Inside Politics: Dominic Raab urged to hit Belarus hard with sanctions

The foreign secretary is facing calls to block regime finances and energy pipeline projects after the forced Ryanair flight landing, writes Adam Forrest

Foreign secretary Dominic Raab (PA)

The BBC is getting it in the neck for the UK’s nul points debacle at Eurovision. The “sneering elite” who run the corporation are accused of treating us plebs with disdain by failing to take the competition seriously and selecting crappy songs. Whether it’s crappy songs or crappy Brexit which have divided us from the rest of Europe, the UK is very much in harmony with the EU when it comes to Belarus. Foreign secretary Dominic Raab and his counterparts across the bloc are preparing to bring in hefty sanctions against the authoritarian regime after the shocking capture of a Ryanair flight.

Inside the bubble

Chief political commentator John Rentoul on what to look out for today:

Public sector borrowing figures will be published early this morning, focusing minds on the economy. Boris Johnson will then chair a cabinet meeting – journalists might be briefed afterwards on the latest information about vaccines and variants. In the Commons, health secretary Matt Hancock answering an urgent question on Covid from his shadow Jonathan Ashworth.

Daily briefing

RECLAIM THE SKIES: The UK has joined the EU in barring Belarusian airlines after the “hijacking” of a Ryanair flight to detain a dissent Belarusian journalist. Foreign secretary Dominic Raab said the UK would not necessarily wait for the EU for further sanctions against Alexander Lukashenko’s regime. Raab called the forced landing a “shocking assault on civil aviation” – and said the Russian government was likely to have been involved. Labour’s shadow foreign secretary Lisa Nandy also condemned the act of “modern piracy”. The influential Tory MP Tom Tugendhat, chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, urged the government to back the suspension of energy pipelines in Belarus. Others called for a block on finances through the City of London. Meanwhile, the father of Roman Protasevich, the journalist at the centre of the international incident, said he fears his son may be tortured. Belarusian state television aired a short video of Protasevich last night in which he said he was healthy and that his treatment had been “according to law”.

SPOTS OF BOTHER: Opposition MPs are demanding health secretary Matt Hancock explains why local lockdown restrictions appear to have been brought in without any explanation. The government has advised people not to travel in or out of hotspot areas hardest hit by the Indian Covid variant: Bolton, Blackburn, Bedford, Burnley, Kirklees, Leicester, Hounslow and North Tyneside. People living in the hotspot areas have also been asked not to meet indoors. Yasmin Qureshi, the Labour MP for Bolton South East, said she was “gobsmacked” that the government had issued new guidance without making it clear whether “this is advisory or legally obligatory”. Lib Dem MP Layla Moran, chair of the all-party parliamentary group on coronavirus, said Hancock should explain the situation quickly to avoid “confusion and uncertainty”. Hancock may also be asked about new data showing that up to 8,700 patients have died after catching Covid while in hospital for other conditions.

HISTORY BOYS: Downing Street has denied that Boris Johnson missed crucial meetings early in the Covid crisis because he was working on his new history of Shakespeare. No 10 also rejected Dominic Cummings claims about herd immunity. One government official accused him of trying to “rewrite history” and called him a “rank hypocrite”. But Cummings keeps on coming at them with the tweets. So many tweets! He published a series of graphs on Monday, claiming they showed the plan in early March was to go for a “single peak strategy” which would allow Covid cases to soar. He said that as late as 14 March – 10 days before the eventual lockdown – advisers were “screaming” at Johnson and telling him that the absence of a lockdown plan would “kill at least 250,000 people”. Some Tory MPs believe Cummings is conspiring with Michael Gove to soften the ground for a big change at the top. “Gove is permanently on manoeuvres,” one ex-minister told The Times. “The man manoeuvres more than Napoleon did.”

YOU CAN’T COUNT ON ME: Priti Patel has refused to say whether the overhaul of the immigration system will cause a rise or fall in net migration. The home secretary’s “new plan for immigration” focusses on increasing the deportation of people “with no right to be here”. But net migration numbers? Oh no. Patel said she would not be drawn on the “language” of dreary old numbers. “I’m not going to get into the language of old around immigration.” She confirmed ETAs will be required by anyone without a visa or immigration status – although they will not be needed by Irish citizens – promising the system will be operational by the end of 2025. Unrepentant over the recent raid on asylum seekers in Glasgow, Patel insisted forced removals would continue. “That is effectively what the British public voted for.” Scottish Greens co-leader Patrick Harvie responded: “The home secretary claims this is what the British public voted for. Well, it’s certainly not what the Scottish or Glaswegian public voted for.”

A BIT WHIFFY: The BBC has announced a review into its editorial practices and promised investigate how journalist Martin Bashir was rehired following a botched internal inquiry into his Diana interview. The corporation said it would examine “editorial policies and governance in detail”. It hasn’t stopped the Beeb-bashing. Top Tory Julian Knight – chair of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee – said Bashir’s activities had “more than whiff of criminality”. He told fellow MPs that the BBC rehired and promoted someone “who they know was a liar”. Knight also claimed his sources told him Bashir “wasn’t interviewed, he was simply appointed”, claiming it was part of a cover-up. Meanwhile, Tory minister Liz Truss said the BBC should be stripped of its power to choose our Eurovision entry after the nul points disappointment. The international trade secretary said: “I don’t think it is a post-Brexit snub … I think there is a fundamental problem with the way that we are choosing our performances and singers.”

IN SICKNESS AND IN HEALTH: A Labour MP triggered a strange political row by suggesting No 10 had exaggerated how close to death Boris Johnson was when he caught Covid last year. The PM was “not quite at death’s door as we were led to believe”, Valarie Vaz claimed on the BBC’s Politics Live. Simon Clarke, a Conservative MP, hit back immediately, saying: “That’s an extraordinary thing to say … It is genuinely wrong to question how sick the prime minister was.” Vaz backtracked partially by admitting: “Honestly I don’t know – I’m not his doctor.” She later admitted she’d had misspoken. “I wish to clarify my remarks and apologise if any offence was caused. I never intended to give the suggestion that the prime minister was not seriously ill.” In Scotland, more serious arguments have been had over Covid. It emerged that only around half of those with appointments at Glasgow’s mass vaccination centre turned up for their jab. Health secretary Humza Yousaf issued a plea for people to do the right thing and reschedule.

On the record

“Lukashenko’s regime must be held to account for such reckless and dangerous behaviour.”

Dominic Raab on Belarus’ shocking ‘hijacking’ of the Ryanair flight.

From the Twitterati

“A year ago Cummings’ rule-breaking lockdown trip to Durham was revealed. For the public … Maybe the PM didn’t axe Cummings because of what he could reveal about Govt incompetence.”

Labour MP Matt Western wonders what impact Cummings could have had 12 months ago...

“Is Cummings still writing his ‘things I knew at the time but couldn’t be arsed to share when it really mattered’ thread?”

...while Sarah Murphy is cynical about how much people care now.

Essential reading

Steve Crawshaw, The Independent: The Belarus ‘hijacking’ is what we get for turning a blind eye to authoritarians

Sean O’Grady, The Independent: What can we expect when Boris Johnson gets married?

Katy Balls, The Spectator: So what exactly will Dominic Cummings tell MPs?

Martin Fletcher, New Statesman: Britain’s shameless tabloids have no right to lecture the BBC

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