Boris Johnson

Nicola Sturgeon is planning to ignore Westminster’s veto on holding a second independence referendum, a leaked party memo has suggested. The National is reporting that SNP MPs Angus MacNeil and Chris McEleny will have their motion debate alternative legal routes to independence during this year’s party conference approved. Dubbed “Plan B”, the motion suggests Holyrood should take the UK government […]

The prime minister will host a new coronavirus briefing as England entered a national lockdown for a second time. NHS chief executive Sir Simon Stevens will join the Downing Street event at 5pm on Thursday. It is unlikely that any new measures will be announced, but it follows chancellor Rishi Sunak revealing that furlough has […]

MITCH BENN on why he would almost be as bad as Boris Johnson. There’s a very useful expression which succinctly encapsulates the difference between the concepts of knowledge and wisdom. As is sometimes the case with such modern aphorisms, I’ve heard a few different versions of it, and I’m not sure with whom the phrase […]

The Test and Trace system has reached the lowest ever proportion of contacts of people who tested positive for Covid-19 in England, a day after Boris Johnson said it had achieved a “remarkable feat”. Four in 10 close contacts of people who tested positive are still not being reached by the system, at the same […]

Rory Stewart has called Boris Johnson the “most accomplished liar in public life” in a personal swipe against the prime minister in an article in the Times Literary Supplement. Stewart, who was of 21 rebel Tory MPs fired for voted against Johnson’s Brexit agenda last year, accused Johnson of being an opportunist who created the “historical forces” […]

ALASTAIR CAMPBELL on how the UK government shows contempt of near Trumpian levels. Needless to say, the government’s fabled miscommunications team got itself into all sorts of muddles over its reaction to the Sunday Times’ revelation that the chair of the UK’s ‘vaccine task force’ briefed American venture capitalists on details of which projects the government was […]

Suella Braverman has defended Priti Patel’s attack on “activist lawyers” after reports they have faced physical and verbal attacks following criticism from the government. The attorney general was questioned by MPs about a Home Office video which accused them of epresenting migrants of trying to disrupt the asylum system. Labour’s Andy Slaughter also told the Commons: […]

A handful of Tory MPs have defied public opinion and their own party to vote against Boris Johnson’s lockdown plans. The prime minister’s bill sailed through the Commons by 516 to 39 in a vote on Wednesday evening. Under the legislation, non-essential shops will be forced to close and social gatherings and non-essential travel banned from Thursday […]

MICHAEL WHITE on the growing twin nightmares of authoritarianism and incompetence in the week arch-opportunist Nigel Farage returns to frontline politics. Whatever the final outcome it was clear within hours of the polls closing that the result of the US election has not been the decisive repudiation of the Trump Era for which progressive opinion […]

LIZ GERARD is second to no one in her criticisms of Boris Johnson. Yet for all his manifest failings, she cannot help feel some sympathy for his current predicament. But when anger starts turning to pity, how long can a prime minister last? At what point does anger turn to pity? Do we rediscover our essential […]

Boris Johnson’s “toxic” nature is likely to put a strain on a Joe Biden presidency, a prominent Democrat adviser has warned. Max Bergmann, a senior fellow with the Centre for American Progress, told the Times that Johnson’s credibility has fallen across the pond as a result of his Brexit support, and the administration could turn […]

Theresa May accused Boris Johnson of choosing data to fit his coronavirus policies, as she insisted the government must reveal the economic cost of lockdown. The Conservative former prime minister tore into predictions said to have informed her successor’s decision to impose a second national lockdown in England, which will start on Thursday and last […]

Boris Johnson refused to be drawn on the controversy surrounding Donald Trump’s claim that he had won victory in the US election and his threat to go to the courts to stop votes being counted. Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer had asked the prime minister to criticise Donald Trump’s actions. At Prime Minister’s Questions, Sir […]

Campaigners are embarking on a fresh bid to get the Brexit transition period extended during the continuation of the Covid-19 crisis. More than ten thousand have already signed a petition requesting an extension, which would also look to hold a referendum on any trade deal agreed with the EU, meaning the government must respond. It comes […]

Robert Jenrick has admitted he “doesn’t know” how many tests will be needed for the government’s mass coronavirus testing programme in Liverpool. The government announced that Liverpool will become the first city to offer its citizens coronavirus tests in a new mass testing pilot programme from Friday. Anyone living or working in the city will be available […]

Boris Johnson and Matt Hancock are being sued over the appointment of Tory peer Dido Harding to run the government’s Test and Trace system. Runnymede Trust and the Good Law Project have brought forward legal proceedings against the two over alleged cronyism. The NGOs claim top-ranking affiliates of the Conservative Party were given key public sector […]

