Inside Politics: Johnson warns of omicron ‘tidal wave’
NHS tasked with rolling out 1 million booster jabs a day to hit end of year target as new variant spreads rapidly, writes Matt Mathers
It’s shaping up to be a huge week for both Boris Johnson and the entire country, as the NHS attempts to roll out a mammoth extension to the Covid booster programme to slow the spread of omicron while the prime minister continues to fight political fires on several fronts. A large Tory rebellion is expected tomorrow when the PM tries to get his new Covid laws through the Commons. Meanwhile, the North Shropshire by-election on Thursday is being described in some Conservative circles as a referendum on Johnson’s premiership, following a slew of recent scandals. There were fresh reports of lockdown-busting parties over the weekend, with the PM himself very much in the frame this time. Reports say Simon Case, the cabinet secretary investigating Downing Street parties, will conclude his work by the end of the week. It could be a very unhappy Christmas for some No 10 staffers about to get thrown under the bus.
Inside the bubble
The Commons sits from 2.30 with work and pensions questions. They are followed by any urgent questions or statements. Later, the Lords considers amendments to the Armed Forces Bill.
Coming up:
– Health secretary Sajid Javid on BBC Radio 4 Today at 8.10am
– Shadow foreign secretary David Lammy also on Today at 8.30am
Daily Briefing
OH MI: At a Downing Street press conference last night, Johnson issued his starkest warning yet over the new Covid variant, saying “no one should be in any doubt, there is a tidal wave of omicron coming.” Cases of omicron continue increasing at an alarming rate and the language now coming out of Downing Street suggests that measures that go further than Plan B may be introduced in the new year. In a bid to slow the spread of the variant, the PM announced a ramping up the covid vaccine programme, with all adults in England now being offered a third jab by the end of this year rather than the previous target of the end of January, after data showed two doses offers little protection.
WHY THE DELAY?: An already overstretched NHS is now tasked with jabbing over one million people a day to reach the ambitious target – double the 530,000 jabbed on Saturday and exceeding the previous record of 844,000 set in March. In addition to concerns about availability and eligibility, serious questions must be asked as to why it has taken until this point for the programme to be accelerated. For weeks, many observers watched with dread as the daily drip of data coming in from South Africa showed omicron to be much more transmissible than delta. Covid is once again very much front and centre of the news, with Johnson’s announcement last night splashing most news outlets. Live pandemic updates throughout the day here.
YOU’VE BEEN FRAMED: Another day, another report of a lockdown-busting Christmas bash in Downing Street. This time, Johnson himself is personally accused of breaking Covid laws after a photo emerged of him appearing to host a quiz in No 10, sitting underneath one of his idols, Margaret Thatcher. A source told the Mirror, which broke the story, that many staff at the quiz huddled by computers, conferred on questions and knocked back fizz, wine and beer from a local Tesco Metro. Labour has pounced on the latest reports and is calling on the PM to come to parliament and answer questions about whether he misled MPs over alleged Christmas lockdown rule-breaking.
QUESTIONS TO ANSWER: The party is suggesting Johnson has misled the Commons over the party reports. Keir Starmer, former director of public prosecutions, said it appeared Johnson had broken the rules. “Well, it looks as though he was,” the Labour leader told the Andrew Marr Show. He must have known that other groups were in other rooms in his own building.” Nadhim Zahawi, the education secretary, took to the airwaves to defend the PM, saying the quiz was not a party because there was no alcohol involved. Case, the UK’s most senior civil servant, is currently investigating three Downing Street Christmas knees-ups, although the are reports of several more taking place. Case, who is under pressure to remain impartial throughout the process, is due to finish his work by the end of the week, according to reports overnight.
REBEL COUNT: It’s thought there now could be up to 70 Tory MPs preparing to defy the whips tomorrow and vote against the government’s new Covid rules, with backbench Tories particularly angry at the prospect of vaccine passports. Reports over the weekend said that there are also a number of private secretaries considering resigning from their positions so they can vote against Covid Plan B measures. MPs on the rebellion list compiled by the Tory-supporting Spectator magazine, which Johnson once edited, range from old hands such as Iain Duncan Smith and Christopher Chope, to new “red wall” MPs including Dehenna Davison and Lee Anderson. As of Sunday night the list numbers 68, with Tobias Ellwood, Scott Benton, Henry Smith and Matt Vickers being the latest additions. The government embarrassingly will have to rely on Labour votes to get the measures through.
BY-ELECTION WOES: Boris Johnson has become a hindrance to Conservative campaigners in the North Shropshire by-election, local Tories have said amid growing questions about his leadership. Party activists are being repeatedly admonished on the doorstep over a prime minister perceived to be presiding over a series of scandals and mis-steps – most notably his apparent attempts to cover-up a Downing Street Christmas party, and the news he himself hosted a Christmas quiz. Campaigners say they are having to spend significant amounts of time listening to disquiet about Mr Johnson’s conduct before they can begin presenting a positive case for the seat’s candidate, Neil Shastri-Hurst.
On the record
“We know from bitter experience how these exponential curves develop. No one should be in any doubt: there is a tidal wave of Omicron coming.”
PM on omicron spread.
From the Twitterati
“Cabinet Secretary Simon Case isn’t hanging around in his investigation into No10’s illicit parties. Downing St staff have been told to expect his findings by the end of this week, I’m told. Nobody wants the sword of Damocles over them at Xmas.”
Tom Newton Dunn of The Times on Christmas party reports.
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