conservativehome--2020-05-21--Profile: Munira Mirza, the Muslim from Oldham who leads Johnson’s Policy Unit

Amber Rudd says the Government would make “ better decisions ” if more women were in senior positions , a thought endorsed on ConHome by Charlotte Gill .
Munira Mirza , Director of the Downing Street Policy Unit , is , as Gill conceded , already in a senior position .
This Muslim woman from Oldham , daughter of two immigrants from Pakistan , also worked for Boris Johnson throughout his eight years as Mayor of London .
Johnson loves to surround himself with clever advisers , people who delight in freedom of thought not merely as a pious notion @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the complacent liberal consensus .
Dr Mirza , as it amuses him to call her , is like him a rebel , who transcends the various categories in which people seek to place the two of them .
Johnson and Mirza do not always agree with each other , but they both like to astound the holders of received opinions , and especially the assumption that we must tiptoe round any question to do with Islam , for fear of causing offence .
So in August 2018 , when Johnson wrote his controversial @ @ @ @ @ @ @ condemned for having gone too far , Mirza took to the airwaves to defend him , and also contributed her only piece for ConHome , in which she declared : “ Johnson genuinely dislikes the burka , and has felt this way for as long as I ’ ve known him .
Not because he is ignorant about Islam .
Quite the opposite .
He knows far more about Islam and Islamic cultures than most of the politicians who are now lining up to attack him .
He sees that the burka is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been championed by extremists in many countries around the world and is actively opposed by moderate Muslims .
That some women in the West freely choose to wear it doesn ’ t make it any more palatable .
It remains a symbol of gender inequality ( if it wasn ’ t , why don ’ t men wear it too ? )
and it is intended quite literally to limit the interaction between Muslim women and other people .
“ Johnson is the one treating Muslims as equals , expecting them to be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in a ghetto .
He has bothered to learn about their customs , read their literature and understand the internal debates within their religion .
He knows how badly many Muslim women are treated around the world and made girls ’ education a priority whilst he was at the FCO .
He made the issue of FGM in the UK a priority whilst he was Mayor of London .
He met Muslim ‘ community leaders ’ yet also questioned them if he suspected they did not represent the full diversity of opinion amongst @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in Mirza ’ s writing , and in her attitude to her duties in Downing Street : “ She ’ s not interested in the who-is-in-the-meeting bullshit , ” as one of her colleagues in government puts it .
Mirza was born in 1978 in Oldham , the youngest of four children .
Her father worked in a factory .
She went to Breeze Hill comprehensive school , which was overwhelmingly Asian and has since been amalgamated with an overwhelmingly white school , and then to Oldham Sixth Form College , from which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year to go to Oxbridge .
She read English at Mansfield College , Oxford , and January 2018 , debating “ Who is Winning the Culture Wars ?
” with Afua Hirsch at the Frontline Club , remarked : She was by her own account a “ museums junkie ” who became fascinated by the politics of culture .
She went on to do a PhD in sociology at the University of Kent , where Frank Furedi was the leading figure in the sociology department , having also been a leading figure in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , which dissolved itself in 2000 after its magazine , Living Marxism , edited by Mick Hume , was bankrupted by a libel action .
Living Marxism spawned a multiplicity of successor organisations , in several of which Mirza took an active part , including the Institute of Ideas , run by Claire Fox , and Spiked , an online magazine edited first by Hume and now by Brendan O ’ Neill , to which in 2006-08 Mirza contributed a number of characteristically tough-minded pieces .
But the decisive encounter of this young @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was with Policy Exchange , a new and at first very small think tank founded in 2002 by Nicholas Boles , Michael Gove and Francis Maude .
Boles told ConHome : “ I sort of adore and am fascinated by Munira.
” As far as he can remember , she applied soon after they launched for the job of Development Director .
But she made her name at Policy Exchange with a piece of work called Living Apart Together : British Muslims and the paradox of multiculturalism .
She also edited a volume @ @ @ @ @ @ @ UK Arts Policy Damaging the Arts ?
A decade later , a second outstanding but as yet unknown person was hired by Policy Exchange .
Rishi Sunak served as the first head of its Black and Minority Ethnic Research Unit , in 2014 co-wrote A Portrait of Modern Britain , the following year entered Parliament and in February 2020 was appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer .
While writing this piece , it occurred to me that while David Cameron , Conservative leader from 2005 to 2016 , and many of his key lieutenants @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Conservative Research Department , Johnson ’ s key people are far more likely to have learned their trade and made close friendships at Policy Exchange , a think tank set up by a group of modernisers who realised , during the leadership from 2001 to 2003 of Iain Duncan Smith , that the Conservative Party had got somehow to reconnect itself to modern Britain .
Mirza did more than make a close friendship : she met and in due course married Dougie Smith , who had been involved in the Federation of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s modernising campaign organisation C-Change , which shared premises with Policy Exchange .
When asked in 2014 if her mother was proud of her achievements – her father was no longer alive – Mirza replied : Johnson was kept at a distance by Cameron , whom he was liable at any moment to upstage , so went off and beat the Mayor of London , Ken Livingstone , in the election of 2008 .
After his victory , Johnson had a number of key posts to fill at City Hall , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ could put there .
Boles , who had assisted him in the later stages of his campaign and stayed on for a short time afterwards , accordingly recruited some able people he knew , including Simon Milton , Kit Malthouse and Mirza .
She took the Culture portfolio at City Hall , to which in due course Education was added .
In this role , she campaigned for the riches of high culture – literature , music , art – to be brought to all children , with no dumbing down of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from disadvantaged backgrounds would not be able to cope with Shakespeare .
As Jess Bowie who interviewed her for Total Politics reported : A woman who worked with Mirza at City Hall described her as “ really nice , really clever and really smart ” .
In 2009 , Mirza made a Radio 4 Great Lives programme about Hannah Arendt , of whom she said to the presenter , Matthew Parris : One of the many reasons some commentators find Johnson incomprehensible is that he resists ideological definition .
He is eclectic , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of them , she is the more rigorous and scientific , he more inclined to rely on instinct and intuition .
But there is an affinity between them , especially as she also possesses , in the words of a senior minister , “ A wonderful , waspish sense of humour which is attuned to the Prime Minister ’ s. ” She was a strong supporter of Brexit , which she said made her “ a complete pariah ” , but is one of the reasons why she understands the Labour voters who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Get Brexit Done .
She is also strong on law and order , contending that the first duty of the state is to provide security for all , and that the poor suffer most when this duty is neglected .
In 2017 , when the Labour MP David Lammy brought out his report into racism in the criminal justice system , commissioned by Cameron and endorsed by Theresa May , Mirza disputed his findings , arguing in Spiked : “ his review found that BAME people are more likely to plead not guilty @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their state-funded solicitors and the advice they give – the result is that they will not benefit from more lenient sentencing when they are convicted .
Lammy implies that this lack of trust is because of institutional bias and discrimination .
Certainly there is a historic legacy here from previous decades , but it is equally possible that the current accusations of institutional racism by lobbyists and activists – a perception more than a reality – is behind the further corrosion of public trust .
When anti-racist lobby groups criticise the authorities for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that BAME communities start to believe they can not trust their own professional solicitors .
They then make decisions that might harm their chances in the justice system .
It is not likely that this report will do anything to improve that level of trust and it may even worsen it.
” The toughness of her reasoning is again apparent .
Admirers of her intellect include Lord Bew of Donegore , David Goodhart , Ruth Dudley Edwards , Paul Marshall and Douglas Murray .
She likes football , is a supporter of Oldham @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , in London , at Millwall games .
A number of people who have worked with her remarked that she is “ ethereally beautiful ” .
When Johnson was told this week at Prime Minister ’ s Questions by Rosie Duffield ( Lab , Canterbury ) that there is a need for “ a change of tone and more female voices at the top of Government ” , he said she had made “ an extremely important point ” , and pointed out that “ even before a reshuffle ” he had just @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Kate Bingham , to senior positions concerned with contact tracing and the search for a vaccine .
He could also have said that Mirza is the head of his Policy Unit , and that her severe egalitarianism and intense competitiveness make it difficult for him to get away with sloppy thinking .
Here she is on exams , in the days when she held the education brief at City Hall :

