Top story: Wage help ‘stands between UK and mass unemployment’
Good morning, Warren Murray here with some key deliverables.
Rishi Sunak is being warned by leaders of Britain’s major business groups and trade unions that the UK risks 1980s levels of mass unemployment unless he extends the furlough scheme. Ahead of the budget on 3 March, Frances O’Grady, the TUC general secretary, said the treasurer should announce immediately that furlough would remain in place until the end of the year. “We need to work our way back to growth, and for that we need people in jobs.” Adam Marshall, the director general of the British Chambers of Commerce, called for an extension from April to July and said relaxing lockdown and the vaccine rollout would not end the “deep trouble” faced by businesses. The CBI also backs extending furlough.
The warnings come as the Guardian launches in-depth coverage on the pandemic and employment in Britain. David Omokhoje, 55, from Westcliff, Essex, lost his job as a chef in London. Initially furloughed, he was eventually made redundant. Now “I’m broke. I’m having to go to the Citizens Advice Bureau for gas and electricity vouchers and the food bank for handouts.” Larry Elliott, the Guardian’s economics editor, writes: “For the past year, the Treasury’s wage subsidies have stood between Britain and mass unemployment. Every public statement from the chancellor says action will eventually be needed to bring down a budget deficit on course to reach £400bn this year. But the historically low interest rates at which he can borrow mean Britain is not going bankrupt; inflation is below 1%; and the big risk lies in not being extravagant enough.”
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‘The very best of us’– Tributes are flowing after Captain Sir Tom Moore died in hospital at 100 having tested positive for coronavirus. The second world war veteran raised almost £39m for NHS charities during the first coronavirus lockdown in spring 2020. Moore’s pledge to walk 100 laps of his garden before his 100th birthday captured the imagination of fans from around the world.
He went on to break two Guinness world records: oldest person with a No 1 single in the UK charts, and most money raised for a solo charity walk. Boris Johnson said: “In the dark days of the second world war he fought for freedom and in the face of this country’s deepest postwar crisis he united us all.” Keir Starmer said: “This is incredibly sad news. Captain Tom Moore put others first at a time of national crisis and was a beacon of hope for millions. Britain has lost a hero.”
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Midweek catch-up
> SpaceX’s second full test flight of its Starship rocket has ended in another fiery crash. The stainless steel craft reached its intended altitude of 6.2 miles (10km) and flipped on its side to descend but did not straighten up in time for the landing.
“We’ve just got to work on that landing a little bit,” said SpaceX launch commentator John Insprucker. “Reminder – this is a test flight.” The next Starship stood nearby at the launch site in Boca Chica, Texas.
> The UK government is to seek the lifting of unexpected Brexit controls on goods being taken from the island of Great Britain into Northern Ireland. It comes after border staff conducting checks on goods were taken off duty following threats.
> Jeff Bezos, the billionaire founder of Amazon, is to step down as its chief executive, saying the time is right. Andy Jassy, the chief executive of Amazon Web Services, will take over, with Bezos remaining as executive chair.
> Ministers must level with Britons that summer holidays abroad may not be possible unless other countries make better progress on vaccination, senior MPs have warned. A Ryanair ad has been banned for encouraging people book flights then “jab and go”.
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Secretive gang database cut – One thousand young black men have been removed from the gang violence matrix (GVM) used by police in London after a review found they posed no or little risk. The London mayor, Sadiq Khan, ordered a review that led to a drop of 40% in the number of people listed. But 80% who remain listed are still from an African-Caribbean background. Met figures suggest most London shootings and nearly a quarter of homicides are linked to gangs, but critics say being wrongly listed on the matrix can affect employment, housing, driving licences and education. Dr Patrick Williams, a criminologist, said: “People are on there because of their associations, not their behaviours … where they live, the communities they are from, skin colour and their friends and family.” Khan’s administration says those removed have not offended since. The Met police said it had reformed the use of the matrix but added: “We know that young men, and in particular young, black men, continue to be overrepresented on the GVM. Sadly, this is also reflective of the levels of violent crime that affect them – both in terms of victimisation and offending. We are more transparent than ever with the public on our use of the GVM.”
