a change of tone from Johnson, who used to stress how much he trusted people to use their common sense. “Our principle is to trust the British public to use their common sense in the full knowledge of the risks,” he told MPs in a statement on his coronavirus policy in June.
That’s all from me for today. Our coverage continues on our global coronavirus live blog.
Updated
Starmer says Labour backs new restrictions announced by PM
Sir Keir Starmer has said Labour backs the new measures announced by Boris Johnson. He said:
I think all of us are deeply concerned about the raise in infection rate. The whole country’s concerned about that.
So, we do support the measures that the government have put in place and we would urge the public to comply with the new rules ...
I urge everybody to comply with the rules, not to try and find ways round them and there’s nothing between the Labour party and the government on this.
Here is the text of Boris Johnson’s speech at the start of the press conference.
And here are the slides.
The Guardian’s latest Politics Weekly podcast is out. Heather Stewart and Polly Toynbee discuss what the new Covid restrictions entail, as well as the latest UK Brexit legislation, which the government is willing to break international law for. Anand Menon and Jennifer Rankin discuss the prospect of getting an EU trade deal. Plus Simon Murphy speaks to Tracey Crouch about the role footballers should have in politics.
Updated
What Sage thinks of the PM's 'moonshot plan' for Covid-free passports
One of the most interesting features of Boris Johnson’s press conference was the stress he placed on his “moonshot” plan to allow people to return to a more normal life. (See 4.27pm.) This would involve using mass testing to allow people to find out quickly and easily if they were Covid-free, allowing them then to have a “passport” that might enable them to attend concerts or football matches etc.
Last week the government announced it was spending £500m developing these sorts of tests, with results from saliva tests being available in 20 minutes. On Monday Matt Hancock, the health secretary, talked about how these tests might enable people to go to mass events. Hancock described this as just a “hope”, but Johnson was less cautious about talking up its prospects.
In the press conference Prof Chris Whitty, the chief medical adviser, and Sir Patrick Vallance, the chief scientific adviser, sounded markedly less optimistic than Johnson about the viability of this plan. If you want to know why, it is worth reading this paper (pdf) from the government’s Scientific Advisory Committee for Emergencies, which is headed by Vallance and Whitty. A consensus statement on mass testing, it was produced on 31 August and published last Friday. Here is an extract from the overall conclusions, which imply that money spent on mass testing could be better invested elsewhere.
Careful consideration should be given to ensure that any mass testing programme provides additional benefit over investing equivalent resources into improving (i) the speed and coverage of [NHS test and trace] for symptomatic cases (the proportion of individuals who report Covid-consistent symptoms in England who go on to request a test through NHSTT could be as low as 10% ) and (ii) the rate of self-isolation and quarantine for those that test positive (currently estimated to be <20% fully adherent). This is relevant as targeting testing to those with high prior probabilities of infection (e.g. people with symptoms or contact with known case) has a much larger per-test impact on reducing transmission ...
The use of testing as a point-of-entry requirement for particular settings and events, e.g. sporting and cultural events, could play a role in allowing the resumption of such activities with reduced risk of transmission. Such applications of testing would require superb organisation and logistics with rapid, highly sensitive tests. This is also separate from the national strategy to reduce R, for which such testing would have only minimal effect.
The reference to “superb organisation” implies serious scepticism, given that superb is not a word that people have applied to the testing service so far.
Later the document look at more detail at the case for what it describes as “pre-event passports”. It says this process could allow activities to resume, but it says the logistics would be complicated, and that tests would have to be carried out close to the time of the event.
And it highlights two other potential problems: people cheating, and people getting a false sense of reassurance.
If a test-negative result is a requirement for entry to a venue or activity, a range of strategies to “game” the system may emerge including false verification of test results ...
Those receiving a test-negative result - whether true or false - may engage in behaviours that increase the risk of transmission during or after the event including reducing hand hygiene, not wearing face coverings and not maintaining physical distance from others.
Updated
UK records 2,659 more coronavirus cases
The government has updated its daily coronavirus data dashboard. Here are the key numbers.
- The UK has record 2,659 more coronavirus cases. That is not as high as the daily total was on Sunday and on Monday, when there were close to 3,000 new cases, but it is still well above where it was last week, confirming that the recent sharp upward trend is being maintained.
- The UK has recorded eight further coronavirus deaths, taking the headline total to 41,594. But this figure only records people who have died within 28 days of a coronavirus test, and so it significantly understates the true number of coronavirus deaths in the UK. Taking into account all deaths where coronavirus was mentioned on the death certificate, there have been more than 57,400 UK deaths.
For No 10, this is probably the best thing they will read on Twitter all day. A snap YouGov poll suggests there is strong public support for the government’s decision to ban people from socialising in groups of more than six in most circumstances.
77% of Brits are either somewhat (32%) or strongly (45%) in support of the decision to limit social gatherings in England to six people https://t.co/7hoBgSN7a6 pic.twitter.com/OZyILhF0Lm
— YouGov (@YouGov) September 9, 2020
Q: These plans are a blow for the travel industry. Will the moonshot plan remove the need for quarantine?
Johnson says these measures are not intended to provide any new problems for the travel industry.
Q: Is the technology behind this moonshot plan reliable?
Vallance says some of this can be done with existing technology. But some of these technologies have not been tested. It would be “completely wrong” to assume that this is a “slam dunk”.
Whitty says it is “likely” that we will have tests of this sort in the “not too distant future”, but that does not mean immediately.
Johnson says he is very ambitious about this. He hopes a lot of progress can be made in a short period of time.
And that’s it. The press conference is over.
There will be reaction, analysis and a summary coming up soon.
Whitty says we need to take these measures because “the alternative is worse”.
Q: Are you worried this could deter people from going back to work?
Johnson says the whole objective of this is allow the country to keep going forward
He say most pupils have gone back to school.
Updated
Vallance says young people have a very low risk of death.
But they can still get ill, and stay ill for a long period of time, he says.
Q: Do you feel comfortable stopping grandparents from seeing their children?
Johnson say of course he doesn’t.
But people who think they can just take responsibility for their own health are wrong, because they could be putting other people at risk.
He says he is doing this to prevent a wider lockdown to the economy.