Amber Rudd says the Government would make “better decisions” if more women were in senior positions, a thought endorsed on ConHome by Charlotte Gill.
Munira Mirza, Director of the Downing Street Policy Unit, is, as Gill conceded, already in a senior position. This Muslim woman from Oldham, daughter of two immigrants from Pakistan, also worked for Boris Johnson throughout his eight years as Mayor of London.
Johnson loves to surround himself with clever advisers, people who delight in freedom of thought not merely as a pious notion, but as a way of puncturing the complacent liberal consensus.
Dr Mirza, as it amuses him to call her, is like him a rebel, who transcends the various categories in which people seek to place the two of them.
Johnson and Mirza do not always agree with each other, but they both like to astound the holders of received opinions, and especially the assumption that we must tiptoe round any question to do with Islam, for fear of causing offence.
So in August 2018, when Johnson wrote his controversial article about the burka and was widely condemned for having gone too far, Mirza took to the airwaves to defend him, and also contributed her only piece for ConHome, in which she declared:
“Johnson genuinely dislikes the burka, and has felt this way for as long as I’ve known him. Not because he is ignorant about Islam. Quite the opposite. He knows far more about Islam and Islamic cultures than most of the politicians who are now lining up to attack him. He sees that the burka is a recent cultural accretion, which has been championed by extremists in many countries around the world and is actively opposed by moderate Muslims. That some women in the West freely choose to wear it doesn’t make it any more palatable. It remains a symbol of gender inequality (if it wasn’t, why don’t men wear it too?) and it is intended quite literally to limit the interaction between Muslim women and other people. “Johnson is the one treating Muslims as equals, expecting them to be part of the debate rather than left in a ghetto. He has bothered to learn about their customs, read their literature and understand the internal debates within their religion. He knows how badly many Muslim women are treated around the world and made girls’ education a priority whilst he was at the FCO. He made the issue of FGM in the UK a priority whilst he was Mayor of London. He met Muslim ‘community leaders’ yet also questioned them if he suspected they did not represent the full diversity of opinion amongst Muslims.”
There is a bracing astringency in Mirza’s writing, and in her attitude to her duties in Downing Street: “She’s not interested in the who-is-in-the-meeting bullshit,” as one of her colleagues in government puts it.
Another close observer says:
“I don’t think I’ve ever met anybody who’s genuinely as independent-minded as Munira. She has strong views, arrived at on her own. She hasn’t bought a package – I’m going to think what that person says, because I like and admire them. I bet that’s what Boris likes. She’s a completely self-made person. I suspect he admires it and has grown to trust it and likes not quite being able to predict what she’ll say.”
Mirza was born in 1978 in Oldham, the youngest of four children. Her father worked in a factory. She went to Breeze Hill comprehensive school, which was overwhelmingly Asian and has since been amalgamated with an overwhelmingly white school, and then to Oldham Sixth Form College, from which she was the only person in her year to go to Oxbridge.
She read English at Mansfield College, Oxford, and January 2018, debating “Who is Winning the Culture Wars?” with Afua Hirsch at the Frontline Club, remarked:
“When I was growing up I thought of myself as left-wing. I realised very quickly in my twenties that the main thing the Left was not in favour of was free speech – that there was an intolerance about different ideas and opinions.”
She was by her own account a “museums junkie” who became fascinated by the politics of culture. She went on to do a PhD in sociology at the University of Kent, where Frank Furedi was the leading figure in the sociology department, having also been a leading figure in the Revolutionary Communist Party, or RCP, which dissolved itself in 2000 after its magazine, Living Marxism, edited by Mick Hume, was bankrupted by a libel action.
Living Marxism spawned a multiplicity of successor organisations, in several of which Mirza took an active part, including the Institute of Ideas, run by Claire Fox, and Spiked, an online magazine edited first by Hume and now by Brendan O’Neill, to which in 2006-08 Mirza contributed a number of characteristically tough-minded pieces.
But the decisive encounter of this young, provocative, free-thinking, culture-loving Leftie was with Policy Exchange, a new and at first very small think tank founded in 2002 by Nicholas Boles, Michael Gove and Francis Maude.
Boles told ConHome: “I sort of adore and am fascinated by Munira.” As far as he can remember, she applied soon after they launched for the job of Development Director. But she made her name at Policy Exchange with a piece of work called Living Apart Together: British Muslims and the paradox of multiculturalism.
She also edited a volume of essays, Culture Vultures: Is UK Arts Policy Damaging the Arts?
A decade later, a second outstanding but as yet unknown person was hired by Policy Exchange. Rishi Sunak served as the first head of its Black and Minority Ethnic Research Unit, in 2014 co-wrote A Portrait of Modern Britain, the following year entered Parliament and in February 2020 was appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer.
While writing this piece, it occurred to me that while David Cameron, Conservative leader from 2005 to 2016, and many of his key lieutenants had received their early political training in the Conservative Research Department, Johnson’s key people are far more likely to have learned their trade and made close friendships at Policy Exchange, a think tank set up by a group of modernisers who realised, during the leadership from 2001 to 2003 of Iain Duncan Smith, that the Conservative Party had got somehow to reconnect itself to modern Britain.
Mirza did more than make a close friendship: she met and in due course married Dougie Smith, who had been involved in the Federation of Conservative Students and was now running Maude’s modernising campaign organisation C-Change, which shared premises with Policy Exchange.
When asked in 2014 if her mother was proud of her achievements – her father was no longer alive – Mirza replied:
“I hope so! I’ve just had a son – about a year ago – and I realised the thing that makes your parents most proud is when you have children. “But, yeah, she is proud of me. I’m very proud of her as well. She was a housewife, and she did some part-time Urdu teaching as well, but she does a lot of voluntary work, and she’s very active in the community.”
Johnson was kept at a distance by Cameron, whom he was liable at any moment to upstage, so went off and beat the Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, in the election of 2008.
After his victory, Johnson had a number of key posts to fill at City Hall, and no people of his own whom he could put there. Boles, who had assisted him in the later stages of his campaign and stayed on for a short time afterwards, accordingly recruited some able people he knew, including Simon Milton, Kit Malthouse and Mirza.
She took the Culture portfolio at City Hall, to which in due course Education was added. In this role, she campaigned for the riches of high culture – literature, music, art – to be brought to all children, with no dumbing down of the curriculum in the patronising belief that children from disadvantaged backgrounds would not be able to cope with Shakespeare.
As Jess Bowie who interviewed her for Total Politics reported:
“While Mirza wants arts organisations in the city to work with a wider range of people, what she doesn’t want is for ‘people in those organisations to think “oh well that’s a black kid or a Bangladeshi kid, therefore we have to give them art that will be relevant to them”.’ This approach is very limiting, she argues, and for many people ‘also really boring’. “If you want to show them great art, broaden their horizons and show them the full range of it and make them feel that it belongs to them too. “That was my experience when I was growing up. The books I loved reading weren’t by Asian women from Oldham, they were by great writers. That mattered.”
A woman who worked with Mirza at City Hall described her as “really nice, really clever and really smart”.
In 2009, Mirza made a Radio 4 Great Lives programme about Hannah Arendt, of whom she said to the presenter, Matthew Parris:
“She doesn’t fit into categories of Left and Right very easily. The Right often criticised her for being too sympathetic to Marxism, the Left for being too conservative… “There is a confusion about what’s Left and Right today and I don’t fit easily under a label and don’t particularly want to right now. It’s very difficult to understand lots of the problems we have today through those categories.”
One of the many reasons some commentators find Johnson incomprehensible is that he resists ideological definition. He is eclectic, as is Mirza.
Of the two of them, she is the more rigorous and scientific, he more inclined to rely on instinct and intuition.
But there is an affinity between them, especially as she also possesses, in the words of a senior minister, “A wonderful, waspish sense of humour which is attuned to the Prime Minister’s.”
She was a strong supporter of Brexit, which she said made her “a complete pariah”, but is one of the reasons why she understands the Labour voters who in December 2019 looked to Johnson to Get Brexit Done.
She is also strong on law and order, contending that the first duty of the state is to provide security for all, and that the poor suffer most when this duty is neglected.
In 2017, when the Labour MP David Lammy brought out his report into racism in the criminal justice system, commissioned by Cameron and endorsed by Theresa May, Mirza disputed his findings, arguing in Spiked:
“his review found that BAME people are more likely to plead not guilty than guilty because they do not trust their state-funded solicitors and the advice they give – the result is that they will not benefit from more lenient sentencing when they are convicted. Lammy implies that this lack of trust is because of institutional bias and discrimination. Certainly there is a historic legacy here from previous decades, but it is equally possible that the current accusations of institutional racism by lobbyists and activists – a perception more than a reality – is behind the further corrosion of public trust. When anti-racist lobby groups criticise the authorities for their racism, it is not surprising that BAME communities start to believe they cannot trust their own professional solicitors. They then make decisions that might harm their chances in the justice system. It is not likely that this report will do anything to improve that level of trust and it may even worsen it.”
The toughness of her reasoning is again apparent. Admirers of her intellect include Lord Bew, David Goodhart, Ruth Dudley Edwards, Paul Marshall and Douglas Murray.
She likes football, is a supporter of Oldham Athletic, and has also been seen, in London, at Millwall games. A number of people who have worked with her remarked that she is “ethereally beautiful”.
When Johnson was told this week at Prime Minister’s Questions by Rosie Duffield (Lab, Canterbury) that there is a need for “a change of tone and more female voices at the top of Government”, he said she had made “an extremely important point”, and pointed out that “even before a reshuffle” he had just appointed two women, Dido Harding and Kate Bingham, to senior positions concerned with contact tracing and the search for a vaccine.
He could also have said that Mirza is the head of his Policy Unit, and that her severe egalitarianism and intense competitiveness make it difficult for him to get away with sloppy thinking. Here she is on exams, in the days when she held the education brief at City Hall:


conservativehome--2020-05-21--Garvan Walshe: How Covid-19 is leaving Macron’s left flank exposed

