MPs are expected to approve Boris Johnson’s new Covid restrictions this evening as Conservative lockdown sceptics back down in the face of spiralling infection rates.
When MPs last voted on coronavirus measures, on 1 December, 55 of the prime minister’s backbenchers voted against the introduction of a tiered system of restrictions. But newly published data from the Office of National Statistics that suggests one in 50 people in England are currently infected with the coronavirus has prompted many of the rebels to think again.
The Times reports that the Covid Recovery Group (CRG) of Tory MPs, which was formed to resist lockdown measures, will back the new national lockdown in today’s Commons vote. “There’s no choice this time,” an unnamed CRG member told the paper.
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.
The Telegraph predicts that Johnson still face some resistance from within his party, however, but that the rebellion will be of a “smaller scale” than last time. According to the paper, “one former rebel, who plans to abstain on Wednesday, said they felt the emergence of the new, hyper-infectious strain of Covid justified drastic measures”.
Meanwhile, a senior government figure told Politico that “it’s one thing to argue to support people’s businesses and keep them open but if that’s at the expense of your constituents dying it becomes less palatable”.
But the news site’s Alex Wickham notes that “there is still potential for some Tory MPs to kick off”. Wickham reports that the PM “got some grief” from members of the 1922 Committee during a Zoom call last night, after the Tory backbenchers noticed that the newly published regulations will expire on 31 March, rathan than mid-February as Johnson claimed during his address to the nation on Monday.
And with anger simmering over the lockdown terms, Sky News is predicting a “sombre and fractious” exchange of views in the debate preceding tonight’s vote.
-
The Week Unwrapped: What does Bake Off say about Channel 4?Podcast Plus, why are Scottish drug deaths so stubbornly high? And are women in their 30s too anxious about their eggs?
-
BookTok is reviving publishing – but at what cost?In The Spotlight Social media recommendations are boosting book sales but critics give the trend mixed reviews
-
Canyons under the Antarctic have deep impactsUnder the radar Submarine canyons could be affecting the climate more than previously thought
-
What difference will the 'historic' UK-Germany treaty make?Today's Big Question Europe's two biggest economies sign first treaty since WWII, underscoring 'triangle alliance' with France amid growing Russian threat and US distance
-
Is the G7 still relevant?Talking Point Donald Trump's early departure cast a shadow over this week's meeting of the world's major democracies
-
'Gen Z has been priced out of a future, so we invest in the present'instant opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Angela Rayner: Labour's next leader?Today's Big Question A leaked memo has sparked speculation that the deputy PM is positioning herself as the left-of-centre alternative to Keir Starmer
-
Are we entering the post-Brexit era?Today's Big Question Keir Starmer's 'big bet' with his EU reset deal is that 'nobody really cares' about Brexit any more
-
Is Starmer's plan to send migrants overseas Rwanda 2.0?Today's Big Question Failed asylum seekers could be removed to Balkan nations under new government plans
-
Is the UK's two-party system finally over?Today's Big Question 'Unprecedented fragmentation puts voters on a collision course with the electoral system'
-
'There is a certain kind of strength in refusing to concede error'instant opinion 'Opinion, comment and editorials of the day'
