Coronavirus

Tory MPs have joined calls for parliament to be recalled to allow politicians to “hold ministers to account” over Brexit and Covid-19 decisions. Former Conservative chief whip – and chairman of the Covid Recovery Group – Mark Harper has led the calls for a recall, while Tory Brexiteer Desmond Swayne has accused the government of […]

Nigel Farage has lashed out at a Chinese journalist after being called “Trump’s puppet” and a “big joke in Europe”.  Chen Weihua, who works for the Chinese state-controlled outlet China Daily, hit out at the Brexit Party leader after he blamed China for Christmas in the UK being cancelled. Farage’s message came shortly after Boris […]

A senior Tory MP has called on Matt Hancock to resign after he introduced a new round of strict coronavirus measures across London and much of South-East England days before Christmas. Sir Charles Walker, vice chair of the 1922 Committee of Tory MPs, made the remarks following the government’s latest lockdown plans. The public has been advised against […]

Transport minister Grant Shapps has dimissed a call to “look at” extending the Brexit transition period to allow for the UK to deal with the Covid-19 chaos. Appearing on BBC Breakfast, Shapps rejected calls from Nicola Sturgeon to ensure the UK is “100%” focused on the coronavirus over the coming weeks. He said: “Nah, I […]

Brexiteers have been mocked after fuming about EU countries closing their borders to England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland – after previously complaining the EU prevents countries exerting their own control. France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, Ireland and Bulgaria have all imposed restrictions on UK travel, while the Port of Dover announced its ferry […]

Chaos at the ports due to a ban on freight to France is likely to cause chaos in Kent as the Brexit lorry park created to deal with disruption is not due to be operational until 1 January at the earliest. Countries across Europe have started banning flights from Britain after the disclosure the country […]

Traders reacted with concern over the latest restrictions announced by the Government on Saturday and the increased fears of a no-deal Brexit. The FTSE 100 blue chip index opened down more than 2%, but by 9.45am it had recovered, trading down 1.45%. Companies including British Airways owner IAG and engine maker Rolls-Royce took heavy hits, […]

Scotland’s first minister has called on Boris Johnson to extend the Brexit transition period. Nicola Sturgeon took to Twitter after talks between the UK and EU failed to secure a breakthrough, and as European countries started to ban travel to the UK due to Covid-19. The SNP politician said that the coronavirus now “our 100% […]

Travellers have booked last-minute Eurostar tickets out of the UK amid flight cancellations, closing international borders and a tightening of Covid-19 restrictions. A long, snaking line of passengers formed inside St Pancras station in central London on Sunday as they waited to board one of the afternoon’s sold-out Eurostar trains. One 23-year-old Frenchman, who only […]

Andrew Marr has ripped into health secretary Matt Hancock over the government’s coronavirus response as millions were forced into a new Tier 4 for Covid-19 restrictions. Playing back a clip of Boris Johnson mocking Keir Starmer for wanting to “cancel Christmas” days before the prime minister announced plans to do that, Marr accused Hancock of […]

The last-minute cancellation of plans to allow millions of people to mix over Christmas is the latest in a series of coronavirus policy U-turns to hit England this year. Throughout the pandemic government advice has shifted on a range of issues, as mixed messages triggered frustration and confusion. Here is a summary of some of […]

Boris Johnson has cancelled Christmas for millions of people across London and south-east England after scientists said that a new coronavirus variant is spreading more rapidly – days after mocking Keir Starmer for wanting to “cancel Christmas”. The prime minister announced that from Sunday areas in the South East currently in Tier 3 will be […]

Boris Johnson is set to hold a cabinet call and will later hold a press conference with the chief medical officer Chris Whitty and the chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance. The prime minister is under growing pressure to further tighten coronavirus rules across England amid fears a new variant is accelerating the spread of the disease. […]

A toilet roll manufacturer has insisted they are “equipped to meet increased demand when required” over fears of Brexit panic-buying before the transition period ends on December 31. Manufacturers faced significant demand at the start of the year as the coronavirus pandemic hit, but said they are ready for no-deal Brexit panic-buying at supermarkets. Kimberley-Clark, […]

Brexit has made criticism of Boris Johnson and his government seem like “an act of disloyalty”, a national radio host has said. James O’Brien, a presenter on LBC radio, argued a lack of oversight had caused Britain to become one of the worst-hit victims of Covid-19 around the world. He said confusing messaging around what the public […]

A Tory MP who broke coronavirus rules to attend a Christmas party after advising others to be cautious has been slammed on Twitter. Bournemouth East MP Tobias Ellwood is under fire for attending a Christmas bash with 27 guests at a London club. Ellwood, who chairs the Commons defence committee, gave a speech at the Cavalry […]