A legal challenge over the decision not to investigate Dominic Cummings for alleged breaches of coronavirus lockdown rules will be heard by the High Court on Tuesday. The prime minister’s chief adviser caused controversy by making a 260-mile drive from London to Durham in March with his wife, journalist Mary Wakefield, and their four-year-old son to […]

Boris Johnson has vowed to end the second lockdown on December 2 when the government “intends” to return to a regional tiered system. Johnson guaranteed “without a shred of doubt” that the restrictions would expire on December 2, amid concerns on the Conservative benches that England’s lockdown could be extended. A growing number of senior MPs on […]

Boris Johnson believes MPs should continue travelling from across the UK to Westminster despite the national lockdown coming into effect in England. The prime minister’s spokesperson said Johnson did not agree with arrangements for a virtual parliament which would involve many working from home. Commons leader Jacob Rees-Mogg later echoed the importance of MPs attending […]

The speaker of the House of Commons has criticised a leak that revealed ministers were about to announce another lockdown in England. Sir Lindsay Hoyle called the leak “unacceptable” and demanded the culprits apologise to parliament if an investigation launched over the weekend finds an MP was behind it. The prime minister was forced to […]

The Brexit transition period will not be extended, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer as he told businesses that it is now down to Boris Johnson to deliver on his promise. Sir Keir struck a strongly more pro-business tone than his predecessor Jeremy Corbyn as he spoke at the CBI conference. Sir Keir, who backed Remain in […]

James O’Brien has said minsters are “psychologically incapable” of approaching issues without it turning into a fight during a take down of the prime minister’s latest lockdown measures. O’Brien delivered a withering attack on the prime minister’s handling of the national lockdown expected to come into force on Thursday. The prime minister announced a new four-week […]

Piers Morgan has launched a scathing attack on Boris Johnson’s decision to introduce a nationwide lockdown over the weekend. Morgan said the government’s announcement had come too late and accused Johnson of having no plan to get the nation out lockdown. The lockdown, expected to come into force on Thursday, will see non-essential shops close and people […]

Boris Johnson has pulled out of an appearance at the annual conference of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) after the organisation issued warnings about a second lockdown and Brexit. CBI president Lord Bilimoria said it was only the second time a prime minister had not spoken at the event. The group’s director general Dame […]

Baby accessories and assorted caviar were among a dozen gifts the Cabinet Office has confiscated off Boris Johnson due to anti-corruption regulations. The government releases a list of ministerial gifts on a quarterly basis and just earlier this week dumped a trove of data on the latest presents the prime minister received during April and June this year. […]

Boris Johnson’s leadership is the biggest driver for swing voters over Scottish independence, new polling has revealed. Brexit, the Westminster government’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, and a desire for certainty were all attributed to rising support for Scotland going it alone, but the key argument was Johnson, a view shared by 79% of swing […]

So what is a role model? Before I give you the definition offered by the Oxford English Dictionary – itself a role model, dare I say, in the world of words – just put the paper down, and have a think about that question… what is a role model? Who, if you have or have […]

As Britain’s future trade talks with the EU 27 edge towards what we hope will be some sort of amicable resolution, at home Boris Johnson grapples over free school meals with a 22-year-old footballer who didn’t win the Eton-and-Oxford Lottery. It made me think of a long-dead trades union activist whom I admired. Moderate but […]

Pret a Manger has distanced itself from founder Julian Metcalfe after he provoked a backlash telling the government not to introduce another lockdown to save a “few thousand lives”. Metcalfe, who sold his remaining stake in the coffee chain last year but still owns the majority of high-street restaurant Itsu, prompted an angry response online after […]

With 65 days to go until the UK leaves the EU single market and customs union, the approval rating of the EU leadership has never been higher among Britons, according to a new poll. The latest Gallup polling finds that 49% of Britons approve of the EU leadership, a 12 point rise from the 37% […]

Boris Johnson’s handling of the situation over free school meals has been branded a “disaster” after Marcus Rashford’s petition hits one million signatories. The Manchester United star’s mission to ensure no child goes hungry has gripped the nation and caused a major headache for the government who have opposed funding his campaign. Tory peer Gavin Barwell, […]

Two-thirds of Britons think the government has failed in negotiations with the EU, while 57% would blame the UK government if the Brexit transition period ended without a deal in place, according to a new opinion poll. The polling, conducted by YouGov, finds that the public thinks that leaving the transition period without a deal in […]