Portrait of the week: Covid pills, Chauvin’s conviction and a red card for the Super League

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Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister, announced the hunt was on for two effective pills to treat Covid, to be ready (after clinical trials) by the autumn. He had cancelled a visit to India, which has seen an increase in Covid deaths, with Delhi put into lockdown. Scarcely was his trip off than India was added to a ‘red list’ of countries from which most travel to Britain is forbidden. Sir Keir Starmer, the leader of the opposition, visited The Raven public house in Bath only for the landlord to shout at him: ‘Get out of my pub!’ He left. By the beginning of the week 9,416,968 people had received both doses of coronavirus vaccine, 17.9 per cent of the adult population; 60.8 per cent had received one dose. The number with both doses soon rose above ten million. Fewer than 2,000 cases remained in hospital. In the week preceding 18 April, 160 had died, bringing the total of deaths (within 28 days of testing positive for coronavirus) to 127,260.

To a general gasp of surprise, Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham said they would form a new European Super League with AC Milan, Atlético Madrid, Barcelona, Inter Milan, Juventus and Real Madrid. Boris Johnson said: ‘I don’t like the look of these proposals.’ It wasn’t long before first Manchester City and Chelsea got cold feet and withdrew, followed by the other British clubs, and the idea was abandoned. José Mourinho was sacked as manager of Tottenham after 17 months. The government said it would cut carbon emissions by 78 per cent from their 1990 level by 2035, instead of 2050 as previously intended. Johnny Mercer was ‘forced’ to resign as a defence minister over his opposition to the prosecution of ex-servicemen who had served in Northern Ireland.