Health secretary Matt Hancock has told MPs Tier 3 restrictions will be extended across a wide area of East and South East England. Which tier are you in? Find out below. Tier 3 No mixing indoors. People can only meet outdoors in limited places such as parks and public gardens. Pubs and restaurants must close, […]

LIZ GERARD offers a lexicon for the last year, including many words you will never want to hear again. Activist lawyers Misguided solicitors and barristers who want the courts and the law, rather than Priti Patel, to determine whether migrants she doesn’t like should be deported. Anti-vaxxers Vocal ‘libertarians’ with a death wish for others. Often also […]

Things look particularly bleak this Christmas, but JAMES BALL finds some cause for optimism.  The midwinter is notoriously a bleak season – not for nothing is there a whole song along that theme. Similarly, it’s not coincidental that most cultures and religions mark some celebration of light or of joy in the middle of this […]

A BBC factchecker has debunked Boris Johnson’s claims that coronavirus infection rates were falling across England. Politics Live‘s Joel Massey said government data showed the majority of local authority areas reported an increase in cases over the past week. Johnson had declared that a “huge amount of progress” had been made to bringing down infection rates. His comments comes as […]

England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will press ahead with a relaxation of coronavirus restrictions over Christmas. Boris Johnson urged people to “exercise extreme caution” as they celebrate Christmas amid fears about the spread of coronavirus but up to three households will still be allowed to mix between December 23 and 27. Talks involving the UK government […]

The government is to press ahead with the easing of coronavirus restrictions over Christmas even though it will lead to an increase in the infection rate, a senior minister has said. Communities secretary Robert Jenrick said that it would be up to people to make a “personal judgment” whether they wanted to meet up with […]

Boris Johnson’s father has been spotted breaching coronavirus rules for the fourth time after he took the London underground without wearing a face covering. The Independent reports that Johnson boarded a tube train in Victoria on Monday afternoon without wearing a mask – only putting on one after the individual filmed the former MEP. Stanley Johnson […]

As London enters tier three of the coronavirus restrictions STEPHANIE WATSON analyses the impact on psychological thinking. Following an increase in COVID-19 cases, London will be put into tier 3 on Wednesday. While restrictions are slightly looser than the first and second lockdowns, social interaction is being cut, triggering feelings of loneliness and isolation across […]

A Tory minister has come under fire after publicly stating Rishi Sunak’s Eat Out to Help Out (EOTHO) programme was a “success”, despite claims linking the scheme with increased coronavirus rates. Chief secretary to the Treasury, Stephen Barclay, dismissed the accusation that EOTHO had been a public health disaster which helped the spread of Covid-19. Under the […]

Pro-Brexit Telegraph columnist Allison Pearson delivered herself a ‘self-own’ after her criticism of Covid-19 restrictions backfired. Pearson turned to Twitter to claim that “hardly anyone” knew of people who had the coronavirus. She tweeted: “I’ve asked so many people if they know anyone who has had Covid. Hardly anyone. Two people knew someone (not close) who’d […]

Jack Elton-Walters on the confusion sparked by the Covid-19 tiers. It may not be its most controversial aspect, but the government’s coronavirus tier system has served to highlight existing confusions, grievances and out-dated ideas about which county certain boroughs, towns and cities now fall into. Previous to the most recent, month-long lockdown in England, those in […]

The government’s Test and Trace service has finally hit its contact tracing target for the first time since May. Tracers were finally able to exceed the 80% target of close contact reached which experts say is needed to make the system effective. The percentage of “close contacts” of people with Covid-19 in England reached 85.7pc for the week ending December […]

Former Tory chancellor Ken Clarke has said that Brexit will put the country back by 50 years and a no-deal scenario will have worse economic effects than Covid-19. Speaking on the World at One on BBC Radio 4, Clarke said that he accepts the UK is leaving the EU and that his comments were not […]

Will Self on life moving online during the pandemic. “It’s absurd that they advertise televisions by emphasising their picture quality, but they’re showing you this improved picture quality on your inferior set.” When my 23-year-old said this as we were sat in front of our own inferior box the other day, I felt, simultaneously, pride – and […]

The shows that filled in the visual blanks of the pandemic. As so often, J.G. Ballard prophesied it all. In 1978, the science fiction writer – who has become, posthumously, a sort of laureate of the pandemic and of its social impact – foresaw that television would evolve into something dizzyingly diverse: “[O]ne will have […]

Culture secretary Oliver Dowden has been urged to drop the government’s plan for a Festival of Brexit Britain in 2022. More than 600 cultural workers have signed a joint letter calling for the money to be better spent following the coronavirus pandemic. It reads: “Amidst a background of culture devastation, where thousands have lost their […]