Politics Archives

Tuesday

21 Dec 2021

Mark Jit

SPI-M modellers: a response to our critics

In late November, scientists in South Africa and Botswana identified a new variant of the virus that causes Covid. This variant — later named Omicron — was spreading rapidly throughout South Africa, particularly in Gauteng, its most populous province. As well as reporting these concerning epidemiological facts, South African scientists worked quickly to identify Omicron’s genetic sequence and to alert the world with further bad news: Omicron has a large number of mutations in the region of the virus that our immune system recognises after we are vaccinated. In other words, it would be harder for antibodies to latch onto the new variant and destroy it. The final key piece of

Steerpike

What is the point of the Metropolitan Police?

As the year draws to a close, it’s worth reflecting on which of our national institutions came out of 2021 in the worst shape. There’s the Foreign Office of course, whose failure to anticipate or prepare for the fall of Kabul was so brutally exposed by its top mandarin’s testimony earlier this month. There’s the Church of England, whose war on parishes came close to whipping up an Anglican insurrection. And then there’s the Conservative party, which seems to have embraced the dirigisme of Pompidou with none of the shiny infrastructure to match. But in a crowded field, the Metropolitan Police surely take the gold medal for the most incompetent and inept

Katy Balls

What happened at Boris’s Covid Cabinet meeting?

15 min listen

Boris Johnson chaired a Cabinet meeting yesterday to discuss the imposition of new Covid restrictions over Christmas. After three hours, the Prime Minister emerged to announce that no new restrictions had been decided on. These meetings are usually called for the Cabinet to rubber-stamp a decision made by Boris and his advisers, so what’s changed? Reports today suggest that the Prime Minister was actively encouraging opposing voices, and that a majority of the Cabinet was against bringing in new rules. After the resignation of David Frost, has Boris been forced to accept a new way of decision-making? Katy Balls speaks to Fraser Nelson and Kate Andrews. On the podcast, Fraser

Annabel Denham

Should businesses receive more Covid support?

As government considers whether to lock us down once again, should it put economic support for businesses affected back on the table? The combination of Plan B and Boris Johnson’s insistence that we modify our social behaviour has led to empty cinemas, ghost trains, cancelled gigs and ‘postponed’ Christmas parties. Just as the economy was getting back on its feet, the unofficial guidance to avoid social events is knee-capping it once again, forcing the Chancellor to not only drop his December plans but to announce yet more taxpayer-funded business compensation. So far he’s fallen down on the side of more support, though nothing (yet) like last time. Businesses in England that

Patrick O’Flynn

It’s time to end the era of forced lockdown restrictions

Monday’s Cabinet meeting held over Zoom was a fraught affair by the sounds of it. Michael Gove and Sajid Javid were reportedly the leading voices calling for more restrictions on household mixing and on the hospitality sector, while the likes of Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss argued that the data did not warrant such a draconian and retrograde step. The Prime Minister seems to have been swaying somewhere in the middle. In the end it was agreed that no new restrictions would be imposed that day but the data would be constantly analysed with a view to imposing restrictions swiftly and before Christmas if alarming trends were picked up on

Steerpike

Foreign honours for Hunt and May

Not many people here in Westminster have a good word to say about the Theresa May years. But down in tiny San Marino, all that appears to be very different. For the landlocked republic recently chose to lavish two of its most prestigious honours on May and her Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, with both flying there in October to have their honours conferred. Hunt received the prestigious Order of Saint Agatha at the rank Grand Officer; May’s was even better, receiving the same order at the highest rank: Grand Cross. The awards were given, according to the Consulate of the Republic of San Marino to the UK, for May’s merits ‘not only as

Steerpike

Watch: darts fans jeer Johnson

Oh dear. It appears that Boris Johnson’s love-in with the great British public appears to have well and truly concluded. Let’s hope that in the wake of ‘Partygate’, Omicron and various scandals, our under-fire Prime Minister didn’t turn on the darts last night for some much-needed respite. For there, on primetime television, the crowd at London’s Alexandra Palace burst into loud and sustained chants of ‘Stand up if you hate Boris’ that echoed around the 2022 Darts World Championship arena. Others held up signs saying ‘All round to Boris’s for afters’ and with pictures of cheese and wine, branded ‘This is a business meeting.’ It’s not the first time a