Garvan Walshe is a former National and International Security Policy Adviser to the Conservative Party .
The most confounding aspect of the Coronavirus is its variability .
Some people die , others require expensive and time-consuming intensive care to survive .
There are those that have a bad illness , but not enough to need medical intervention ( or benefit from it when treatments have yet to be devised ) .
At the mild end , the impact ranges from a cold to no symptoms at all .
We know it gets more serious with hypertension , diabetes , cardiovascular @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which correlates with all of them .
We ’ ve also found out that the bizarre study about it being less dangerous to smokers was a statistical error known as “ collider bias ” , which the interested can read about here .
We ’ re starting to understand more about how it spreads , and here variability , a feature of coronaviruses in general strikes again .
The variability has been complicated by the time this virus takes through its cycle from infection to quick shaking off , long recovery and death @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of public health authorities – first in China , then elsewhere – when people started arriving in hospitals with pneumonia and dying .
But it takes around four weeks for someone to die of this virus , by which time somewhere between 90 and 130 other people are likely to have had it , and recovered from it , within days or a week or two , and infected an average of between two and three others .
That means one death would , on average , be associated with some hundreds of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ acutely in France , where it seems the first Coronavirus case can now be traced back to December .
The country also shows how much the average conceals .
Its outbreak was most serious in Paris , which is to be expected .
This is a disease that has struck hardest in where population density is high , people use public transport and which are major international travel hubs .
But France also suffered a second , unusual outbreak centred around a church Mulhouse near Strasbourg .
A church in Alsace may conjure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ walls , adorned only with austere busts of Luther and attended by diminishing numbers of conservatively dressed elderly ladies .
The Christian Open Door church was quite the opposite .
First of all it is huge , accommodating 2,500 people .
It ’ s an American-style evangelical mega-church and its services are more like concerts .
And this February , it held a week long festival of singing and worship that drew people in from across the world .
Singing , tragically , appears to be a devastatingly efficient way to spread the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , France imposed one of the strictest lockdowns in Europe .
Only essential services were allowed to open ( wine shops weren ’ t spared ; a friend joked to me about her despair at being limited to supermarket wine ) , and people were allowed out to exercise , but only within one kilometre of their homes .
The French administrative state lived up to its reputation , producing a form for people to carry with them to indicate the purpose of their exit .
This brought the epidemic under control .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ variations in reporting and testing , are at about 30 per cent in France , on a par with Sweden ( compared to 60 per cent in the UK and Spain , and a dreadful 66 per cent in Belgium ) .
This suggests the question of imposing lockdowns is less binary than usually presented .
It was likely necessary in France , particularly given Paris ’ s extreme density , but details matter .
The political consequences point to a strengthening of the left , which has been in the doldrums since @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Polls have been few , but suggest an increase in the approval of left-wing candidates at the expense of Macron ( Marine Le Pen seems stuck at her 20 per cent figures ) , though Macron maintains his lead .
He also suffered a small split in his party , losing 17 MPs to a new left-leaning formation that is trying to position itself between Macron itself and the Socialist opposition .
His La Republique en Marche has now lost its parliamentary majority , but can rely on Francois Bayrou ’ s liberal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ This indicates more a rebalancing of French politics than a particularly deep crisis .
Macron remains significantly less unpopular than his rivals , and in France ’ s two-round system would only need about a quarter of the vote to come through against an opponent from the extreme-right ( Le Pen ) or extreme-left ( Melenchon ) when the next elections eventually happen in 2022 .
Insofar as he had tacked to the right on immigration and by soft pedalling green policies to appease the Gilets Jaunes last year , he may need @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from a socialist resurgence in a country that still looks up to the idea of its state as much as it despises the people it elects to run it .

Garvan Walshe is a former National and International Security Policy Adviser to the Conservative Party.
The most confounding aspect of the Coronavirus is its variability. Some people die, others require expensive and time-consuming intensive care to survive.
There are those that have a bad illness, but not enough to need medical intervention (or benefit from it when treatments have yet to be devised). At the mild end, the impact ranges from a cold to no symptoms at all.
We know it gets more serious with hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular problems, obesity, and age, which correlates with all of them.
We’ve also found out that the bizarre study about it being less dangerous to smokers was a statistical error known as “collider bias”, which the interested can read about here.
We’re starting to understand more about how it spreads, and here variability, a feature of coronaviruses in general strikes again.
The variability has been complicated by the time this virus takes through its cycle from infection to quick shaking off, long recovery and death.
Cases only came to the attention of public health authorities – first in China, then elsewhere – when people started arriving in hospitals with pneumonia and dying.
But it takes around four weeks for someone to die of this virus, by which time somewhere between 90 and 130 other people are likely to have had it, and recovered from it, within days or a week or two, and infected an average of between two and three others. That means one death would, on average, be associated with some hundreds of other cases.
This was shown most acutely in France, where it seems the first Coronavirus case can now be traced back to December.
The country also shows how much the average conceals. Its outbreak was most serious in Paris, which is to be expected. This is a disease that has struck hardest in where population density is high, people use public transport and which are major international travel hubs.
But France also suffered a second, unusual outbreak centred around a church Mulhouse near Strasbourg.
A church in Alsace may conjure up images of pitched roofs, whitewashed walls, adorned only with austere busts of Luther and attended by diminishing numbers of conservatively dressed elderly ladies.
The Christian Open Door church was quite the opposite. First of all it is huge, accommodating 2,500 people. It’s an American-style evangelical mega-church and its services are more like concerts.
And this February, it held a week long festival of singing and worship that drew people in from across the world. Singing, tragically, appears to be a devastatingly efficient way to spread the disease.
Confronted by these two outbreaks, France imposed one of the strictest lockdowns in Europe. Only essential services were allowed to open (wine shops weren’t spared; a friend joked to me about her despair at being limited to supermarket wine), and people were allowed out to exercise, but only within one kilometre of their homes.
The French administrative state lived up to its reputation, producing a form for people to carry with them to indicate the purpose of their exit.
This brought the epidemic under control. Excess deaths figures, which account for variations in reporting and testing, are at about 30 per cent in France, on a par with Sweden (compared to 60 per cent in the UK and Spain, and a dreadful 66 per cent in Belgium).
This suggests the question of imposing lockdowns is less binary than usually presented. It was likely necessary in France, particularly given Paris’s extreme density, but details matter.
The political consequences point to a strengthening of the left, which has been in the doldrums since François Hollande’s hapless presidency.
Polls have been few, but suggest an increase in the approval of left-wing candidates at the expense of Macron (Marine Le Pen seems stuck at her 20 per cent figures), though Macron maintains his lead.
He also suffered a small split in his party, losing 17 MPs to a new left-leaning formation that is trying to position itself between Macron itself and the Socialist opposition.
His La Republique en Marche has now lost its parliamentary majority, but can rely on Francois Bayrou’s liberal Modem party to get legislation through. This indicates more a rebalancing of French politics than a particularly deep crisis.
Macron remains significantly less unpopular than his rivals, and in France’s two-round system would only need about a quarter of the vote to come through against an opponent from the extreme-right (Le Pen) or extreme-left (Melenchon) when the next elections eventually happen in 2022.
Insofar as he had tacked to the right on immigration and by soft pedalling green policies to appease the Gilets Jaunes last year, he may need to move further left to protect himself from a socialist resurgence in a country that still looks up to the idea of its state as much as it despises the people it elects to run it.


conservativehome--2020-05-21--Judy Terry: Where have the Health and Wellbeing Boards been during the pandemic?

Judy Terry is a marketing professional and a former local councillor in Suffolk .
Health & Wellbeing Boards should surely be at the heart of monitoring the impact of Covid-19 on their local communities and economies , advising Government on appropriate changes when lockdown measures are reviewed , and hopefully relaxed ?
If an App is the solution , just remember that not everyone has a mobile phone , or can afford one , especially the elderly and dsadvantaged .
Suffolk ’ s Board last met on 23rd January , having cancelled both the March and May meetings , so @ @ @ @ @ @ @ any way in which the media and members of the public can assess progress .
Minutes of the January meeting are not available , since they haven ’ t been approved for publication , so there is no way of knowing if members were briefed on Covid-19 , as it emerged as an emergency , with experts and the World Health Organisation ( WHO ) starting to alert governments to the potential of a pandemic .
It would be helpful if those Minutes could be approved and made public and , with Zoom @ @ @ @ @ @ @ meetings elsewhere in Suffolk , perhaps its Health & Wellbeing Board could be reconvened , addressing local residents ’ concerns .
Their confidence in future decision-making will be crucial for a successful reduction in lockdown frustrations .
Key members of Suffolk ’ s Board are the county ’ s two Clinical Commissioning Groups ( CCGs ) .
Set up in 2013 , they are part of NHS England ’ s national network of 135 CCGs , which are responsible for two-thirds of its total budget , equating to £79.9 billion in 2019/20 .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ clinically driven and more sensitive to the needs of patients ’ , with a remit to ‘ organise delivery of NHS services… , planning , prioritising and purchasing ’ , Suffolk ’ s two CCGs each have a GP chairman , paid £60,000 annually , with GP board colleagues receiving £30,000 a year – all additional to their normal salaries .
Yet , how are they monitoring the current health crisis ?
For example , having such ‘ sensitivity to the needs of patients ’ , why has a GP practice in Suffolk @ @ @ @ @ @ @ queuing for prescriptions at specified times by its most vulnerable patients , many with ‘ underlying conditions ’ which are believed to increase vulnerability to the virus , when most pharmacists offer free collection and delivery of drugs ?
I quote the wife of an 80-year-old : “ Prescriptions for the over-70 ’ s can only be collected from the surgery ( if they are registered there ) each day between 2 and 3pm .
My husband went to get his today , as when he went to collect last week , they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ But he just couldn ’ t be bothered to join the long queue so will have to make sure he gets there before 2pm on another day.
” Thankfully , a neighbour offered to help this particular patient , and the County Council has also stepped in with its Home But Not Alone Helpline to secure a volunteer ’ s help with prescriptions or other essential support .
Nevertheless , the surgery ’ s policy is especially worrying when a paramedic from a nearby village has been in intensive care with Covid-19 for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the patients queuing at the GP surgery for their prescriptions live in that village , which has a population of about 1,000 , at least half of whom are retired because of the large number of bungalows .
Some younger residents and parents also work in essential public services , including the Police , taking them into other locations across the region – even during the lockdown – with the potential to spread the virus .
A strong and friendly community , with a village hall , church , primary school , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hours to meet local needs , with volunteers delivering supplies to the vulnerable elderly and disabled , the village normally attracts hundreds of visitors for events , as well as its popular restaurant .
At normal times , the wonderful river views are a major tourist attraction , enjoyed from a nearby pub and sailing club , both at present closed to all but vibrant wildlife .
So , this could be an opportunity to pursue the Health Secretary ’ s emphasis on the need to ‘ test , track and trace ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to do just that since the paramedic ’ s diagnosis .
And there is no evidence of the East Suffolk CCG , taking the initiative to protect the local and wider community and their children by implementing testing , perhaps as a ‘ pilot ’ to support a reduced lockdown .
This is an opportunity for them to show real leadership .
With responsibility for such a huge share of England ’ s NHS budget , including purchasing , CCGs across England should review what is meant by ‘ planning , prioritising and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ often guilty of rationing services , especially for the elderly , such as hip and knee replacements and cataract removal , reducing independence and thereby increasing loneliness .
Desperate patients with even modest savings are paying thousands of pounds for private treatment , as their condition deteriorates , seriously affecting their mobility and freedom .
Instead of blaming Government for a lack of PPE , why haven ’ t CCGs planned for their own stocks of essential protective equipment , including masks ?
Once again , it was the County Council which stepped @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to donate their own supplies with an initial response contributing 4000 PPE kits to the social care front line .
Cllr Matthew Hicks , the Council Leader , explained , “ we fully understand the efforts the Government is making to ensure PPE is available for all who need it , but we equally recognise the challenge they face in reaching beyond the NHS into other parts of the care system .
During this unprecedented time we need to ensure that we have enough PPE to help our dedicated teams working with the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Health & Wellbeing Board will start reviewing such positives , as well as the negatives , at its next meeting , formulating plans for future crisis management at a local and regional level .
To ensure accountability , the Board should appoint someone with responsibility for co-ordinating and adapting objectives in line with lessons learnt – nationally and internationally – from the current crisis , to enable rapid response next time .
Protecting the NHS and saving lives .

