Boris Johnson facing Tory revolt over ‘lockdown by another name’ tiers system
Reports that whole of England may be placed in top two levels triggers fury among Conservative MPs
Boris Johnson is facing a growing Tory rebellion over his post-lockdown tier system amid warnings that the whole of England may be placed in the highest two levels of restrictions.
Whitehall sources told the Daily Mail that it is “entirely possible” that no area would fall within Tier 1, the only level of restrictions that allow indoor socialising. That prediction has prompted anger among Conservative MPs who warn that the approach will be seen as “lockdown by another name”.
Another Whitehall official told the newspaper it is “entirely possible” that 80% of the country will be placed in Tiers 2 and 3 when infection rates are analysed by Health Secretary Matt Hancock and Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty later this week.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A rebel Tory backbencher added that “almost 100” Conservative MPs had raised concerns over the new measures ahead of a vote on the tiers plan next week.
The threat of a Commons revolt has been growing since The Guardian reported earlier this week that Steve Baker, deputy chair of the newly formed Covid Research Group (CRG), had sent a letter on behalf of 70 MPs warning the prime minister that any restrictions must be justified. The group is demanding that the government “produce a full cost-benefit analysis of the new tiers”, the paper adds.
Baker told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that the CRG intended to “stand up for people, because we know that livelihoods matter, we know that there’s nothing quite like poverty for shortening your life and diminishing your life chances”.
Under the new tiers system, the harshest restrictions are expected to apply to areas in the Northwest and Northeast, where despite “a significant fall in cases, [infection] rates remain stubbornly high”, according to an analysis by The Telegraph.
A senior Conservative MP told the paper that Tory WhatsApp groups have lit up with “fury” and “anger” over the post lockdown plan. “The idea seems to be to move everybody up, Tier 2 becomes a shady Tier 3, Tier 3 is lockdown. Tier 1 is all but abolished,” the unnamed politician added.
MPs will vote on the new tier system after the lockdown ends on 2 December.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Joe Evans is the world news editor at TheWeek.co.uk. He joined the team in 2019 and held roles including deputy news editor and acting news editor before moving into his current position in early 2021. He is a regular panellist on The Week Unwrapped podcast, discussing politics and foreign affairs.
Before joining The Week, he worked as a freelance journalist covering the UK and Ireland for German newspapers and magazines. A series of features on Brexit and the Irish border got him nominated for the Hostwriter Prize in 2019. Prior to settling down in London, he lived and worked in Cambodia, where he ran communications for a non-governmental organisation and worked as a journalist covering Southeast Asia. He has a master’s degree in journalism from City, University of London, and before that studied English Literature at the University of Manchester.
-
'The Hum': the real-life noise behind The Listeners
In The Spotlight Can some of us also hear the disturbing sound that plagues characters in the hit TV show – and where is it coming from?
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
The Week Unwrapped: Are we any closer to identifying UFOs?
Podcast Plus, will deals with Tunisia and Kurdistan help Labour? And what next for the Wagner Group?
By The Week Staff Published
-
Quiz of The Week: 16 - 22 November
Have you been paying attention to The Week's news?
By The Week Staff Published
-
John Prescott: was he Labour's last link to the working class?
Today's Big Quesiton 'A total one-off': tributes have poured in for the former deputy PM and trade unionist
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Last hopes for justice for UK's nuclear test veterans
Under the Radar Thousands of ex-service personnel say their lives have been blighted by aggressive cancers and genetic mutations
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Will Donald Trump wreck the Brexit deal?
Today's Big Question President-elect's victory could help UK's reset with the EU, but a free-trade agreement with the US to dodge his threatened tariffs could hinder it
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
What is the next Tory leader up against?
Today's Big Question Kemi Badenoch or Robert Jenrick will have to unify warring factions and win back disillusioned voters – without alienating the centre ground
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
What is Lammy hoping to achieve in China?
Today's Big Question Foreign secretary heads to Beijing as Labour seeks cooperation on global challenges and courts opportunities for trade and investment
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Bob Woodward's War: the explosive Trump revelations
In the spotlight Nobody can beat Watergate veteran at 'getting the story of the White House from the inside'
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Trump kept up with Putin, sent Covid tests, book says
Speed Read The revelation comes courtesy of a new book by Bob Woodward
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Who will replace Rishi Sunak as the next Tory leader?
In Depth Shortlist will be whittled down to two later today
By The Week UK Last updated