Whitty says the government has a much better idea what is happening now, through testing, than it had earlier in the crisis.
But he says people have had difficulty getting tests.
It is important that people don’t get tests when they don’t need them.
At any level of capacity, you can do more things.
He says the PM has been talking about what you could do if you had a “huge” change in testing.
- Whitty says there would have to be “huge” expansion of testing for PM’s Covid-free pass plan to be viable.
Q: Do you accept people will not have a normal Christmas?
Johnson says it is “just too early to say”.
He says the government has two big approaches.
It wants to change behaviour from the rule of six.
And it wants to give people passports through its “moonshot”. It is ambitious, but the government is backing it with all it’s got.
Updated
Q: What is your response to John Major? (See 3.59pm.)
Johnson says he does not see it the way Major does. He says he sees the measures in the internal market bill as protecting the UK from extreme interpretations of the withdrawal agreement.
Q: Two months ago you said we might be back to normal by Christmas. That’s wrong, isn’t it?
Johnson says he is still hopeful that some aspects of normal life could return.
He talks about testing, and the idea that people could get tested every morning. That would give people a passport. They could then mingle in theatres or cinemas or places of work.
He says he is aiming for this, but he cannot be sure he will deliver it.
If they follow the rule of six, they can get the virus under control, he says.
Whitty says new restrictions unlikely to be lifted within three weeks
Whitty says all respiratory diseases have an advantage in autumn and winter, because people crowd together.
He says this phase is unlikely to be over in three weeks.
But he cannot give an exact time for how long these measures will have to stay in place.
Q: For the last few weeks you have been telling people to go back to work. Now you are putting new restrictions in place. Why should people listen to you?
Johnson says the situation has been changing.
He still wants people to return to work, in a Covid-free way.
He now wants to get people to follow the rule of six, he says. This will be legally enforced.
Johnson says the government does not want young people to pass on Covid to their parents and grandparents.
At the moment there is little transmission in schools, he says.
Whitty confirms that rates in schools are low.
Why the government is acting now
Earlier journalists were given some government data that helps to explain why these new restrictions are being introduced now.
Coronavirus cases in the UK have gone up significantly. Over the last week they have risen from around 12.5 cases per 100,000 to around 19.7 cases per 100,000.
But amongst the young, the increase is much higher. And that is not just because more people are getting tested. The percentage positive rate has gone up too.
Amongst 17 and 18-year-olds, there are now around 48.1 cases per 100,000. And the percentage positive rate is 6.1%.
Amongst 19 to 21-year-olds, there are now around 54.5 cases per 100,000. And the percentage positive rate is 5.1%.
And amongst 20 to 29-year-olds, there are now around 41.6 cases per 100,000. And the percentage positive rate is 3.7%.
Officials says the impact of this on hospital numbers will initially be relatively modest, because young people tend not to be affected too badly. But they say that, in other countries, if case numbers increase amongst the young, this eventually moves up the age bands, affecting people who are much more at risk.
The government has not adjusted its estimate for R, the reproduction number, because that is updated every Friday. But officials are working on the assumption that is it now above 1.
Johnson is now taking questions from members of the public.
Q: Will the furlough scheme be extended for people who cannot return to work?
Johnson says the government wants to do everything it can. But he says the problem with the furlough scheme is that it just keeps people in suspended animation.
- Johnson restates his opposition to extending the furlough scheme.
Summing up, Vallance says with both vaccines and therapeutics (drugs), it is “positive news” but “a long way to go”.
Sir Patrick Vallance, the government’s chief scientific adviser, is speaking now.
He says eight vaccines are in phase 3 clinical trials. Some will report this year, he says.
And he says there is a reasonable chance that a vaccine will be available in large quantities next year.
Updated
Johnson says he hopes Covid-free passes might be widely available by next spring to allow mass events to resume
Johnson says “we are not there yet” on vaccines and treatments.
But the government is working on an alternative plan, he says.
He says this is based on mass testing.
He says the government is working hard to increase testing capacity to 500,000 tests per day.
But it wants to use testing to identify people who are negative, so they can behave in a normal way.
He says the government is looking at new tests, involving swabs or saliva, that can give results very quickly, in 20 minutes.
He says sports venues could test people, and let in all people testing negative.
And people could be released from quarantine, if they are negative, on return from abroad.
He says this will be piloted in Salford for outdoor and indoor venues.
He says he says he hopes this could be rolled out more widely.
This is his “moonshot”, he says. The government is working on it at pace. He says he hopes it can be rolled out by the spring.
But he says he cannot guarantee these advances will be possible.
Updated
Johnson has a message for students. He says they should wash their hands and make space, for the sake of their grandparents, and they should not gather in groups of more than six, he says.
He says the Department for Education is issuing new guidance today. It will urge universities not to send students home if they are sick, because that could spread the virus.
Updated
Johnson is continuing:
- Pubs and restaurants will by law have to take contact details for tracing purposes. They will be fined if they don’t, he says.
- Local authorities will introduce “Covid-secure marshals”. They will also get help from environmental safety officers.
- The Border Force will step up enforcement action at the border.
- Plans to pilot larger audiences in stadiums and to allow conferences to go ahead from October will be put on hold.
Johnson says his priority is to keep schools and colleges open.
He says they should only be closed as a last resort. The health risks from closing them would be far, far greater, he says.
Updated
Johnson confirms new 'rule of six' to apply in England from Monday
Johnson goes on:
- From Monday the “rule of six” will be introduced in England, he says. People should not meet up in groups of more than six.
He says this measure replaces current guidance. You only need to remember the rule of six, he says.
There are exceptions: if a household or support gathering is bigger than six, it can still meet.
He says gatherings like church services can go ahead - but people should socially distance, and not meet in groups of more than six.
He says two households cannot meet if they make a group bigger than six.
He says he knows this is difficult. But as PM he has to do what is necessary to keep people safe.
Updated
Boris Johnson is speaking now.
He starts by stressing the importance of washing hands and social distancing.
He urges people only to get a test if they need one.
And he says they are “simplifying and strengthening” the rules. People have complained they are too complicated, he says.
Updated
Whitty says this one is key. It shows what is happening in the UK, four weeks behind France, Spain and Belgium. He says if the UK follows France and Spain, cases will continue to go up. But Belgium contained its rising numbers.
