Boris Johnson news: Senior Tory MP says government ‘ruling by decree’ over new Covid powers
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A senior Tory has accused the government of "ruling by decree" for "imposing" new coronavirus restrictions without proper debate and voting procedures.
Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 Committee of Conservative backbenchers, told the BBC that ministers were treating the British people "like children", as regulations such as the “rule of six” have not been subject to sufficient scrutiny by MPs.
Mr Brady’s remarks came a day before Boris Johnson is scheduled to convene a Cobra meeting to discuss the government’s emergency response to the rapidly increasing number of Covid-19 infections in the UK.
Meanwhile former prime minister Theresa May accused the government of acting “recklessly and irresponsibly” over the UK Internal Market Bill - which ministers admit would break international law by overriding the prime minister’s Brexit deal.
Failing Grayling weighs in against national lockdown
Former cabinet minister Chris Grayling said he does not believe there is a case for a new national lockdown - yet.
He told the Commons: "Given the huge consequences of this virus for people in our communities on their mental health, particularly the younger generation who are paying a very heavy price, can I say to him that given those regional variations - and in the full knowledge of all the pressures that he is facing - I do not believe the case for further national measures has yet been made."
Health secretary Matt Hancock replied: "There is an important balance between the measures that we need to take across the country as a whole and then the further and stronger measures in local areas.
"My right honourable friend will have seen... especially over the past week that we have expanded some of those local interventions to cover bigger geographies.
"He's absolutely right that there are some parts of the country where the number of cases is still thankfully very low and so the balance between what we do nationally and what we do locally is as important as the balance in terms of what we do overall."
‘People have done everything they have been asked to do’
Shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth has accused Matt Hancock of wrongly blaming the public for the rise in cases.
The Labour frontbencher said people have "done everything they were asked to do" by the government - including going back to work and sending their children back to school.
He argued that responsibility lay with the failure of the test, trace and isolate system, adding: "None of us want to see another lockdown or circuit break but we understand if one becomes necessary.
"But test, trace and isolate should have been fixed. That failure has left us vulnerable and exposed. Now we must act with speed to save lives and minimise harm."
‘The more scrutiny the better’, says Hancock
In response to claims that the government was “ruling by decree”, Matt Hancock insisted he believes that “the more scrutiny the better”.
Conservative Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 Committee, asked the health secretary: "Does (Mr Hancock) agree with me that balancing the measures to tackle Covid with the other health consequences such as cancer patients going undiagnosed or not treated in time and the economic and social consequences is a political judgment?
"And does he further agree with me that political judgments are improved by debate and scrutiny?"
Matt Hancock responded: "Yes I do and I do come to this despatch box as often as possible. I'm very sorry that I wasn't able to come on Friday for Friday's decision but the House wasn't sitting."
He added: "The more scrutiny the better is my attitude."
Forget lockdowns and Cobra meetings, the UK Internal Market Bill is back in the Commons for consideration by the “Committee of the whole House”.
MPs are asking the parliamentary under-secretary of state for Brexit about the circumstances under which the UK would use the proposed powers to break international law by overriding Boris Johnson’s deal with the EU.
Boris Johnson ‘taking very seriously’ rise in infection rates
Downing Street have issued a statement ahead of the Cobra meeting on the coronavirus crisis tomorrow.
“Earlier today, the Prime Minister had calls with the first ministers of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and the Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland about how coronavirus is spreading across the country,” a spokeswoman said.
"During these calls, the Prime Minister made clear that the rising infection rates are a cause for great concern, which he is taking very seriously.
"He reiterated his unwavering commitment to working with the devolved administrations as we continue to tackle the virus. They all agreed to act with a united approach, as much as possible, in the days and weeks ahead."
Fabricant denies he is PM’s Perugia doppelganger
Tory MP Michael Fabricant has rejected the light-hearted suggestion that airport officials in Perugia may have mistaken him for Boris Johnson earlier this month.
It appears that staff actually meant former prime minister Tony Blair and not the current prime minister - and that somehow made its way into the airport statement which kicked off this whole bizarre episode.
May: Why did the government sign the Brexit deal if it is so bad?
Conservative former prime minister Theresa May has asked why Boris Johnson is now trying to get the UK out of the Brexit deal that he himself signed.
She told the Commons that the government wanted the UK Internal Market Bill “because of the bad consequences that could come from the interpretation of the withdrawal agreement.”
"If the potential consequences of the withdrawal agreement were so bad, why did the government sign it?", Ms May asked.
Robin Walker, under-secretary of state for Brexit, responded: "As (Mrs May) knows well, the withdrawal agreement was negotiated by the UK and the EU, and agreed with a view that certain elements would be resolved by the joint committee.
"I think there was a reasonable expectation on both sides that the joint committee would have made more progress on those issues and we have heard unfortunately some harmful interpretations suggested over the last few months.
"The point of these government clauses is to ensure that we can rule those out and put in place the appropriate legal default."
Government acting ‘recklessly and irresponsibly’, says May
Theresa May says she cannot support the UK Internal Market Bill even with the changes that give parliament a final say on breaking international law.
She said: “This [bill] can only weaken the UK in the eyes of the world. Our reputation as a country that stands by its word will have been tarnished, and the willingness of other countries to trust the UK would be lessened. So much for Global Britain….
"If we pass this Bill and accede to the government’s wish to break international law. I believe it will have a detrimental affect on people’s trust in the UK."
She says she finds it “difficult to see how any minister can go through the lobby to support these clauses”.
“Far from acting to reinforce the integrity of the UK, in pursuit of trying to appear to be tough to the EU, I think the Government is putting the integrity of the UK at risk,” the former prime minister adds.
Ms May ends by saying the government has acted “recklessly and irresponsibly” and adds: “This will lead to untold damage to the reputation of the United Kingdom.”
‘Authoritarianism’: Tory backbench anger over Covid laws
Tory backbench anger over coronavirus restrictions burst into the open today as health secretary Matt Hancock faced charges of “authoritarianism” from a member of his own party.
A string of Conservative MPs voiced concern in a Commons debate over the impact of lockdown measures on individual freedom, mental health and the treatment of other illnesses such as cancer.
Tory backbench anger over coronavirus ‘authoritarianism’ bursts into the open
Former minister says ‘sizeable’ rebellion will force Boris Johnson to make concessions
‘Grubby power grab’
Kirsten Oswald, the deputy leader of the SNP in Westminster, described the UK Internal Market Bill as "ill-conceived, confused and very damaging".
She told the Commons: "This Internal Market Bill is a grubby power grab which we cannot and will not support, and this section as it stands will hang like a badge of dishonour around this Prime Minister's term of office, however long or short that might be."
Ms Oswald added: "At its heart, this Bill is ill-conceived, confused and very damaging, frightening like the UK government, and neither of them deserve our support."
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