Gavin Mortimer

Boris Johnson’s betrayal of conservative values

Two years ago this week I wrote a piece for Coffee House entitled ‘Corbyn may be a goner but his ideology is as strong as ever’. The thrust of my argument was that gloating over the demise of Magic Grandpa and his Momentum mob was premature, and what we call woke culture was ‘no passing middle-class fad that will blow over in a year or two.’ Blow over, it didn’t. On the contrary a cultural storm swept in across the Atlantic that upturned ideals and, quite literally, toppled statues. There was far more to last week’s by-election shock in North Shropshire than sleaze and Ms Stratton; it was a cri

Monday

20 Dec 2021

Katy Balls

Cabinet blocks new restrictions – for now

When Boris Johnson held a cabinet call on Monday afternoon, the expectation was that an announcement on new restrictions would be imminent. But the meeting dragged on for three hours and the Prime Minister emerged afterwards announcing that nothing has changed. The situation is ‘extremely difficult’ and arguments both for and against restrictions are ‘finely balanced’ so the government would keep its eye on the data’. In a battle of Sage forecasts vs data realists, the latter had won. For now. So what happened in that meeting? ‘Boris did a great job and encouraged a proper discussion and respected other views,’ says one minister. ‘He had quite a lot humility’. Michael Gove

Andrew Tettenborn

Harry Miller’s ‘transphobic tweets’ victory is a win for free speech

Court decisions don’t often call for three cheers, but today’s Court of Appeal determination in the Harry Miller case is an exception. Essentially the judges have told the police to rewrite the rules on recording what they see as hate incidents. However technical this looks, this is actually an enormous blow in favour of the freedom of ordinary people to say what they want. It is also an admirable Christmas present for anyone seriously concerned with protecting free speech, not to mention a high-profile triumph for the Free Speech Union, who stood squarely behind the appeal. Fighting cases like this needs moral and financial support: and in tandem with Fair

Simon Cook

Is Omicron now falling in South Africa?

Man makes Covid predictions and God laughs. Yet with the stakes this high in Britain, every bit of real-world data is useful. That’s why South Africa is so important: it’s a country with a well-digitised healthcare sector that we have to thank for sequencing the Omicron variant, and has been first to experience the impact. That’s why its figures, released daily, are being watched so eagerly world over. Right now, there are two questions: is Omicron now falling? And if so, what conclusions can we draw? The epicentre is Gauteng province: home to Johannesburg, Pretoria and about a quarter of South Africans. The below chart adjusts for population and shows that

Steerpike

Four times Boris said this Christmas would be better than last

‘It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas…’ Or it certainly was until Omicron intervened. For the latest Covid variant has raised fears the government will be forced into a Groundhog Day style re-run of the awful events of last December, when Boris Johnson ‘cancelled Christmas’ less than a week before the big day. What followed was somewhere between Planes, Trains and Automobiles and the evacuation of Saigon as thousands of desperate Londoners stampeded through stations to get home before restrictions took effect. Twelve months on and with most of Britain double or triple jabbed, there were hopes such scenes could be avoided this year. But with case rates soaring, the Cabinet are meeting

Debbie Hayton

Why is Quidditch snitching on JK Rowling over trans rights?

To those of us who know Quidditch from the fantasy world of the Harry Potter books, the idea of grown-ups running around a field with a broomstick clasped between their legs is a bit ridiculous. But make no mistake: this is serious stuff. The sport has its own governing body, the International Quidditch Association, that manages its rule book. And there’s also a World Cup, currently held by the United States, which has won the tournament three times. But now, there’s trouble brewing in the world of Quidditch. As the sport has grown, a problem has emerged. The name Quidditch is trademarked by Warner Brothers. In a recent statement, US Quidditch explained that this