Whitty introduces further slides.
Here are weekly incidence figures, by age group.
And these are test positivity figures. They show the case numbers are increasing not just because more people are being tested.
Updated
Boris Johnson's press conference
Boris Johnson has arrived for the press conference.
But Prof Chris Whitty, the chief medical adviser is going first.
He presents some slides.
Here are the case numbers.
From Jessica Taylor, the official Commons photographer
It's that time of the week again! Here are a few of my shots from today's PMQs📸#BorisJohnson #KeirStarmer pic.twitter.com/FBimYWFhDg
— Jessica Taylor (@Jess__Taylor__) September 9, 2020
John Major says UK will lose something 'beyond price' if it cannot be trusted to honour treaties
Sir John Major, the former Conservative prime minister, has joined Theresa May (see here) in criticising the government for proposing to override the withdrawal agreement.
This is from the BBC’s Chris Mason.
Statement from the former Prime Minister — and sceptic about Brexit and Boris Johnson — Sir John Major (via @BBCJLandale) pic.twitter.com/CFMJyW31PI
— Chris Mason (@ChrisMasonBBC) September 9, 2020
Updated
This is from Maroš Šefčovič, the European commission vice-president who is co-chair of the joint committee with the UK on the implementation of the withdrawal agreement.
We expect the letter and spirit of the #WithdrawalAgreement to be fully respected. I have called for an extraordinary EU-UK Joint Committee to be held as soon as possible - so that our UK partners elaborate and respond to our strong concerns regarding their announcement. pic.twitter.com/MhhWj9MUnC
— Maroš Šefčovič🇪🇺 (@MarosSefcovic) September 9, 2020
Updated
Welsh assembly Tory resigns from frontbench criticising PM's 'lack of statecraft'
A Welsh Conservative has resigned from his post as shadow counsel general (shadow to the Welsh government’s law officer) because of his “misgivings” about the internal market bill published earlier today in Westminster. In his resignation letter David Melding says he wants to be free to speak out about the UK government’s “lack of statecraft at this crucial time for the UK’s very survival as a multi-national state”.
With regret but resolve I have resigned as shadow Counsel General and my other posts in the shadow cabinet. pic.twitter.com/sbQnk1bHhL
— David Melding (@DavidMeldingMS) September 9, 2020
Updated
Government publishes statement on its post-Brexit plans for state aid
State aid has been the main sticking point in the UK-EU trade talks because the UK is unwilling to sign up to EU state aid rules and the EU does not want to give the UK free access to its market without an assurance that British firms won’t have an unfair advantage because they are getting government subsidies unavailable to their EU counterparts. To resolve this, the EU has been asking the UK for details of what its post-Brexit state aid rules will actually involve.
Today the government has issued a statement about its thinking. It’s only a broad statement of intent - it says guidance and a consultation will be published later - but it says the UK plans to follow WTO subsidy rules. It says:
The UK will follow WTO subsidy rules after the end of the transition period ...
The WTO rules are an internationally recognised common standard covering financial assistance granted by governments and public authorities to companies. Unlike EU member states, most advanced economies do not have substantive rules regulating subsidies beyond those set by the WTO ...
The government confirmed it does not intend to return to the 1970s approach of trying to run the economy or bailing out unsustainable companies, maintaining that no government of a modern, competitive market economy should stand in the way or prevent adjustment to underlying market conditions.
The WTO rules, which apply to goods and not services, have ensured an effective international trading system for over 25 years. The rules ban subsidies that are dependent on either how much a company exports, or the use of domestic goods over imports. For all other subsidies, they provide a mechanism to resolve disputes between countries. These rules are designed to facilitate an effective international trading system and are followed by the vast majority of countries.
NHS England has recorded a further 12 coronavirus hospital deaths. The people who died were all aged between 50 and 92 and all but one had underlying health conditions. The full details are here.
But no further deaths have been announced in Scotland, in Wales or in Northern Ireland.
No 10 claims withdrawal treaty agreed on understanding it might be clarified later
One of the criticisms of Boris Johnson over his internal market bill is that effectively involves seeking to redraft a treaty, the withdrawal agreement, that he signed in January. If the agreement was flawed, why did he accept it at the time?
At the Downing Street lobby briefing the prime minister’s spokesman answered this by claiming that the deal was agreed in a hurry, on the assumption it would be clarified later. He said:
The withdrawal agreement and the Northern Ireland protocol aren’t like any other treaty.
It was agreed at pace in the most challenging possible political circumstances to deliver on a clear political decision by the British people with the clear overriding purpose of protecting the special circumstances of Northern Ireland.
It contains ambiguities and in key areas there is a lack of clarity. It was written on the assumption that subsequent agreements to clarify these aspects could be reached between us and the EU on the details and that may yet be possible.
Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s first minister, says that this is not what Johnson claimed at the time of the election and that for No 10 to use this argument now shows they are “incompetent and unscrupulous chancers”.
In the General Election it was, according to the PM ‘oven ready’ - now, when they want to jettison it in breach of international law, it was ‘signed in a rush’. What a bunch of incompetent and unscrupulous chancers - and they are trashing the UK’s international reputation https://t.co/xrxVxUI764
— Nicola Sturgeon (@NicolaSturgeon) September 9, 2020
Withdrawal agreement 'not open for renegotiation' says EU as it demands urgent talks with UK
The European commission has called for urgent talks with Britain following the publication of the government’s plans to override parts of the Brexit withdrawal agreement. (See 2.03pm.)
As PA Media reports, speaking at a news conference in Brussels, the commission vice-president Maroš Šefčovič said he was seeking an urgent meeting of the joint EU-UK committee on the Brexit withdrawal agreement to enable the British to “elaborate” on their plans.
Šefčovič, who co-chairs the committee with the Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove, said he had discussed his concerns in a call with Gove today. He said:
I expressed our strong concerns and sought assurances that the UK will fully and timely comply with the withdrawal agreement, including the protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland.
The withdrawal agreement is not open for renegotiation and we expect the letter and the spirit of the withdrawal agreement will be fully respected. I think on that we have to be very, very clear.