Judy Terry is a marketing professional and a former local councillor in Suffolk.
Health & Wellbeing Boards should surely be at the heart of monitoring the impact of Covid-19 on their local communities and economies, advising Government on appropriate changes when lockdown measures are reviewed, and hopefully relaxed? If an App is the solution, just remember that not everyone has a mobile phone, or can afford one, especially the elderly and dsadvantaged.
Suffolk’s Board last met on 23rd January, having cancelled both the March and May meetings, so there doesn’t appear to be any way in which the media and members of the public can assess progress. Minutes of the January meeting are not available, since they haven’t been approved for publication, so there is no way of knowing if members were briefed on Covid-19, as it emerged as an emergency, with experts and the World Health Organisation (WHO) starting to alert governments to the potential of a pandemic.
It would be helpful if those Minutes could be approved and made public and, with Zoom being used for ‘virtual’ council meetings elsewhere in Suffolk, perhaps its Health & Wellbeing Board could be reconvened, addressing local residents’ concerns. Their confidence in future decision-making will be crucial for a successful reduction in lockdown frustrations.
Key members of Suffolk’s Board are the county’s two Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs). Set up in 2013, they are part of NHS England’s national network of 135 CCGs, which are responsible for two-thirds of its total budget, equating to £79.9 billion in 2019/20.
Led by groups of GPs, ‘clinically driven and more sensitive to the needs of patients’, with a remit to ‘organise delivery of NHS services…, planning, prioritising and purchasing’, Suffolk’s two CCGs each have a GP chairman, paid £60,000 annually, with GP board colleagues receiving £30,000 a year – all additional to their normal salaries. Yet, how are they monitoring the current health crisis?
For example, having such ‘sensitivity to the needs of patients’, why has a GP practice in Suffolk, with two local surgeries, introduced queuing for prescriptions at specified times by its most vulnerable patients, many with ‘underlying conditions’ which are believed to increase vulnerability to the virus, when most pharmacists offer free collection and delivery of drugs?
I quote the wife of an 80-year-old:
“Prescriptions for the over-70’s can only be collected from the surgery (if they are registered there) each day between 2 and 3pm. My husband went to get his today, as when he went to collect last week, they only gave him half his order. But he just couldn’t be bothered to join the long queue so will have to make sure he gets there before 2pm on another day.”
Thankfully, a neighbour offered to help this particular patient, and the County Council has also stepped in with its Home But Not Alone Helpline to secure a volunteer’s help with prescriptions or other essential support.
Nevertheless, the surgery’s policy is especially worrying when a paramedic from a nearby village has been in intensive care with Covid-19 for a couple of weeks. Many of the patients queuing at the GP surgery for their prescriptions live in that village, which has a population of about 1,000, at least half of whom are retired because of the large number of bungalows. Some younger residents and parents also work in essential public services, including the Police, taking them into other locations across the region – even during the lockdown – with the potential to spread the virus.
A strong and friendly community, with a village hall, church, primary school, and a busy local store currently working all hours to meet local needs, with volunteers delivering supplies to the vulnerable elderly and disabled, the village normally attracts hundreds of visitors for events, as well as its popular restaurant. At normal times, the wonderful river views are a major tourist attraction, enjoyed from a nearby pub and sailing club, both at present closed to all but vibrant wildlife.
So, this could be an opportunity to pursue the Health Secretary’s emphasis on the need to ‘test, track and trace’, but no measures have been implemented to do just that since the paramedic’s diagnosis. And there is no evidence of the East Suffolk CCG, taking the initiative to protect the local and wider community and their children by implementing testing, perhaps as a ‘pilot’ to support a reduced lockdown. This is an opportunity for them to show real leadership.
With responsibility for such a huge share of England’s NHS budget, including purchasing, CCGs across England should review what is meant by ‘planning, prioritising and purchasing’, when they are too often guilty of rationing services, especially for the elderly, such as hip and knee replacements and cataract removal, reducing independence and thereby increasing loneliness. Desperate patients with even modest savings are paying thousands of pounds for private treatment, as their condition deteriorates, seriously affecting their mobility and freedom.
Instead of blaming Government for a lack of PPE, why haven’t CCGs planned for their own stocks of essential protective equipment, including masks? Once again, it was the County Council which stepped in, with an appeal to businesses to donate their own supplies with an initial response contributing 4000 PPE kits to the social care front line.
Cllr Matthew Hicks, the Council Leader, explained, “we fully understand the efforts the Government is making to ensure PPE is available for all who need it, but we equally recognise the challenge they face in reaching beyond the NHS into other parts of the care system. During this unprecedented time we need to ensure that we have enough PPE to help our dedicated teams working with the most vulnerable in Suffolk.”
No doubt the Health & Wellbeing Board will start reviewing such positives, as well as the negatives, at its next meeting, formulating plans for future crisis management at a local and regional level. To ensure accountability, the Board should appoint someone with responsibility for co-ordinating and adapting objectives in line with lessons learnt – nationally and internationally – from the current crisis, to enable rapid response next time. Protecting the NHS and saving lives.


conservativehome--2020-05-21--Universities have been in trouble for years. Ministers should seize the chance to reshape them.

In a move that shocked the world , Cambridge University has announced plans to move all its lectures online next year .
With the exception of “ smaller teaching groups in person ” , it means that the campus will essentially be shut for the foreseeable future .
The University of Manchester has acted similarly – deciding that lectures will be online-only for the Autumn term .
Most institutions moved their operations online as the Covid-19 pandemic accelerated – but if this continues for long , the consequences will be bleak for them .
Indeed , one report estimates £2.472 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ redundancies .
This is based on the expectation that 232,000 fewer students will enrol in 2020/21 compared to 2018/2019 .
It ’ s no wonder many want to drop out ; it ’ s ridiculous expecting youngsters to pay £9,250 for a Zoom-based education .
Cambridge ’ s decision is all the more troublesome when students have such a low risk for Covid-19 .
Yes , older tutors have to be protected – but when primary schools are returning and able to introduce sensible steps , so should all academic institutions .
Unfortunately @ @ @ @ @ @ @ say in Cambridge ’ s direction , as universities are allowed to set their own roadmap in regards to the pandemic .
What it does have control over , however , is using this time as an opportunity to improve the system , as Conservatives promised they would do in their manifesto .
Yes , it ’ s unfortunate that Covid-19 has been the impetus for a new direction .
But the fact that university numbers are about to go down is no bad thing – for years this has been what ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ problems with universities , but the main one is that demand for courses vastly outpaces demand for graduates .
It all started when Tony Blair decided that 50 per cent of school pupils should attend these institutions , convinced that this would take them to dizzying heights of success .
This vision never , ever materialised , though – even having a reverse effect .
The consequences of the Blair years were laid bare in front of MPs in 2017 when parliamentarians were given a 50-page report on millennials .
It showed that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , but 47 per cent work in a non-graduate job ; this is a terrible waste .
Of course , university isn ’ t just a means to a job – learning should be for learning ’ s sake , and it ’ s also a time for young adults to have fun and meet new friends .
The trouble is that when everyone goes , it starts to have a big , negative effect on the economy .
It can also lead to a drop in standards for students .
Artificial grade @ @ @ @ @ @ @ institutions , and degrees start to devalue if everyone ’ s got one .
What ’ s particularly plagued the system is the numbers of people doing “ low-value ” degrees , such as creative arts and psychology , which our columnist , Neil O ’ Brien has been particularly vocal about .
Last year , he co-authored a report for Onward demonstrating just how damaging these can be .
That ’ s because graduates with low value degrees tend not to earn enough to ever pay back their loans .
A tenth @ @ @ @ @ @ @ graduating ( the threshold for them to start paying them back ) .
Speaking to ConHome , O ’ Brien added that growing fees hadn ’ t changed the incentive for high-return courses , saying “ the earning status suggests that [ students ] should go off and do maths , the hard sciences , medicine , maybe law or economics because they have big returns .
But actually people are piling into creative arts , which has the worst returns and lowest earnings.
” As of last year , it was shown @ @ @ @ @ @ @ arts not met five years after graduation stands at 40 per cent .
Worryingly , around 45 per cent of the value of outstanding post-2012 student loans are not expected to be repaid – and who has to come to the rescue ?
Last year Damian Hinds , the then Education Secretary , warned these low value degrees are costing millions – in the hope this would be a “ wake up call ” ( NB .
It wasn ’ t ) .
This is why the crisis should be an opportunity to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ us to confront some big questions .
For one , if these institutions can move online so readily – what ’ s the justification for physical lectures ?
Do students even need to be on campus at all – paying large sums for halls ?
Furthermore , if they can lecture online , why should courses cost £9,250 – particularly when competition in the online education marketplace has been growing ( Coursera being one example ) ?
This pandemic should also encourage us to think about whether it ’ s sustainable to rely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can be charged as much as £58,600 and now can not get back to classes .
A survey suggests 49 per cent of students from China will not enrol if it ’ s all online .
It ’ s very hard to understand the rationale for some of these prices .
Part of this I say from a personal perspective ; I graduated with psychology in 2010 , having received two hours of lectures a week in my third year .
Hardly value for money .
Given the astronomical economic upheavals the UK @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has always seemed to me madness that we have not addressed the university issue sooner .
There is a real desire to rehaul the system , and invest properly in technical education , entrepreneurship – and other routes to employment .
You simply don ’ t have to be “ academic ” to be a success – and that narrative has to properly end .
One suspects part of the preoccupation with universities is because they are thought of as the engine of social mobility .
And of course they still offer many @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the best in the world and should be incredibly proud .
But if we want to show true respect to them , as well as young people , we need to fix these enormous structural problems .
The time is now for change .
Ministers should seize it .

