This morning, as Northern Ireland secretary Brandon Lewis prepped for the round of Sunday media interviews Southend’s Conservative party headquarters woke to find scores of empty plates and angry messages outside their front door. Tory MPs around the country reported “deluged” inboxes from outraged constituents and more disquiet is brewing on the backbenches at Westminster. […]
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Northern Tory MPs have hit out at a letter by 20 of their southern Conservative colleagues – pushing for Manchester to accept tighter Covid restrictions – as “ill advised”. Labour mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham also hit back at what he called an “I’m alright Jack” letter signed by a score of Tory MPs […]
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After lengthy discussions lasting into the early hours, the Northern Ireland Executive has announced tighter restrictions to curb raising Covid19 infection numbers. With the introduction of the four-week coronavirus circuit breaker, the additional measures edge Northern Ireland closer to an all-out lockdown. However, Arlene Foster stressed that schools would only close for two weeks while […]
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Boris Johnson is under increasing fire from all angles with the issues of Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic combining with yet more rebels on his backbenches. Michel Barnier, the EU’s chief negotiator in Brexit talks with the UK, mocked Johnson during a meeting with EU ministers for issuing a “third unilateral deadline” The summit of […]
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Business leaders, metro mayors and northern politicians have given a mixed reaction to Rishi Sunak’s announcement that the government will pay 67% of wages for staff in businesses forced to shut because of Covid-19 restrictions. The chancellor described the expanded jobs support scheme as a safety net to protect jobs over a difficult winter period […]
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With case numbers rising and governments balancing health and economic priorities, the number of scientists against lockdown is growing. Unlike in March, when medics and modellers across the globe advocated strict lockdowns to curb the spread of coronavirus, many now believe a different approach is necessary. The Great Barrington Declaration is an open letter penned […]
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The Home Office has spent £30,000 to charter a jumbo jet in order to deport a single asylum seeker to France. An investigation by Channel 4 News discovered the “deportation flight chartered by the Home Office yesterday [Thursday] was carrying just one Sudanese man” and followed an operation requiring “3 mini buses, 2 coaches, a […]
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Labour has slammed Boris Johnson for being “grossly incompetent” for not understanding his own lockdown laws. The prime minister has apologized in a tweet for having “misspoke” when was asked to clarify the new rules for people in the north-east of England – which come into force tomorrow (Wednesday). Johnson told journalists: “In the north-east […]
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Thousands of anti-lockdown protestors have packed Trafalgar Square for the second Saturday running to demonstrate against restrictions under a “we do not consent” banner. Conspiracy theorist David Icke and Jeremy Corbyn’s brother Piers are among the protestors who “did not appear to be social distancing or wearing masks as they demonstrated against government rules”, reports […]
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The British army has been put on notice to deploy on British streets by the prime minister who today announced a tightening of restrictions to try and curb the spread of Covid-19. Boris Johnson said the country is at a “perilous turning point” in the fight against the coronavirus and in this evening’s television address […]
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