Photograph: Olivier Hoslet/EPA
Updated
Ministers will be given powers to “disapply” elements of the Northern Ireland Brexit arrangements in the internal market bill published in a move that legal experts say is an “eye-watering” breach of international law.
The controversial bill published this afternoon gives powers to ministers to unilaterally decide how to apply the Northern Ireland protocol in relation to checks on goods going from Northern Ireland to Great Britain.
It also unpicks the “core” article 10 of the protocol in relation to state aid and states that it will “not be interpreted in accordance with case law of the European court” or “in accordance with any legislative act of the EU”.
This a complete contradiction of the section of the protocol which is underpinned by the “direct effect” of EU law, which would enable any individual or company to rely on EU law in a local court, and which was signed off by Boris Johnson in January.
Legal academics immediately pointed to articles 42, 43, and 45 of the internal market bill as a blunt re-writing of the protocol.
Catherine Barnard, professor of European law at Cambridge University, said:
This is a remarkable piece of legislation and it expressly contravenes out international legal obligations to a point that the legislation itself says this is the intention, as did Brandon Lewis yesterday.
Steve Peers, professor of law at the University of Essex said:
It is an obvious breach of international law. You could argue that it is not a breach because it hasn’t happened yet, but they are certainly giving themselves powers to breach.
Updated
The value of the pound has been falling on the foreign exchange markets today amid concerns that the UK-EU trade talks are heading into crisis. My colleague Graeme Wearden has details here on his business live blog.
European commission president says she is 'very concerned' about UK plan to breach withdrawal agreement
Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European commission, has said she is “very concerned” about the UK government’s plans to breach the withdrawal agreement.
Very concerned about announcements from the British government on its intentions to breach the Withdrawal Agreement. This would break international law and undermines trust. Pacta sunt servanda = the foundation of prosperous future relations.
— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) September 9, 2020
This is much stronger than the comment she issued on this matter on Monday.
PMQs - Snap verdict
PMQs is often derided as a pointless charade, but one of the better justifications for it is that it ensures that the prime minister of the day is always across the most pressing problems facing government. Knowing that the PM could face an embarrassing question about a policy failure, the No 10 system ensures that by 11.30am on Wednesday he or she has got an answer.
And most recent prime ministers would have ensured that, if they were going to go into the chamber to face questions about why thousand of Britons could not get tests for a pandemic virus, they would at least know why. Gordon Brown would have been up all night researching reagent supply chains. Tony Blair would have sat down for a tutorial with the CMO, as if he were in a barrister’s chambers. Theresa May would have delivered the death stare to officials unable to provide a coherent gloss on the PHE statistics. David Cameron would have grasped the nub of the problem and rehearsed a word-perfect explanation. And Margaret Thatcher? God help any minister or official unable to supply an answer to the most detailed question about what went wrong.
But today Boris Johnson did not really seem to have much of a clue as to why people were finding it difficult to get tests. As Sir Keir Starmer pointed out, this morning the government has been offering a wholly new explanation from the one available yesterday, but Johnson could not explain what was going on, and did not even seem particularly curious. If he had offered an honest, coherent explanation, he would have got a decent hearing. But instead he resorted to a half-hearted attack on Starmer for disrespecting the “heroic” efforts of NHS test and trace. Starmer sounded clear, reasonable and in touch with people’s concerns; he is making winning at PMQ look easy. Johnson did briefly reprise his rather irrelevant teaching unions/Brexit jibes against Starmer at the end, but his main complaint was that Starmer was being unhelpful, and when the worst thing you can say about the opposition is that they are opposing the government, then you have a problem.
That said, Johnson was not as hopeless as last week (which would be difficult), and his message would appeal to die-hard Tory loyalists who are susceptible to the argument that Labour is talking the country down. In other words, it was core vote messaging. But normally you would expect this from a PM behind in the polls at the end of a parliament. Johnson has more than four more years to run, and his poll ratings are holding up much better than they would be if PMQs were the decisive factor.
Updated
Text of UK internal market bill published, confirming it would break international law
The government has just published the United Kingdom internal market bill. It’s here (pdf).
It runs to 54 pages, but one word in particular stands out. It is “notwithstanding” and it appears three times, making the same point each time, like this:
The following have effect notwithstanding any relevant international or domestic law with which they may be incompatible or inconsistent ....
This is the admission that some of the provisions of the bill break international law.
Sturgeon says Scotland 'at very dangerous point', with new cases tripling over past three weeks
The rate of new Covid-19 infections has tripled over the last three weeks, to an average of 155 new cases a day, Nicola Sturgeon has said, with the number of positive tests doubling from 1% to 2%.
The first minister said during her regular briefing that three weeks ago the seven-day rolling average for Scotland was 52 new cases per day; it was now 155 cases per day. “It’s no exaggeration to say that Scotland is at a very dangerous point, as is the UK and other parts of the world,” she said.
Sturgeon said she could not rule out changing the number of people allowed to gather when she updates the lockdown rules on Thursday, potentially echoing the UK government’s announcement of new limits to six people.
There were 159 new cases recorded overnight, with 63 of those in the Greater Glasgow and Clyde health board area, where 1.1 million people are affected by tougher restrictions on gathering indoors. Sturgeon said there were new cases in every health board area on the Scottish mainland.
There were, however, no deaths recorded from Covid-19 by National Records of Scotland in any Scottish care homes last week, the first time since the start of the outbreak.
Updated
Speaker condemns government for not announcing new Covid restrictions to Commons
Sir Desmond Swayne (Con) makes a point of order criticising the government’s decision not to make a Commons statement about the new Covid restriction. He says Matt Hancock could have announced this yesterday.
Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the Speaker, says he is sympathetic. This is “really not good enough”, he says.
It’s really not good enough for the government to make decisions of this kind in a way which shows insufficient regard for the importance of major policy announcements being made first to this House and members of this House wherever possible.
He says he has written to the government to complain.
I think the total disregard for this chamber is not acceptable.
He goes on again to say that disregarding the Commons like this is “not acceptable” and that he wants Hancock to apologise.