In a move that shocked the world, Cambridge University has announced plans to move all its lectures online next year.
With the exception of “smaller teaching groups in person”, it means that the campus will essentially be shut for the foreseeable future.
The University of Manchester has acted similarly – deciding that lectures will be online-only for the Autumn term.
Most institutions moved their operations online as the Covid-19 pandemic accelerated – but if this continues for long, the consequences will be bleak for them.
Indeed, one report estimates £2.472 billion lost across the sector and 30,000 redundancies.
This is based on the expectation that 232,000 fewer students will enrol in 2020/21 compared to 2018/2019.
It’s no wonder many want to drop out; it’s ridiculous expecting youngsters to pay £9,250 for a Zoom-based education.
Cambridge’s decision is all the more troublesome when students have such a low risk for Covid-19.
Yes, older tutors have to be protected – but when primary schools are returning and able to introduce sensible steps, so should all academic institutions.
Unfortunately the Government doesn’t have much say in Cambridge’s direction, as universities are allowed to set their own roadmap in regards to the pandemic.
What it does have control over, however, is using this time as an opportunity to improve the system, as Conservatives promised they would do in their manifesto.
Yes, it’s unfortunate that Covid-19 has been the impetus for a new direction.
But the fact that university numbers are about to go down is no bad thing – for years this has been what’s actually needed.
There are many problems with universities, but the main one is that demand for courses vastly outpaces demand for graduates.
It all started when Tony Blair decided that 50 per cent of school pupils should attend these institutions, convinced that this would take them to dizzying heights of success.
This vision never, ever materialised, though – even having a reverse effect.
The consequences of the Blair years were laid bare in front of MPs in 2017 when parliamentarians were given a 50-page report on millennials.
It showed that 40 per cent of 25-34-year-olds have degrees, but 47 per cent work in a non-graduate job; this is a terrible waste.
Of course, university isn’t just a means to a job – learning should be for learning’s sake, and it’s also a time for young adults to have fun and meet new friends.
The trouble is that when everyone goes, it starts to have a big, negative effect on the economy.
It can also lead to a drop in standards for students. Artificial grade inflation has been one byproduct from oversubscribed institutions, and degrees start to devalue if everyone’s got one.
What’s particularly plagued the system is the numbers of people doing “low-value” degrees, such as creative arts and psychology, which our columnist, Neil O’Brien has been particularly vocal about.
Last year, he co-authored a report for Onward demonstrating just how damaging these can be. That’s because graduates with low value degrees tend not to earn enough to ever pay back their loans.
A tenth earn less than £25,000 a decade after graduating (the threshold for them to start paying them back).
Speaking to ConHome, O’Brien added that growing fees hadn’t changed the incentive for high-return courses, saying “the earning status suggests that [students] should go off and do maths, the hard sciences, medicine, maybe law or economics because they have big returns. But actually people are piling into creative arts, which has the worst returns and lowest earnings.”
As of last year, it was shown that the loan repayment threshold for creative arts not met five years after graduation stands at 40 per cent.
Worryingly, around 45 per cent of the value of outstanding post-2012 student loans are not expected to be repaid – and who has to come to the rescue?
You! The taxpayer…
Last year Damian Hinds, the then Education Secretary, warned these low value degrees are costing millions – in the hope this would be a “wake up call” (NB. It wasn’t).
This is why the crisis should be an opportunity to rethink our universities.
It has forced us to confront some big questions.
For one, if these institutions can move online so readily – what’s the justification for physical lectures?
Do students even need to be on campus at all – paying large sums for halls?
Furthermore, if they can lecture online, why should courses cost £9,250 – particularly when competition in the online education marketplace has been growing (Coursera being one example)?
This pandemic should also encourage us to think about whether it’s sustainable to rely on foreign students so much, who can be charged as much as £58,600 and now cannot get back to classes.
A survey suggests 49 per cent of students from China will not enrol if it’s all online.
It’s very hard to understand the rationale for some of these prices.
Part of this I say from a personal perspective; I graduated with psychology in 2010, having received two hours of lectures a week in my third year. Hardly value for money.
Given the astronomical economic upheavals the UK has gone through since 2010, it has always seemed to me madness that we have not addressed the university issue sooner.
There is a real desire to rehaul the system, and invest properly in technical education, entrepreneurship – and other routes to employment.
You simply don’t have to be “academic” to be a success – and that narrative has to properly end.
One suspects part of the preoccupation with universities is because they are thought of as the engine of social mobility.
And of course they still offer many people amazing opportunities.
We have some of the best in the world and should be incredibly proud.
But if we want to show true respect to them, as well as young people, we need to fix these enormous structural problems.
The time is now for change. Ministers should seize it.


conservativehome--2020-05-21--Henry Hill: Sunak squares up to the SNP over the future of furlough

Jack attacks SNP for plotting independence as Scottish Government clashes with the Treasury Alister Jack , the Scottish Secretary , has accused Scottish Nationalists “ with too much time on their hands ” of trying to break up Britain even whilst the nation grapples with Covid-19 , the Times reports .
This follows news that senior figures in the party are drawing up plans for a second referendum on independence , even as the Scottish Government draws on the huge resources of the British state to finance their lockdown measures .
Tory MSPs have urged the Government to clarify that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ push distract from the task at hand .
Meanwhile there is a clash looming between the Scottish Government and the Treasury over the future of lockdown following reports that Rishi Sunak might turn off the taps for programmes such as furlough if Edinburgh tries to break ranks with London over the timetable .
Whilst it seems unlikely that the Chancellor is going to insist on a single lockdown exit date for the whole UK – after all , Jack has reportedly dropped his opposition to England relaxing the rules sooner if circumstances permit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will insist that a UK-wide strategy of variegated relaxation is conducted under the aegis of Westminster , rather than giving Holyrood a blank cheque to spend UK taxpayers ’ money without any accountability to them – especially if delays stem in part from the Scottish Government ’ s own incompetence .
There may also be an opportunity for the Treasury to use its muscle support local government in Scotland , with pressure growing for different policies in different parts of the country .
Welsh Government bites bullet and signs up to UK-wide approach @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a running story in this column has been how the devolved administrations , whilst cleaving to the Government on top-level policy , have made a hash of things in other areas by needlessly insisting in separate schemes for such things as NHS volunteering and emergency supermarket deliveries .
This week saw some welcome progress on this front when the Welsh Government abandoned efforts to develop a separate online platform wherein key workers could book Covid-19 tests .
They have instead opted into a system set up by the British Government to which both @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Vaughan Gething , the health minister , said that he was “ really not bothered into getting into how much we spent ” on the alternative , which was over ever rolled out in south-eastern Wales .
None of this will surprise readers of the Daily Mail , which this week ran a comprehensive account of the Welsh Government ’ s botched handling of the pandemic .
In other news , it turns out that Cardiff Bay ministers have sent thousands shielding letters , intended for those most at risk from Covid-19 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a month after the last time they did so – and Mark Drakeford has faced tough questions over missing his ‘ tiny ’ testing target .
As WB Yeats once put it : “ You have disgraced yourselves , again !
” This week has seen more reporting on the widening realisation of what Boris Johnson ’ s u-turn on the Irish Protocol – which is being described in the Irish press as “ an almost complete British retreat ” – means for trade with the Province .
Michael Gove has confirmed that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will need to be expanded , but that no new posts will be built .
He has also insisted that Ulster ’ s position in the United Kingdom is “ constitutionally secure “ , although unionists are deeply concerned that the arrangements with re-orient Northern Ireland ’ s entire economic outlook on a north-south axis .
The Government is reportedly trying to adopt a ‘ light-touch ’ approach towards policing the new Irish Sea border , but this has apparently put them on collision course with Brussels again .
Given the Prime Minister @ @ @ @ @ @ @ probably expect a fresh capitulation over the summer if that ’ s what it takes to avoid extending the transition period .
• Covid-19 is putting a spotlight on the SNP , and their reputation should not survive – Henry Hill , Daily Telegraph • Sturgeon is pulling the wool over our eyes – Clare Foges , The Times • The First Minister must prove there was no Covid-19 cover-up – Brian Wilson , The Scotsman • SNP is exploiting Covid to push its nationalist agenda – Dr Azeem Ibrahim , CapX • @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their own rules – Marcus Stead , Spiked !