Kate Andrews

Five lockdown questions the cabinet must ask

The cabinet will meet this afternoon, with more restrictions and even a new lockdown on the agenda. But have ministers been given the information they need to make an informed decision? There are rumours of briefing documents being sent around over the weekend with a pro-lockdown bias (i.e., heavy on the worst-case scenarios and not much said about potential side-effects). But the Times today reports that this time around the cabinet wants a full discussion — with at least ten ministers demanding a better quality of briefing before decisions are made that affect the lives of millions. The below is a list of questions that ministers need answered: 1. What

Steerpike

Security fears over missing Whitehall kit

Whitehall has never been known to be at the cutting edge of technology. The mandarin masters of SW1 have had more than their fair share of tech blunders over the years, from accidentally uploading data about the nuclear subs to the failed NHS ‘super computer.’ And it seems that, for all the numerous headline-grabbing cock-ups, things are getting little better in the monolithic ministries which govern our lives. For now it transpires that nearly 5,000 laptops, mobile phones, memory sticks and external hard drives have gone missing over the past five years by ten government department departments, according to a series of parliamentary questions tabled by Lib Dem MP Sarah Olney. Despite repeated warnings

Henry Hill

Is this the real reason Lord Frost resigned?

In his resignation letter, the Brexit minister Lord Frost justified his decision to quit by pointing to tax rises and Covid restrictions. But there is another potential reason given the timing. Late last week, the UK conceded that the European Court of Justice could have the final say over the Brexit settlement in Northern Ireland. Frost is a negotiator. It might be that he didn’t want to undermine his successor by over-emphasising the scale of the British retreat. Or it could be that he is holding back dissatisfaction with the negotiations for a second broadside at the Prime Minister. But it is a critical development. ECJ oversight was always a

Sam Leith

Is Piers Corbyn really dangerous?

I thought the police statement — bureaucratic, anonymised, bone-dry – got the tone just right. In confirming the arrest of Piers Corbyn on suspicion of encouragement to commit arson, a spokesman confirmed only that ‘a man in his 70s’ had been arrested in Southwark, south London on Sunday morning. This, for those who missed it, is understood to relate to Mr Corbyn’s fire-breathing (literally: he took his nylon-clad life in his hands with a stunt involving lighter-fluid) speech to an anti-vax rally in the capital. He told his audience, presumably once he’d had a Murray Mint to get the taste of the lighter fluid out of his mouth, that we

Steerpike

Thousands of NHS managers earning more than MPs

Throughout the pandemic there have been frequent demands for more investment in the NHS. In October, Rishi Sunak was forced to announce further investment of almost £6 billion to tackle England’s record NHS waiting list. Between 2010 and 2025, the health budget is expected to have increased by 42 per cent; with NHS England’s resource budget set to rise to £162.6 billion over that period. But is all that money being spent wisely? For new figures from the Department of Health show that, while the public is crying out for frontline services, the number of well-paid NHS managers now run into the thousands. According to health minster Edward Argar there are now some 7,018 managers with total earnings

Sunday

19 Dec 2021

Katy Balls

Boris Johnson appoints Frost’s successor

Who is David Frost’s successor as Brexit minister? That’s the question Boris Johnson has answered this evening following Frost’s surprise resignation — with the Foreign Secretary to takeover as the UK’s lead negotiator with the EU in post-Brexit talks. Liz Truss will retain all her Foreign Office responsibilities — with Chris Heaton Harris also to become minister of state for Europe. So, what does this mean for the government’s direction of travel on the Northern Ireland protocol? There had been reports that Boris Johnson was considering appointing a Brexit ultra like Iain Duncan Smith to the position as a way of keeping his right flank on side. The MPs who

Stephen Daisley

No, Steve Baker, voters don’t want Thatcher again

Steve Baker’s decision to boot Nadine Dorries out of a group chat of Conservative MPs has captured the attention of the Sunday papers, though it’s difficult to know where our sympathies are supposed to lie. Anyone who joins a group chat with either Baker or Dorries deserves all they get. The Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport got shown the door for defending the Prime Minister, a minority pursuit among Tory MPs these days. Her comments, which described Boris Johnson as a ‘hero’ who ‘won an 83 majority and delivered Brexit’, were spurred by an earlier post by Marcus Fysh, the MP for Yeovil and a staunch