In response to another point of order on this from Labour’s Jonathan Ashworth, who says Robert Peston broke the news about the plans on Twitter, only a few hours after Hancock addressed MPs, Hoyle says that if this continues he could “run [Hancock] ragged” by allowing an urgent question every day (which would mean Hancock, or one of his ministers, having to address MPs every day).
I expect the secretary of state to apologise to members and make sure that this chamber knows first of when he was fully aware of what was going to be said later.
And let me say, if this minister wants to run this chamber ragged I can assure you now I’m sure a UQ (urgent question) every day might just begin to run him ragged.
Updated
Johnson says threat to override withdrawal agreement intended to protect UK from 'extreme' application of it by EU
Alistair Carmichael (Lib Dem) says some Scottish nationalists want to have a wildcat referendum. He opposes that because it would be illegal. But how can the government object, given it now backs law-breaking?
Johnson says he wants to protect the Good Friday agreement. To do that he needs to protect the UK from “extreme or irrational” interpretations of the withdrawal agreement. Such an interpretation could put a border down the Irish Sea.
Updated
Johnson says “as someone who grew up on a farm” he is happy to support British farming day.
Rushanara Ali (Lab) asks about Covid contracts for PPE awarded without due diligence. Where has the money gone?
Johnson says millions of items have been procured. If Ali has a concern about a particular contract, she should write to him about it.
Kim Johnson (Lab) asks about housing in Liverpool. She says the government’s plans for planning reform will allow slums to return. Will he abandon them?
Boris Johnson says his government will deliver beautiful new homes.
Jessica Morden (Lab) asks Johnson to rule out delaying an increase to the national living wage.
Johnson says the government introduced the national living wage and supports it.
But he does not commit to ensuring the planned increase goes ahead.
Mark Eastwood (Con) asks about lockdown measures in Dewsbury.
Johnson says the restrictions there will be lifted when possible.
Johnson says he has every sympathy with people who cannot get coronavirus tests. But NHS Test and Trace has conducted 17m tests, more than any other European country.
Johnson says the government will look at how public order and nuisance law can be used to protect newspaper printing plants.
David Linden (SNP) asks about Adriel Baguma, the baby found alongside his mother Mercy, who starved to death in Glasgow.
Johnson says a minister will take this up with Linden to discuss the baby’s welfare.
Updated
Johnson says the oversight of special educational needs schools is being reviewed.
Siobhain McDonagh (Lab) asks about the plight of the Uighur people.
Johnson says he raises this issue with the Chinese in every context.
Updated
Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the Speaker, asks Blackford to withdraw what sounded like a heckle accusing Johnson of lying. Blackford tries to insist that he had a point, but Hoyle cuts him off and says he takes that as a withdrawal.
Updated
Ian Blackford, the SNP leader at Westminster, says the internal market bill is an affront to Scotland. He calls the government a parcel of rogues creating a rogue state. Why does the PM think he’s above the law?
Johnson does not accept that. He says the bill should be welcomed by the whole country.
Blackford say this is rubbish. He says state aid power will be taken back to Westminster. He quotes other critics of the bill. Scotland is speaking out, and the Scottish parliament will reject it. He says the time for Scotland’s place as an independent country has almost come.
Johnson says the attacks on the bill are illogical. It is a “massive devolutionary act”. And it ensures the integrity of the internal market. And the SNP would hand over powers to Brussels over fisheries.
Updated
Keir Starmer says government lack competence over testing shortage
Starmer says the government lacks competence (although at first he misspeaks, and says it lacks incompetence). When will it sort this out?
Johnson says Starmer was right first time. He accuses Starmer of siding with the teaching unions and anarchists who want to disrupt newspapers. And Starmer has nothing to say about the internal market bill, he says, because Starmer does not want to offend his backbenchers who want to take the UK back into the EU. Starmer himself probably wants to rejoin, Johnson says. He says Starmer just wants to carp.
Updated
Starmer says what is undermining confidence is parents being told to go hundreds of miles. He says he just wants this fixed. Is it a capacity problem or not? He says the government was meant to provide an effective scheme. When did Johnson first know this was a problem?
Johnson says the government has to supply more and more tests. The government has gone up to more than 300,000 tests a day today.
UPDATE: Johnson was referring to testing capacity. He said:
It is precisely because of the success of Test and Trace that capacity has gone up from 2,000 a month in March to 320,000 a day.
I’ve removed a sentence from the original post because it said Johnson implied the 320,000 figure applied to tests, not capacity. It was not clear as I was listening. But the transcript shows clearly he was referring to testing capacity.
Updated
Starmer says it is going wrong. MPs know this – they have all been contacted by constituents. Yesterday there was supposed to be excess capacity. But people could not get tests. Why?
Johnson says they need to prioritise. Starmer is wrong, he says. He says of those contacts who provide details, 80% are reached. He say the British people are ignoring Starmer’s attempt to undermine confidence in test and trace.
Updated
Starmer says this matters to people. The PM should not just talk about the future. He should take responsibility. Tests are not available. What is happening?
Johnson says he regrets that Starmer did not take back his claim about the system being on the verge of collapse. He repeats the point about it doing a “heroic” job. The median journey is under 10 miles, he says.
Updated
Starmer says he will support the measures in principle. He is not attacking anyone. He says these concerns cannot be brushed off. He says this is serious, but the government line seems to be changing all the time. Yesterday NHS Test and Trace said it was a laboratory. Today Matt Hancock said it was the public’s fault, even though he did not mention this point in his Commons statement yesterday. Who is right?
Johnson says Test and Trace are doing a “heroic” job. They will be able to do 500,000 tests by the end of October. He says Starmer should take back his claim that the system is on the verge of collapse.
Updated
Sir Keir Starmer says he spoke to a mother yesterday who tried to get a test for her daughter, who had a temperature. By lunchtime she was told that one of the nearest test centres was Inverness. By the evening she was told Swansea. Why is this?
Johnson says people should not denigrate test and trace. Thanks to test and trace local lockdowns have now been working. But “alas” there has been a rise in infections. That is why he has had to announce new measures. He says he hopes Labour will support those measures, and test and trace.
Updated
Sir Bob Neill (Con) ducks the rule of law question and asks about Gibraltar day.
Johnson says the sovereignty of Gibraltar is inviolable.
Munira Wilson (Lib Dem) asks why the public should obey the law if the government does not.