Jack attacks SNP for plotting independence as Scottish Government clashes with the Treasury
Alister Jack, the Scottish Secretary, has accused Scottish Nationalists “with too much time on their hands” of trying to break up Britain even whilst the nation grapples with Covid-19, the Times reports.
This follows news that senior figures in the party are drawing up plans for a second referendum on independence, even as the Scottish Government draws on the huge resources of the British state to finance their lockdown measures. Tory MSPs have urged the Government to clarify that it won’t let another independence push distract from the task at hand.
Meanwhile there is a clash looming between the Scottish Government and the Treasury over the future of lockdown following reports that Rishi Sunak might turn off the taps for programmes such as furlough if Edinburgh tries to break ranks with London over the timetable.
Whilst it seems unlikely that the Chancellor is going to insist on a single lockdown exit date for the whole UK – after all, Jack has reportedly dropped his opposition to England relaxing the rules sooner if circumstances permit it – it may be that he will insist that a UK-wide strategy of variegated relaxation is conducted under the aegis of Westminster, rather than giving Holyrood a blank cheque to spend UK taxpayers’ money without any accountability to them – especially if delays stem in part from the Scottish Government’s own incompetence.
There may also be an opportunity for the Treasury to use its muscle support local government in Scotland, with pressure growing for different policies in different parts of the country.
Welsh Government bites bullet and signs up to UK-wide approach
From the start of the pandemic, a running story in this column has been how the devolved administrations, whilst cleaving to the Government on top-level policy, have made a hash of things in other areas by needlessly insisting in separate schemes for such things as NHS volunteering and emergency supermarket deliveries.
This week saw some welcome progress on this front when the Welsh Government abandoned efforts to develop a separate online platform wherein key workers could book Covid-19 tests. They have instead opted into a system set up by the British Government to which both Scotland and Northern Ireland had already subscribed.
Vaughan Gething, the health minister, said that he was “really not bothered into getting into how much we spent” on the alternative, which was over ever rolled out in south-eastern Wales. None of this will surprise readers of the Daily Mail, which this week ran a comprehensive account of the Welsh Government’s botched handling of the pandemic.
In other news, it turns out that Cardiff Bay ministers have sent thousands shielding letters, intended for those most at risk from Covid-19, to the wrong addresses – only a month after the last time they did so – and Mark Drakeford has faced tough questions over missing his ‘tiny’ testing target. As WB Yeats once put it: “You have disgraced yourselves, again!”
Gove confirms that British goods will face Ulster checks
This week has seen more reporting on the widening realisation of what Boris Johnson’s u-turn on the Irish Protocol – which is being described in the Irish press as “an almost complete British retreat” – means for trade with the Province.
Michael Gove has confirmed that existing customs infrastructure at Northern Irish ports will need to be expanded, but that no new posts will be built. He has also insisted that Ulster’s position in the United Kingdom is “constitutionally secure“, although unionists are deeply concerned that the arrangements with re-orient Northern Ireland’s entire economic outlook on a north-south axis.
The Government is reportedly trying to adopt a ‘light-touch’ approach towards policing the new Irish Sea border, but this has apparently put them on collision course with Brussels again. Given the Prime Minister’s track record, we can probably expect a fresh capitulation over the summer if that’s what it takes to avoid extending the transition period.
Comment:


conservativehome--2020-05-22--The triumph of Whatsapp and trouble for the whips

The conventional wisdom has been that with Conservative MPs in lockdown – and so scattered to the four winds – the Tory whips would have fewer disciplinary problems to manage .
The opposite has turned out to be true , as the U-turn on the NHS surcharge showed .
The driving reason for it wasn ’ t the inquisitorial genius of Keir Starmer but , rather , the clamour among the WhatsApp groups used by Tory MPs .
These are turning out to be the grandmother of all nightmares for the whips .
“ It all gathered pace during Brexit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ConHome .
“ There was a Clean Global Brexit Group .
A Spartan Group .
And goodness knows what besides – all working themselves up into a lather ” .
This is one thing when the whips are meeting daily in a room , and when they ’ re then able to work the committee corridors , tearooms , lobbies , bars and Portcullis House , together with their helpers or stooges ( choose your label according to taste ) .
It ’ s quite another when team meetings must be carried out @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the WhatsApp group jungle drums are beating themselves into a frenzy .
A vote on early release for prisoners was pulled recently .
Twenty-two Conservative MPs voted in favour of Neil Parish ’ s animal welfare amendment to the Agriculture Bill .
The China Research Group is up and running , and its provisional wing will make energetic use of WhatsApp .
There has already been a backbench rebellion over Huwaei – a mere shot across the bows from a formidable band of MPs spanning the depth and breadth of the party .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to be the unalloyed plus for the executive that some thought it would , with virtual voting depriving MPs of their chance to worry at each other in the lobbies about the executive is up to .
Instead , the WhatsApp groups can have a self-reinforcing effect – whipping up concerns or discontent like a sudden storm at sea .
A majority of 80 bolsters Johnson ’ s Government against the rebellions that capsized Theresa May ’ s .
But there will be more trouble for him from where yesterday ’ s came @ @

The conventional wisdom has been that with Conservative MPs in lockdown – and so scattered to the four winds – the Tory whips would have fewer disciplinary problems to manage.
The opposite has turned out to be true, as the U-turn on the NHS surcharge showed. The driving reason for it wasn’t the inquisitorial genius of Keir Starmer but, rather, the clamour among the WhatsApp groups used by Tory MPs. These are turning out to be the grandmother of all nightmares for the whips.
“It all gathered pace during Brexit,” a former senior whip told ConHome. “There was a Clean Global Brexit Group. A Spartan Group. And goodness knows what besides – all working themselves up into a lather”.
This is one thing when the whips are meeting daily in a room, and when they’re then able to work the committee corridors, tearooms, lobbies, bars and Portcullis House, together with their helpers or stooges (choose your label according to taste).
It’s quite another when team meetings must be carried out by Zoom or suchlike, and when the WhatsApp group jungle drums are beating themselves into a frenzy.
A vote on early release for prisoners was pulled recently. Twenty-two Conservative MPs voted in favour of Neil Parish’s animal welfare amendment to the Agriculture Bill.
The China Research Group is up and running, and its provisional wing will make energetic use of WhatsApp. There has already been a backbench rebellion over Huwaei – a mere shot across the bows from a formidable band of MPs spanning the depth and breadth of the party.
So technology isn’t turning out to be the unalloyed plus for the executive that some thought it would, with virtual voting depriving MPs of their chance to worry at each other in the lobbies about the executive is up to.
Instead, the WhatsApp groups can have a self-reinforcing effect – whipping up concerns or discontent like a sudden storm at sea. A majority of 80 bolsters Johnson’s Government against the rebellions that capsized Theresa May’s. But there will be more trouble for him from where yesterday’s came from.


conservativehome--2020-05-22--Calling Conservatives: New public appointments announced. Independent Reviewer of Prevent – and more

Eight years ago , the TaxPayers ’ Alliance reported that “ in the last year , five times more Labour people were appointed to public bodies than Tories ” .
It currently reports that almost half of avowedly political appointees last year owed their allegiance to Labour Party , compared to less than a third for the Conservatives .
Despite the selection of some Party members or supporters to fill important posts , over time , the Conservatives have punched beneath their weight when it comes to public appointments .
One of the reasons seems to be that Tories simply @ @ @ @ @ @ @ number as Labour supporters .
To help remedy this , each week we put up links to some of the main public appointments vacancies , so that qualified Conservatives can be aware of the opportunities presented .
“ As a non-executive director , you will play an active role on the board of SLC , supporting the SLC Executive Team and SLC Chair to deliver the company ’ s portfolio of priorities , overcome challenges and exploit opportunities , including the continued growth of its customer base , delivery of recommendations from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ implementation of the Review of Post-18 Education .
A key element of the role will be to work with the board to ensure that the resources and skills available to the Company are commensurate with and focussed on its delivery obligations .
The SLC administers the data underpinning one of Government ’ s major assets : the Student Loan book .
This data supports the sale of tranches of loans to monetise that asset for the benefit of the exchequer and taxpayers ( £3.6bn raised to date ) .
There may be other @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the widest sense , of the SLC ’ s data in the future.
” “ The Northern Ireland Veterans Commissioner will be a visible leader and exemplar , establishing a strong network and creating a vision of future service provision for veterans in Northern Ireland which supports the realisation of the ambition shared across the United Kingdom to be the best place in the world to be a veteran .
The Commissioner must balance this strategic vision with managing short and long-term priorities , while remaining sensitive to the unique political and historical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will be influential with others and work constructively with senior stakeholders , from public sector organisations and the ex-service sector , to support improved outcomes through collaboration and negotiation.
” “ The Social Security Advisory Committee ( SSAC ) is an independent statutory advisory body , funded by the Department for Work and Pensions ( DWP ) .
It has the following statutory functions : to perform , on behalf of both the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and Parliament , a mandatory scrutiny of most of the proposed secondary legislation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and to provide advice and assistance to the Secretary of State , whether in response to a specific request from the UK Government or on its own initiative .
In addition to the scrutiny of proposals for secondary legislation , the Committee ’ s general advisory functions are deployed to : inform the Committee ’ s work , improving members ’ ability to scrutinise regulations and provide independent advice to Ministers ; add value to the debate on a topic that is of current interest to Government and stakeholders ; and stimulate debate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and amongst stakeholders.
” “ The Independent Review of Prevent will deliver on the Government ’ s commitment set out in the Counter Terrorism and Border Security Act 2019 and will critically examine and report on the Prevent strategy , as set out in CONTEST June 2018 .
We are seeking a highly talented individual of unquestionable independence , integrity and credibility , who can demonstrate his or her ability to exercise sound judgment and analysis at pace and under pressure , with close public and ministerial scrutiny .
This is high profile @ @ @ @ @ @ @ seeking to appoint a credible and talented Independent Reviewer who is confident engaging with a wide range of interested parties , from civil society and community organisations , to Ministers and local practitioners.
” “ The Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration provides independent scrutiny of the UK ’ s border and immigration functions , providing security , confidence and assurance as to their effectiveness and efficiency .
They report annually to the Home Secretary and their reports are placed before Parliament .
Leading a team of approximately 30 staff you will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s approach to the Border , Immigration and Citizenship System .
Candidates will have experience of working successfully at a senior level , ideally within a regulation or enforcement arena .
Whatever your background , you will appreciate the importance and opportunity that this role presents .
Excellent communication skills , decisiveness , independence and unquestionable integrity will be essential.
” “ The Imperial War Museum ( IWM ) was founded in 1917 to record the story of the Great War .
Its remit was subsequently extended to cover the Second World War @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s leading authority on conflict and its impact focusing on Britain , its former Empire and the Commonwealth , from the First World War to the present .
The IWM is a single institution with a single purpose , fulfilled in different ways at its different branches , both physical and virtual .
In addition to its headquarters building , IWM London , in Southwark , the Museum ’ s branches comprise the Churchill War Rooms and HMS Belfast in London , IWM Duxford in Cambridgeshire , and IWM North in Trafford @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a stunning building by Daniel Libeskind .
The IWM has traditionally had a Trustee on its Board from each of the three branches of the armed forces , and is currently recruiting for two Trustees to represent the RAF and Navy branches.
” Time : Up to one day per month .