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Wave the flag, Labour told – A leaked internal review says the Labour party must make use of the flag, veterans and “dressing smartly at the war memorial” to regain the “red wall” constituencies won over by Boris Johnson in 2019 and stop others joining them. Keir Starmer is rated by voters as the party’s biggest positive driver but concerns are voiced about him “sitting on the fence”. Voters canvassed could not describe what or who Labour stands for. The Guardian has seen and heard the rebranding presentation, in which one ex-Labour voter from Grimsby is quoted: “They are the voice of the students. They have left real people, taxpayers behind.” But Clive Lewis, a leading Labour ethnic-minority MP and former serviceman in Afghanistan, decried the idea of a flag-waving Labour: “There’s a better way to build social cohesion than moving down the track of the nativist right.” Aditya Chakrabortty writes: “The biggest risk is that Starmer’s patriot act will turn off those voters who Labour still believes it can rely on – the young and the ethnic minorities.”
Today in Focus podcast: EU’s vaccine crisis
Daniel Boffey, the Guardian’s Brussels bureau chief, looks at why the EU’s vaccination programme has become so chaotic – including the European commission seeking to impose a vaccine border on the island of Ireland by triggering a clause in the Brexit withdrawal agreement.
Lunchtime read: Snow better time for a barbecue
Don’t let the weather stop you eating outside. Top chefs explain how to cook, serve and stay warm – plus, their food and drink recipes.
Sport
The Southampton manager, Ralph Hasenhüttl, described his second 9-0 defeat, to a rampant Manchester United at Old Trafford, as “hurting more, not less” than his side’s previous one by Leicester in 2019. A showcase for Arsenal’s newfound European credentials spiralled into a nightmare as David Luiz and Bernd Leno were sent off and the Gunners lost 2-1 at Wolves. Sheffield United gave their Premier League survival hopes a shot in the arm with a third victory in five games after coming from behind to beat fellow relegation candidates West Brom 2-1. Channel 4 has won the rights to show England’s series against India that begins on Friday in a groundbreaking agreement that means Test cricket will return to terrestrial television in the UK for the first time since the 2005 Ashes.
Ollie Pope appears on track to enter England’s thoughts after taking a full part in the squad’s first training session since their quarantine period ended. The first box kick of the 2021 Six Nations has yet to be hoisted but England’s defence coach, John Mitchell, already believes the defending champions are destined to reach great heights. Robert Smith, the general secretary for the British Boxing Board of Control, has conceded there is nothing the governing body can do to prevent the continued involvement of Daniel Kinahan in the sport. A group of leading female runners have spoken out about the abuse and harassment they experience when they are training out on the streets and in parks. And on the eve of a parliamentary vote on whether an investigation should be ordered into the financing of Donald Trump’s Scottish golf resorts, the former US president’s son has accused politicians of “advancing their personal agendas” (in an outburst where he mistook the Green party – who have five MSPs – for the Scottish government).
Business
The US Mint has admitted that it could not meet a surge in demand for gold and silver bullion coins driven by pandemic-induced buying last year and throughout January. Sales of gold coins rocketed by 258% last year, the Mint said, partly also due to production problems. The FTSE100 is expected to lift by around one-third of a percent this morning, while the pound is worth $1.366 and €1.134.
The papers
Much love for Captain Tom today. “Where he walked, the nation followed”, says the Guardian, paying tribute with a characteristically smiling portrait. Our print edition’s lead story today is that leaked Labour rebranding presentation. “We never walked alone with you by our side” says the Express of Captain Tom.
“Hero of our time” says the Mirror, of a man whom the Sun dubs “Captain Marvel”. He was “The best of us” says the i while Metro duly mourns: “We’ve lost a national treasure”.
Other major stories today: the “Oxford jab game-changer” in the Mail, which reports how the vaccine can not only protect against Covid but stop you spreading it after a single dose. “One Oxford jab cuts transmission” explains the Telegraph. Similar in the Times: “Oxford jab does reduce spread of coronavirus”. The FT leads with “Gove urges Brussels to quell rising trade tensions in Northern Ireland”.
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