Coronavirus 1) Unions agree to reopen schools but insist teachers must be safe “Teaching unions committed themselves yesterday to reopening schools next month but they remain at loggerheads with the government over routine coronavirus testing and tracing. The National Education Union (NEU) echoed a call by Anne Longfield, the children’s commissioner for England, for a robust […]
Housing market re-opened on day one of Government’s new plan “The housing market will be reopened today in a bid to get Britain moving again. Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick has told estate agents they can reopen immediately although they are being urged to use online viewings. Removal firms can get back to work and construction […]
Hancock to launch “track and trace” programme today “On Monday Matt Hancock, the health secretary, will announce that 141,000 residents of the Isle of Wight will become the first people in the country to test the new NHS Coronavirus detector app. Two to three weeks later we are all going to be asked to download […]
Johnson ‘to dash hopes’ coronavirus lockdown will be lifted soon “Boris Johnson will on Thursday warn the nation not to expect major changes to the lockdown after it emerged Britain has one of the world’s worst coronavirus death rates. The Prime Minister will use his first Downing Street press conference since his return to work to […]
Unclear whether Johnson is well enough to attend PMQs today… “Dominic Raab is expected to deputise for Boris Johnson at the dispatch box again on Wednesday amid claims that he is still not well enough to attend Prime Minister’s Questions. Despite returning to work on Monday, Mr Johnson is said to still be recovering from his […]
Cabinet set to agree lockdown exit plans “Mr Johnson will hold a series of meetings with key ministers this week to finalise details of how different sectors, including businesses and schools, could start easing their way back without risking a second wave of the virus. Government scientific advisers will brief him on the risk involved […]
Johnson is back – and “keen to modify” lockdown rules… “Boris Johnson arrived back at Number 10 last night to resume charge of Britain’s fight against coronavirus and plan for a loosening of lockdown. The Prime Minister will chair the daily 9.15am pandemic ‘war cabinet’ before hosting a second strategy meeting in the evening to […]
Johnson prepares for return to work – and proclaims: “Salus populi suprema lex esto!” “Boris Johnson has told aides that he is “raring to go” ahead of his return to Downing Street on Monday…Government sources said the Prime Minister was now “back in the driving seat” having been given the green light by doctors to […]
Back to work 1) Johnson to return to Downing Street next week “When Boris Johnson returns to work in Downing Street next week he will have to make a series of decisions that will define both his premiership and the nation’s future. Less than three weeks after leaving the intensive care unit of St Thomas’ […]
Hancock reveals massive plan to ‘test, track and trace’ coronavirus victims… “Every essential worker and their family will be eligible for free coronavirus tests from today after the Government finally announced a three-step ‘test, track and trace’ battle plan to ease the UK out of lockdown. Health Secretary Matt Hancock dramatically announced swab tests will be […]
Hancock vows to ‘reopen the NHS’ “The NHS will reopen “within very short order” for routine care, the health secretary said yesterday amid warnings that 60,000 cancer patients could die through lack of treatment or diagnosis. Matt Hancock told the Commons that the coronavirus peak had been reached and that hospitals again had the capacity to […]
NHS staff given ‘flawed test’ “Coronavirus tests given to thousands of NHS staff so they could return to work have been found to be flawed and should no longer be relied on, a leaked document reveals. The memo from Public Health England (PHE), sent earlier this month, warns of “degraded” performance, meaning the results are less reliable than first […]
MPs return to ‘virtual’ Commons “The rest of the country has already had to grapple with the questions of fashion and interior design that plague anyone trying to hold a meeting via video conferencing. Now MPs face tough decisions about what to wear and where to sit when dialling into the new virtual House of […]
Government rejects claims in Sunday Times report “Downing Street has hit back at newspaper reports that Boris Johnson and his administration dragged their feet in the run-up to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. Number 10 accused the Sunday Times of ‘falsehoods’ and ‘errors’ after the newspaper published a piece in which a Whitehall source claimed the Government ‘missed the […]
Three-stage plan emerges for the easing of lockdown. Four-man ministerial squad is drawing up plans for Johnson… “Boris Johnson has begun giving directions to his Government from Chequers, as Downing Street attempts to grip the coronavirus crisis, The Sunday Telegraph can disclose. The Prime Minister issued orders to Dominic Raab, his deputy, and senior aides, in […]