Eight years ago, the TaxPayers’ Alliance reported that “in the last year, five times more Labour people were appointed to public bodies than Tories”.
It currently reports that almost half of avowedly political appointees last year owed their allegiance to Labour Party, compared to less than a third for the Conservatives.
Despite the selection of some Party members or supporters to fill important posts, over time, the Conservatives have punched beneath their weight when it comes to public appointments. One of the reasons seems to be that Tories simply don’t apply in the same number as Labour supporters.
To help remedy this, each week we put up links to some of the main public appointments vacancies, so that qualified Conservatives can be aware of the opportunities presented.
– – – – – – – – – –
Student Loans Company Board – Non-Executive Directors
“As a non-executive director, you will play an active role on the board of SLC, supporting the SLC Executive Team and SLC Chair to deliver the company’s portfolio of priorities, overcome challenges and exploit opportunities, including the continued growth of its customer base, delivery of recommendations from the Tailored Review (Annex 3) and implementation of the Review of Post-18 Education. A key element of the role will be to work with the board to ensure that the resources and skills available to the Company are commensurate with and focussed on its delivery obligations. The SLC administers the data underpinning one of Government’s major assets: the Student Loan book. This data supports the sale of tranches of loans to monetise that asset for the benefit of the exchequer and taxpayers (£3.6bn raised to date). There may be other opportunities to realise the value, in the widest sense, of the SLC’s data in the future.”
Time: Two days per month.
Remuneration: £12,000, up to £17,000.
Closes: 19 May
– – – – – – – – – –
Northern Ireland Office – Northern Ireland Veterans Commissioner
“The Northern Ireland Veterans Commissioner will be a visible leader and exemplar, establishing a strong network and creating a vision of future service provision for veterans in Northern Ireland which supports the realisation of the ambition shared across the United Kingdom to be the best place in the world to be a veteran. The Commissioner must balance this strategic vision with managing short and long-term priorities, while remaining sensitive to the unique political and historical context in Northern Ireland. The Commissioner will be influential with others and work constructively with senior stakeholders, from public sector organisations and the ex-service sector, to support improved outcomes through collaboration and negotiation.”
Time: Approx. 110 days per annum.
Remuneration: £306 per diem plus expenses.
Closes: 22 May
– – – – – – – – – –
Social Security Advisory Committee – Chair
“The Social Security Advisory Committee (SSAC) is an independent statutory advisory body, funded by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). It has the following statutory functions: to perform, on behalf of both the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and Parliament, a mandatory scrutiny of most of the proposed secondary legislation that underpins the social welfare system; and to provide advice and assistance to the Secretary of State, whether in response to a specific request from the UK Government or on its own initiative. In addition to the scrutiny of proposals for secondary legislation, the Committee’s general advisory functions are deployed to: inform the Committee’s work, improving members’ ability to scrutinise regulations and provide independent advice to Ministers; add value to the debate on a topic that is of current interest to Government and stakeholders; and stimulate debate of a specific topic within the Committee and amongst stakeholders.”
Time: Five days per month.
Remuneration: £22,000 per annum.
Closes: 01 June
– – – – – – – – – –
Home Office – Independent Reviewer of Prevent
“The Independent Review of Prevent will deliver on the Government’s commitment set out in the Counter Terrorism and Border Security Act 2019 and will critically examine and report on the Prevent strategy, as set out in CONTEST June 2018. We are seeking a highly talented individual of unquestionable independence, integrity and credibility, who can demonstrate his or her ability to exercise sound judgment and analysis at pace and under pressure, with close public and ministerial scrutiny. This is high profile and public-facing role, so we are seeking to appoint a credible and talented Independent Reviewer who is confident engaging with a wide range of interested parties, from civil society and community organisations, to Ministers and local practitioners.”
Time: Five days per month.
Remuneration: £140,000 pro rata.
Closes: 01 June
– – – – – – – – – –
Home Office – Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration
“The Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration provides independent scrutiny of the UK’s border and immigration functions, providing security, confidence and assurance as to their effectiveness and efficiency. They report annually to the Home Secretary and their reports are placed before Parliament. Leading a team of approximately 30 staff you will strive to continually improve the UK’s approach to the Border, Immigration and Citizenship System. Candidates will have experience of working successfully at a senior level, ideally within a regulation or enforcement arena. Whatever your background, you will appreciate the importance and opportunity that this role presents. Excellent communication skills, decisiveness, independence and unquestionable integrity will be essential.”
Time: Full-time.
Remuneration: £130,000
Closes: 06 June
– – – – – – – – – –
Imperial War Museum – RAF Trustee and Navy Trustee
“The Imperial War Museum (IWM) was founded in 1917 to record the story of the Great War. Its remit was subsequently extended to cover the Second World War and today, IWM is the world’s leading authority on conflict and its impact focusing on Britain, its former Empire and the Commonwealth, from the First World War to the present. The IWM is a single institution with a single purpose, fulfilled in different ways at its different branches, both physical and virtual. In addition to its headquarters building, IWM London, in Southwark, the Museum’s branches comprise the Churchill War Rooms and HMS Belfast in London, IWM Duxford in Cambridgeshire, and IWM North in Trafford, Greater Manchester which is housed in a stunning building by Daniel Libeskind. The IWM has traditionally had a Trustee on its Board from each of the three branches of the armed forces, and is currently recruiting for two Trustees to represent the RAF and Navy branches.”
Time: Up to one day per month.
Remuneration: Expenses reasonably incurred.
Closes: 12 June


conservativehome--2020-05-22--The Government’s democracy commission, “legal tools” – and boats of illegal migrants

When he was MP for Dover , Charlie Elphicke campaigned energetically for action against the people-trafficking trade – knowing well from experience the impact it was having on his Dover constituency .
And a business it certainly is , with the gangs concerned bribing lorry drivers , finding would-be migrants , and charging them up to £10,000 per person to break illegally into Britain .
Or else , especially if the lorry route is constricted , first buying boats and then deploying them .
At present , the former means isn ’ t available , because of the impact of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lanes push by the gangs – aided by France having scaled back its security presence at the borders in order to police its own lockdown .
In the Commons this week , Natalie Elphicke , Dover ’ s new MP , was carrying on where her husband left off , urging the Government to be given the “ legal tools ” that will enable it better to return illegal migrants and stop the flow .
This is surely the key to solving the problem .
Nigel Farage is suggesting that France is systematically @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he claim that the French navy is escorting illegal boats into British waters ?
Never underestimate the former UKIP and present Brexit Party leader .
When it comes to leaping into the limelight , nobody does it better – and few are more skilled at identifying public anxiety about mass immigration .
Interestingly , he didn ’ t seek to harness it when building his new party up .
He majored instead on Theresa May ’ s broken commitment to leave the EU by March 29 last year .
And – interestingly again @ @ @ @ @ @ @ himself at the head of a movement to oppose the lockdown outright .
Instead , he is out and about in the English channel .
But whatever French naval boats may or may not be doing , it would be simplistic to argue that institutional France is waving illegal entrants towards its northern coast with a placard proclaiming : “ Britain this way ” .
For France , like any other countries , contains a mass of different interests , and it is not in those of its UK-facing parts to have a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Calais and other French ports .
Hence the 2016 dismantlement of the “ Calais jungle ” .
None the less , for as long as the boats continue to arrive daily , MPs and others and others will be calling on France to up its game .
And , certainly , the argument about the French police and the country ’ s lockdown , now being eased , cuts both ways : if they were stopping people moving about , why didn ’ t they stop the illegal entrants ?
At any rate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that boats are coming and the migrants are staying : in the past 16 months , some 2,500 migrants have crossed the Channel and only 155 have been returned .
The smaller part of the explanation is that Britain ’ s border security isn ’ t as effective as it should be : the “ not fit for purpose ” issue raises its head again .
The larger part is the cats cradle of the Dublin Convention , human rights laws and our courts .
On the Convention , Priti Patel says that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ luck with that one .
On human rights laws , however , she and the rest of us may be in luck – remember Downing Street ’ s sally at “ the shocking influence of lawyers on policy ” .
( And remind us : what is the occupation of the Leader of the Opposition ? )
That we have left the EU may make no difference to the Convention itself , but it will give the Government more room elsewhere for legal manoeuvre .
Which the awaited Constitution , Democracy and Rights @ @ @ @ @ @ @ much else because of the Coronavirus , can be expected to probe .
Dominic Cummings , remember , is on record as writing : “ we ’ ll be coming for the ECHR referendum and we ’ ll win that by more than 52-48 ” : for the Vote Leave group in Number Ten , taking back control is a work in progress .
But until or unless the Government fashions and then uses “ legal tools ” , to quote Elphicke again , the boats will carry on coming .