Boris Johnson says the government expects everyone to obey the law.
PMQs
PMQs is about to start.
Here is the list of MPs of down to ask a question.
The first Tory on the list is Sir Bob Neill, the chair of the justice committee, who asked the question yesterday that prompted Brandon Lewis to say the government’s internal market bill would be breaking international law - an answer Neill subsequently criticised.
Deaths in Scotland increased by a third during the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic, with 4,515 excess deaths compared to the five-year average, National Records of Scotland has disclosed.
NRS, a government statistics agency, said Covid-19 fatalities accounted for 83% of the excess deaths in April, May and June this year, but there was also a 24.5% rise in deaths from dementia and Alzheimer’s disease to 1,727, a 22.5% increase in deaths from genitourinary diseases to 298 and a 26.2% rise in deaths from diabetes to 287.
The data showed that fatalities in transportation accidents plummeted by 69.1% down to just 16 deaths, due to the lockdown and closure of workplaces, while deaths from other respiratory diseases fell by 20.6% to 1,258.
A large proportion of Covid-19 deaths involved people with significant underlying health problems, including respiratory illnesses. In all, there were 18,201 deaths recorded in the second quarter, 33% higher than the five-year average.
The closure of registration offices and wedding venues saw the number of wedding plummet too: only 117 took place in Scotland in the second quarter, compared to a five year average of 7,938 marriages during these three months.
In the US some influential Democrats have expressed concern about the UK government’s plan to override part of the Brexit withdrawal agreement.
In a Facebook post Richard Neal, chair of the ways and means committee (which covers trade policy) in the House of Representatives, said:
Earlier this year, the European Union and the United Kingdom approved a withdrawal agreement that established the terms of the United Kingdom’s orderly exit from the EU ...
I sincerely hope the British government upholds the rule of law and delivers on the commitments it made during Brexit negotiations, particularly in regard to the Irish border protocols.
And this is from Antony Blinken, a foreign policy adviser to the Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden.
@joebiden is committed to preserving the hard-earned peace & stability in Northern Ireland. As the UK and EU work out their relationship, any arrangements must protect the Good Friday Agreement and prevent the return of a hard border. via @NYTimes https://t.co/KUIScLLqt0
— Antony Blinken (@ABlinken) September 8, 2020
The UK government insists that it is also wholly committed to the Good Friday agreement and the peace process. (See 10.19am.)
But the withdrawal agreement and the Northern Ireland protocol were drafted with the express intention of protecting peace in Northern Ireland by avoiding the need for a hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland (by displacing any new border checks to the GB/NI border). But the UK government is threatening to override this to minimise the impact of any potential GB/NI disruption, and this could lead to the EU and Ireland having to harden the NI/Ireland border as a consequence. (Equally, that border could end up staying open anyway, which is what some Brexiters think would happen in practice. In practice, no one can be sure how the EU and Ireland would respond.)
The chances of border chaos in Kent when the Brexit transition ends on 1 January 2021 are about 80%, MPs were told this morning.
Giving evidence to the Commons Brexit committee (or the committee on the future relationship with the EU, to give it its new, formal title), Richard Burnett, chief executive of the Road Haulage Association (RHA), said that ministers have a “self-belief in their own rhetoric at the moment that everything will be OK”. But this was misplaced, he argued.
The devil is in the detail, and some of the fundamental things that need to change, and some of the things that need to be invested in, are simply not happening fast enough.
Burnett expressed concern about a lack of customs agents, what will happen at new customs sites and that a new border IT system has not been released. He told the committee:
My fear at this stage is there will be significant disruption, potentially, at the year-end ...
In terms of my gut feeling as we stand here today with 81 days to go, with the amount of work that we’ve got to undertake, [the likelihood of] chaos in Kent [is] 80/20.
The justice secretary, Robert Buckland QC, has been challenged by Labour to “protect the rule of law from attack from inside [his] own government” after it confirmed that it intends to breach the EU withdrawal agreement.
David Lammy, the shadow justice secretary, has written to Buckland, who as lord chancellor swore an oath when he took office to “respect the rule of law [and] defend the independence of the judiciary”. Buckland, has so far remained silent on the political row.
In his letter to the justice secretary, released on this morning, Lammy said:
Maintaining the sanctity of the rule of law has been central to your position for more than 400 years. Yesterday Brandon Lewis MP, the Northern Ireland secretary, confirmed that by breaking the EU withdrawal agreement, the government would “break international law in a very specific and limited way”.
This morning Matt Hancock, the health secretary, said he is ‘comfortable’ with the fact the UK is willing to break international law. What steps do you plan to take to protect the rule of law from attack from inside your own government?
If you fail to prevent the government from breaking the rule of law, will you stand by your oath to respect the rule of law by breaking cabinet responsibility on this matter?
These are from the BBC’s political editor Laura Kunessberg, responding to the new claim from Matt Hancock this morning about the justification for the plan to override the withdrawal agreement. (See 10.19am.)
1. Coronavirus will dominate headlines today but..... Former Cabinet minister involved in putting together the EU deal gobsmacked that Hancock said the changes to Withdrawal Bill were about the peace process this morning
— Laura Kuenssberg (@bbclaurak) September 9, 2020
2. 'I cannot allow anyone to get away with saying the govt is doing this to protect the peace process. This does the precise opposite. It is about the internal market in the UK and is more likely to lead to a harder border which will imperil the peace process.' they say
— Laura Kuenssberg (@bbclaurak) September 9, 2020
3. A reminder, Hancock told @BBCr4today govt was acting to change the deal using UK law because 'first and foremost' its priority was to protect the peace
— Laura Kuenssberg (@bbclaurak) September 9, 2020
4. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, we still haven't seen the actual bill yet despite 3 days of controversy - we'll see in black and white later what it actually proposes to do
— Laura Kuenssberg (@bbclaurak) September 9, 2020
A claim that Boris Johnson decided to breach international law after the EU had threatened to disrupt food exports from Britain to Northern Ireland (see 10.19am) has been condemned as “fake news”, amid growing outrage over the prime minister’s plans to renege on the withdrawal agreement, my colleague Daniel Boffey reports.
