Politicians seem to have forgotten all about the pandemic – wearing masks just looks like virtue signalling

All attendees of the Labour conference were told beforehand that masks were expected to be worn around the centre, and the request was politely ignored across the board, writes Marie Le Conte

‘MPs mingled indoors with party members, journalists and each other’ (Reuters)

There are many phrases I try not to use, either because they annoy me or because I feel they are never used correctly. “Virtue signalling” is one of them; has it ever been uttered in good faith? Even if it has, isn’t it a good (or, at worst, neutral thing) to want to showcase your virtue to the world?

Still, there’s a first time for everything, and I’m afraid there is no other way to describe the recent behaviour of Labour MPs. In the chamber before recess, their benches were full of row after row of masked parliamentarians, which looked especially stark because the opposite benches were largely mask-free.

Because masks never quite became a tool of the culture wars here, the party political split on the estate was shocking. What was even more surprising, however, was the fact that none of those MPs bothered wearing masks in Brighton.