Inside Politics – Coronavirus special: Boris Johnson faces questions on Europe’s highest death toll

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Wednesday 06 May 2020 07:56 BST

UK coronavirus death toll rises to 29,427 after 693 more die

All dressed up and nowhere to go. This year’s exclusive Met Gala fashion ball may have been cancelled, but Julia Roberts and other invited celebs decided to glam up at home anyway. Nicola Sturgeon has given us reason to consider getting out of the pyjamas – suggesting officials could let us form “bubbles” to meet up with an exclusive group of friends and relatives. Boris Johnson, meanwhile, will get suited and booted for the Commons, where he faces questions on the UK recording Europe’s highest death toll. I’m Adam Forrest, and welcome to The Independent’s daily Inside Politics briefing during the coronavirus crisis.

Inside the bubble

Our political commentator Andrew Grice on what to look out for today:

Boris Johnson and Keir Starmer are due to face each other at PMQs for the first time. Just how constructive the Labour leader’s “constructive opposition” will prove will also be tested when Johnson hold talks with all the opposition parties about his “roadmap” out of the lockdown. Commons select committees on transport, international trade, women and equalities and work and pensions will continue their inquiries into the impact of the pandemic. The expert witnesses include Simon Calder, The Independent’s travel correspondent.

Daily briefing

ARE COMPARISONS ODIOUS? The UK now has the highest number of deaths from coronavirus in Europe. Dominic Raab – after confirming the toll of 29,427 deaths – said it was “a massive tragedy, something in this country … that we’ve never seen before”. But the foreign secretary would not be drawn on international comparisons, saying only: “I don’t think we’ll get a real verdict of how countries have done until the pandemic is over.” Many of this morning’s pages focus on one man instead. Professor Neil Ferguson – the epidemiologist whose modelling convinced the government to bring in the lockdown – has quit as a government adviser after admitting an “error of judgement”. It follows a story in The Daily Telegraph that a woman described as Ferguson’s “married lover” visited his home in lockdown. “I acted in the belief that I was immune, having tested positive for coronavirus,” he said.

FLOATING AN IDEA: Nicola Sturgeon and Scottish government officials are considering whether some us could form “bubbles” and meet up with those “small defined groups” outdoors. The first minister said it was too early to relax restrictions yet, however. We don’t know how seriously they’re taking the idea at No 10, but the PM’s spokesman did not burst the bubble concept: “That will obviously be something we are considering as part of the review.” There are hopes the NHS contact-tracing app will help ease us out of lockdown more quickly. But experts have told The Independent that the app could be used to send “malicious” alerts causing people to isolate unnecessarily. Since users can set off warnings themselves by reporting symptoms – rather than positive Covid-19 test results – it could be used by trolls to send out false alerts.

PLOUGHING OUT: Chancellor Rishi Sunak is said to be ready to announce plans to wind down the furlough scheme, which is supporting 6.3 million people. According to The Times, Sunak will announce plans next week on how to taper off the furlough scheme from July, with options including cutting the subsidy level and lowering the £2,500 cap on monthly payments. Elsewhere, we were given a bit more insight into government thinking with the release of 16 documents from Special Advisory Group on Emergencies meetings (more than 90 are still secret). They show a traffic light system could be adopted to explain new rules as the lockdown is eased. The records also reveal Boris Johnson boasted he had been shaking hands continuously with people at a hospital on the very same day advisers said the government should tell people not to shake hands.

ENOUGH OF EXPERTS: Donald Trump confirmed he will soon begin winding down his White House task force on the coronavirus. “We are bringing our country back,” the US president said during a visit to a mask-making factory in Arizona – during which he wore no mask. Trump admitted his push to reopen the economy could lead to deaths. “Will some people be affected? Yes. Will some people be affected badly? Yes. But we have to get our country open and we have to get it open soon.” The vice president Mike Pence said earlier on Tuesday that the task force of scientists and public health experts could be disbanded in late May or early June.

NEW SCHOOL RULES: Schools have reopened in the Chinese province of Hubei, home to Wuhan, epicentre of the virus. Senior school students returned to desks spaced a metre apart, and some institutions arranged smaller class sizes and staggered arrival times. It’s now been three weeks since any new deaths have been reported in China. Just one new infection was confirmed, and fewer than 400 patients are still being treated for Covid-19, health officials said. Meanwhile, Shanghai Disneyland is set to reopen next week. Disney announced plans for “enhanced safety measures” at the theme park – including social distancing on the rides.

DOUBLE BUBBLE: The leaders of Australia and New Zealand have been discussing the possibility of reopening transport links between the two countries – creating a so-called “trans-Tasman travel bubble”. New Zealand’s PM Jacinda Ardern, became the first world leader to join an Australian cabinet meeting in more than 60 years, said the plans would still take a while to work through. She said flights across the Tasman Sea would help restore “a sense of normality”. Meanwhile, the Queen has told Australian PM Scott Morrison she is “so pleased” at the country’s relative success in combatting the coronavirus. Her Majesty also shared her delight Australia has continued its horse racing.

On the record

“I think it would lift the spirit of the nation.”

Dominic Raab on the idea of televised football’s return.

From the Twitterati

“Prof Ferguson’s private life is none of my damn business. But the fact that he has condemned 65 million of us to house arrest on the basis of something he plainly can't believe in very strongly – that bothers me.”

Former Tory MEP Daniel Hannan is concerned by the professor’s hypocrisy...

“The treatment of Prof Neil Ferguson, who has resigned for private mistakes while giving advice that has saved 1000s of lives, will make other scientists think again before offering government their service.”

…but former Labour MP Mary Creagh is concerned by his public shaming.