Siân Berry and Jonathan Bartley have been re-elected as joint leaders of the Greens in England and Wales for another two-year term, after comfortably seeing off two lesser-known challengers.
They took 49% of first-preference votes, with former deputy leader Shahrar Ali getting 24%, and Rosi Sexton, a Green councillor in Solihull, getting 27%. Sexton is a former mathematician and elite-level mixed martial arts fighter.
Berry and Bartley took over in 2018 from the Greens’ previous leadership duo of Bartley and Caroline Lucas, the party’s sole MP. The Greens hold elections for all top posts every two years.
Updated
Scottish and Welsh first ministers condemn internal market bill as attack on devolution
The internal market bill is being published later today and, in an overnight briefing, the UK government claims that it will give the devolved administrations new powers. Here is an extract from the overnight briefing from the business department.
The UK internal market bill will guarantee companies can trade unhindered in every part of the UK as they have done for centuries, ensuring the continued prosperity of people and business across all four parts of the UK, while maintaining our world-leading high standards for consumers, workers, food, animal welfare and the environment.
From 1 January 2021, powers in a range policy areas previously exercised at an EU level will flow directly to the devolved administrations in Holyrood, Cardiff Bay and Stormont for the first time. This will give the devolved legislatures power over more issues than they have ever had before, including over air quality, energy efficiency of buildings and elements of employment law, without removing any of their current powers.
A separate briefing from the Northern Ireland Office says “powers in at least 70 policy areas” are being devolved.
But the Scottish and Welsh governments take a very different view. These are from Scotland’s first minister, Nicola Sturgeon.
1/ The Internal Market Bill that the U.K. government will publish today is a full frontal assault on devolution. And to the usual “but the SNP would say that” voices, read the Welsh Government view below, rightly referring to the Bill ‘stealing’ powers from the devolved govts... https://t.co/iYoxyRtinS
— Nicola Sturgeon (@NicolaSturgeon) September 9, 2020
2/ At forthcoming @ScotParl elections, @theSNP will make case for independence. And more and more this is not about independence v the status quo of devolution. It’s about independence as the only way to protect the Scottish Parliament from being undermined and its powers eroded.
— Nicola Sturgeon (@NicolaSturgeon) September 9, 2020
3/ And added to all of the above, this is a Bill that, by the government’s own admission, breaks international law. This UK gov is the most reckless (& to make it worse, incompetently so) and unprincipled in my lifetime. Scotland can do better and we will have that choice.
— Nicola Sturgeon (@NicolaSturgeon) September 9, 2020
Mark Drakeford, the Welsh first minister, has said much the same. These are from ITV Cymru’s political editor Adrian Masters.
1/2 First Minister Mark Drakeford has told @TimesRadio that the publication of the Internal Market Bill is 'a grim day.' 'This bill represents an enormous power grab, taking powers that have been in Wales, Scotland & N.Ireland since the very beginning of devolution, for 20 years.
— Adrian Masters (@adrianmasters84) September 9, 2020
2/2 'It is a very bad day for the union because this will put enormous strains into the union that is the United Kingdom. Those of us who believe in the United Kingdom and want it to succeed think that this is a very bad day indeed'
— Adrian Masters (@adrianmasters84) September 9, 2020
From the Spectator’s James Forsyth
Lots of Tory grumpiness that lockdown restrictions are being tightened without a statement to parliament
— James Forsyth (@JGForsyth) September 9, 2020
Church services will not be covered by the new rule banning people socialising in groups of more than six in most circumstances, according to Justin Welby, the archbishop of Canterbury.
After contact with Government we hear that there is no change to guidance on places of worship. Worship is the work of God - not a social gathering - and gives the strength to love and serve.
— Archbishop of Canterbury (@JustinWelby) September 9, 2020
Britain is not a rogue state but the threat to unpick the Brexit withdrawal agreement has backfired and undermined its global credibility, according to Leo Varadkar, Ireland’s deputy prime minister. Speaking on RTE’s Morning Ireland show this morning, Varadkar said:
A country either abides by the rule of law or it does not, it either honours international treaties and obligations or it does not.
Britain is an honest, honourable country full of honest people, it’s the country of the Magna Carta, the country that helped defend parliamentary democracy, it’s not a rogue state.
Varadkar, who helped clinch the withdrawal agreement with Boris Johnson last year, said the threat to unravel it was “possible sabre-rattling” but that Ireland and the European Union could not assume that.
I think they want a deal but on the best terms they can get. It seems the sticking points are on fisheries and state aids – what different supports can be given in the country without skewing the playing field.
There was still time to negotiate a deal, said the former taoiseach. He expressed confidence that the EU’s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, would make the right call.
Updated
Tobias Ellwood, the chair of the Commons defence committee, has joined other Conservatives in protesting about the government’s plan to break international law by legislating to give it the power to override the withdrawal agreement. He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme:
This is about the rule of law and our resolve and commitment to uphold it. To unilaterally ignore any treaty in its obligations which we’ve signed and submitted to the United Nations would actually go against everything we believe in.
How can we look at countries such as China in the eye and complain about them breaching international obligations over Hong Kong, or indeed Russia over ballistic missiles, or indeed Iran over the nuclear deal if we go down this road?
But he also suggested there was an element of “sabre-rattling” in this as the UK-EU trade talks approached their deadline with both sides deadlocked.
Updated
Hancock says need to protect Northern Ireland peace process justifies plan to override withdrawal agreement
In his morning interviews Matt Hancock, the health secretary, defended the government’s plan to legislate to give itself the power to override the Brexit withdrawal agreement. Yesterday Brandon Lewis, the Northern Ireland secretary, admitted this would break international law.
Previously the government has defended this as a tidying-up exercise, or a contingency plan to protect against the risk of a UK-EU trade deal not happening. This morning Hancock put a new gloss on it, saying it was about protecting the Northern Ireland peace process. He said:
The decision we’ve made is to put the peace process first, first and foremost as our absolute top international obligation.
We are also absolutely clear about if we don’t manage to achieve that [a deal], and I really hope that the Europeans will make the progress necessary in order to deliver it – it’s straightforward and available in my view – if not we absolutely have to choose and to govern is to choose and I choose peace in Northern Ireland.
In the Sun today Harry Cole and Nick Gutteridge claim there is another explanation. They say the UK government is responding to a threat from the UK that could theoretically cut off food supplies from Britain to Northern Ireland. They report:
The Sun has learnt that London’s attempt to “clarify” parts of the 2019 exit treaty came after what they saw as veiled threats from Michel Barnier’s team that the EU could exploit parts of the withdrawal agreement if the UK did not bow to their trade deal demands.
Under the terms of the deal export of “products of animal origin” such as meat, fish, shellfish, eggs and dairy from the UK mainland over to Northern Ireland will become subject to EU oversight.
The EU has a “third country” list of approved third parties that can legally import agricultural goods into areas subject to their rules.
The UK being put on that approved list was assumed to be a given and not subject to negotiation, but Brits were left seething after Michel Barnier’s team hinted the UK may not be given that legal status if talks collapse.
In a no-deal scenario it left open the chance that the EU could declare food exports from Great Britain to Northern Ireland illegal.
One expert following trade talks closely told the Guardian:
This has a ring of truth. The EU are very experienced negotiators and Barnier has some very good people around him who are used to negotiating with the big boys. This could be ‘hardballing’ but the response of the UK would be totally disproportionate.
Updated
Christmas 'long way off', says Hancock, as he plays down prospect of new restrictions lasting until then
Matt Hancock, the health secretary, has done a full round of media interviews this morning. Here are the main points.
- Hancock played down, but did not rule out, the prospect of the ban on people socialising in groups of more than six in England still being in force at Christmas. He said the ban would apply for the “foreseeable future”. Asked if if would still apply at Christmas, he replied.
It’s absolutely there for the foreseeable future. I really hope we can turn this round before Christmas. I think that, in a pandemic, Christmas is a long way off. Three months is a long time in a pandemic and I very much hope this strong rule, together with the local action we’ve taken in places like Bolton ... I very hope much therefore this can work to do that by Christmas.
- He said the government was imposing the new law partly because the police wanted a simpler set of rules to enforce. He said:
One of the things we heard back including from the police directly was that we needed a simpler set of rules that are very straightforward, [that] everybody can understand, and we will be publishing those rules very clearly and then enforcing against them.
- He said the testing shortage was caused by people getting tests when they did not need them. (See 8.58am.) Some 25% of people requesting tests were in this category, he claimed. (See 9.21am.)
- He rejected claims that the test-and-trace system was failing. When this was put to him, he replied: “I completely reject the accusation, in fact quite the contrary.” He said the UK has the biggest system per capita in Europe and the highest testing capacity “we’ve ever had”.
- He said he would make it compulsory for pubs and restaurants to take customers’ details for the test-and-trace programme. He said:
We’re also going to enforce more strictly the rules around hospitality, including for instance you need to give your contact details when you go to hospitality, which has so far been voluntary. Large swathes of the hospitality industry have followed it. Some have chosen not to, so we’re going to make that compulsory as well.
- He dismissed suggestions that encouraging people back to the office was prompting a rise on coronavirus cases, saying that transmission was happening elsewhere. He explained:
[Workplaces] are under health and safety legislation and businesses are legally obliged to follow health and safety legislation. All of our evidence is that the vast majority of the transmission that we are seeing is essentially in social circumstances, not at work.
- He played down the significance of the news that the AstraZeneca/Oxford University vaccine trial had been put on hold because of unexplained illness in one participant. This had happened once before in this trial, he said. He explained:
This is a normal part of a vaccine development that, when you find a problem, the system is paused while you investigate that particular problem.
What it underlines is that we won’t bring forward a vaccine unless it is safe, no matter how enthusiastic I am for a vaccine.
Updated
In an interview on Sky News Matt Hancock repeated his claim about the testing shortage being caused by people getting tests when they did not need them. He said people were only eligible for tests if they had coronavirus symptoms, or if they had a very specific reason otherwise. But about 25% of people now coming forward did not have symptoms and were not eligible, he said.
Updated
Hancock says Covid testing shortage caused by people getting them when they're well
Well, it was good while it lasted. The news this morning is dominated by the announcement that coronavirus restrictions are again being tightened and that, from Monday, people in England are (with certain exceptions) not going to be allowed to socialise in groups of more than six.
Here is our main story. And here is an explainer from my colleague Peter Walker.
Matt Hancock, the health secretary, has been giving interviews this morning. He has refused to rule out a further national lockdown. And he has also offered an explanation for why many people have been finding it impossible to get a coronavirus test. It is because people are booking tests who do not need them, he told the Today programme. He said:
The reason we have constraint at the moment is not because capacity has gone down; far from it, capacity has gone up. It’s that we’ve suddenly seen this rise in demand from people who are not eligible. For instance, I’ve read stories of whole schools being told to go and get a test. That is not what the testing is there for. We need it for people who are symptomatic.
Although Labour claims the testing system is “on the verge of collapse”, Hancock denied this. He said:
I want to reassure people who have got symptoms 90% of people get a test that’s within 22 miles of them. The average distance that anybody has to travel to get a test is under 10 miles. So we have got the vast majority of people getting a test locally, getting the results very quickly.
But this increase in demand from people who are not eligible is a problem.
I will post more from his interview round shortly.
Here is the agenda for the day.
9.30am: The Road Haulage Association gives evidence to the Commons Brexit committee about post-Brexit borders.
9.30am: Home Office officials give evidence to the Commons home affairs committee about migrant crossing the English Channel.
10.20am: Transport ministers Robert Courts and Rachel Maclean give evidence to the Commons transport committee about transport and coronavirus.
12pm: Boris Johnson faces Keir Starmer at PMQs.
12.15pm: Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s first minister, is expected to hold a coronaviru briefing.
After 12.30pm: MP begin a debate on a Labour motion on extending the furlough scheme.
Afternoon: The government is due to publish its internal market bill.
4pm: Johnson is due to hold a press conference.
Politics Live has been doubling up as the UK coronavirus live blog for some time and, given the way the Covid crisis eclipses everything, for the foreseeable future it will still mostly focus on coronavirus. But we will be covering non-Covid political stories too, and where they seem more important and interesting, they will take precedence.
Here is our global coronavirus live blog.
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.
Updated