When he was MP for Dover, Charlie Elphicke campaigned energetically for action against the people-trafficking trade – knowing well from experience the impact it was having on his Dover constituency.
And a business it certainly is, with the gangs concerned bribing lorry drivers, finding would-be migrants, and charging them up to £10,000 per person to break illegally into Britain.
Or else, especially if the lorry route is constricted, first buying boats and then deploying them. At present, the former means isn’t available, because of the impact of the Coronavirus.
Hence a new sea lanes push by the gangs – aided by France having scaled back its security presence at the borders in order to police its own lockdown.
In the Commons this week, Natalie Elphicke, Dover’s new MP, was carrying on where her husband left off, urging the Government to be given the “legal tools” that will enable it better to return illegal migrants and stop the flow.
This is surely the key to solving the problem. Nigel Farage is suggesting that France is systematically helping the trade: why else would he claim that the French navy is escorting illegal boats into British waters?
Never underestimate the former UKIP and present Brexit Party leader. When it comes to leaping into the limelight, nobody does it better – and few are more skilled at identifying public anxiety about mass immigration.
Interestingly, he didn’t seek to harness it when building his new party up. He majored instead on Theresa May’s broken commitment to leave the EU by March 29 last year.
And – interestingly again – he has not sought to put himself at the head of a movement to oppose the lockdown outright. Instead, he is out and about in the English channel.
But whatever French naval boats may or may not be doing, it would be simplistic to argue that institutional France is waving illegal entrants towards its northern coast with a placard proclaiming: “Britain this way”.
For France, like any other countries, contains a mass of different interests, and it is not in those of its UK-facing parts to have a mass of illegal migrants piling up near Calais and other French ports.
Hence the 2016 dismantlement of the “Calais jungle”. None the less, for as long as the boats continue to arrive daily, MPs and others and others will be calling on France to up its game.
And, certainly, the argument about the French police and the country’s lockdown, now being eased, cuts both ways: if they were stopping people moving about, why didn’t they stop the illegal entrants?
At any rate, the nub of the matter is that boats are coming and the migrants are staying: in the past 16 months, some 2,500 migrants have crossed the Channel and only 155 have been returned.
The smaller part of the explanation is that Britain’s border security isn’t as effective as it should be: the “not fit for purpose” issue raises its head again.
The larger part is the cats cradle of the Dublin Convention, human rights laws and our courts. On the Convention, Priti Patel says that she wants to renegotiate it. Good luck with that one.
On human rights laws, however, she and the rest of us may be in luck – remember Downing Street’s sally at “the shocking influence of lawyers on policy”. (And remind us: what is the occupation of the Leader of the Opposition?)
That we have left the EU may make no difference to the Convention itself, but it will give the Government more room elsewhere for legal manoeuvre.
Which the awaited Constitution, Democracy and Rights Commission, now in abeyance with so much else because of the Coronavirus, can be expected to probe.
Dominic Cummings, remember, is on record as writing: “we’ll be coming for the ECHR referendum and we’ll win that by more than 52-48”: for the Vote Leave group in Number Ten, taking back control is a work in progress.
But until or unless the Government fashions and then uses “legal tools”, to quote Elphicke again, the boats will carry on coming.


Coronavirus Count

Total number of lab-confirmed UK cases : 250,908 ( Down from 248,293 ) .
Total number of COVID-19 associated UK deaths : 36,042 ( Up from 35,704 ) .
Daily number of lab-confirmed UK cases : 2,615 ( Up from 2,472 ) .
Daily number of COVID-19 associated UK deaths : 338 ( Down from 363 ) .
From the Government ’ s website Number of coronavirus ( COVID-19 ) cases and risk in the UK .
DAILY NUMBER OF COVID-19 ASSOCIATED DEATHS BY DATE REPORTED From the Government ’ s website Number of coronavirus ( COVID-19 ) cases and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ risk to the UK has been raised to high ” – From the Government ’ s website Number of coronavirus ( COVID-19 ) cases and risk in the UK .
OUR PLAN TO REBUILD : THE UK GOVERNMENT ’ S COVID-19 RECOVERY STRATEGY See here .
New as of Monday May 11 .
GUIDANCE : FURTHER BUSINESSES AND PREMISES TO CLOSE See here .
Published on Monday March 23 .
HOW EVERYONE CAN HELP STOP THE CORONAVIRUS ( SOCIAL DISTANCING ) See here .
Republished on Monday March 23 .
STAY AT HOME @ @ @ @ @ @ @ SELF-DISTANCING ) See here .
Republished on Monday March 23 .
See here .
Published on Monday March 23 .
GOVERNMENT GUIDANCE FOR WORKERS ON WHAT AND HOW THEY CAN CLAIM See here .
Published on Friday March 20 .
GOVERNMENT GUIDANCE FOR LANDLORDS , TENANTS AND LOCAL AUTHORITIES NEW See here .
Published on Saturday March 28 .
HOW TO AVOID CATCHING OR SPREADING CORONAVIRUS • Wash your hands with soap and water often – do this for at least 20 seconds .
• Always wash your hands when you get home @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sanitiser gel if soap and water are not available .
• Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve ( not your hands ) when you cough or sneeze .
• Put used tissues in the bin straight away and wash your hands afterwards .
• Try to avoid close contact with people who are unwell .
The symptoms of coronavirus are : However , these symptoms do not necessarily mean you have the illness .
The symptoms are similar to other illnesses that are much more common , such @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has an online coronavirus service that can tell you if you need medical help and advise you what to do .
Use this service if : • You think you might have coronavirus .
• In the last 14 days you ’ ve been to a country or area with a high risk of coronavirus – see the coronavirus advice for travellers .
• You ’ ve been in close contact with someone with coronavirus .
• In Scotland call your GP or NHS 24 on 111 out of hours .
• In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ your area ) or 0845 46 47 .
• Do not go to a GP surgery , pharmacy or hospital .
• What the coronavirus is , how it ’ s spread and how to avoid catching it – Government NHS website overview .
• Stay at home advice and how to manage self-isolation .
( All information taken from Government sources .
Updated as of 18.30 on Thursday May 19th . )

HEADLINE FACTS
Total number of lab-confirmed UK cases: 292,950 (Up from 291,409).
Total number of COVID-19 associated UK deaths: 41,481 (Up from 41,279).
Daily number of lab-confirmed UK cases: 1,541 (Up from 1,266).
Daily number of COVID-19 associated UK deaths: 202 (Up from 151).
England total cases: 156,410 (Up from 156,018 ).
England total deaths: 37,069 (Up from 36,883).
England death rate: 279.4 (Was 278.7).
Scotland total cases: 15,709 (Up from 15,682).
Scotland total deaths: 2,439 (Up from 2,434).
Scotland death rate: 288.9 (Was 288.4).
Wales total cases: 14,658 (Up from 14,581).
Wales total deaths: 1,435 (Up from 1,425).
Wales death rate: 467.0 (Was 464.6)
Northern Ireland total cases: 4,838 (Up from 4,822)
Northern Ireland total deaths: 538 (Up from 537).
Northern Ireland death rate: 257.1 (Was 256.3).
From the Government’s website Number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases and risk in the UK.
DAILY NUMBER OF COVID-19 ASSOCIATED DEATHS BY DATE REPORTED
DAILY NUMBER OF LAB-CONFIRMED ENGLAND CASES
From the Government’s website Number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases and risk in the UK.
– – –
RISK
“The risk to the UK has been raised to high” –
From the Government’s website Number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases and risk in the UK.
– – –
NHS VOLUNTEER RESPONDER FORM
See here
(The Government’s scheme to recruit 250,000 volunteers.)
– – –
OUR PLAN TO REBUILD: THE UK GOVERNMENT’S COVID-19 RECOVERY STRATEGY
See here. New as of Monday May 11.
GOVERNMENT GUIDANCE ON THE LOCKDOWN.
See here. New as of Tuesday June 2.
GOVERNMENT GUIDANCE ON SHIELDING AND PROTECTING PEOPLE WHO ARE CLINICALLY EXTREMELY VULNERABLE FROM COVID-19
See here. New as of Tuesday June 2.
GOVERNMENT GUIDANCE ON SOCIAL DISTANCING
See here. New as of Tuesday June 2.
GOVERNMENT WEBSITE: GENERAL ADVICE
See here.
GOVERNMENT WEBSITE: FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS. WHAT YOU CAN DO AND CAN’T DO
See here.
GOVERNMENT GUIDANCE FOR LANDLORDS, TENANTS AND LOCAL AUTHORITIES NEW
See here. Published on Saturday March 28.
– – –
HOW TO AVOID CATCHING OR SPREADING CORONAVIRUS
Wash your hands with soap and water often – do this for at least 20 seconds .
Always wash your hands when you get home or into work .
Use hand sanitiser gel if soap and water are not available .
Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve (not your hands) when you cough or sneeze .
Put used tissues in the bin straight away and wash your hands afterwards .
Try to avoid close contact with people who are unwell.
SYMPTOMS
The symptoms of coronavirus are:
A cough.
A high temperature.
Shortness of breath.
However, these symptoms do not necessarily mean you have the illness.
The symptoms are similar to other illnesses that are much more common, such as cold and flu.
USING 111
NHS 111 has an online coronavirus service that can tell you if you need medical help and advise you what to do.
Use this service if:
You think you might have coronavirus.
In the last 14 days you’ve been to a country or area with a high risk of coronavirus – see the coronavirus advice for travellers.
You’ve been in close contact with someone with coronavirus.
In Scotland call your GP or NHS 24 on 111 out of hours.
In Wales call 111 (if available in your area) or 0845 46 47.
In Northern Ireland call 111.
Do not go to a GP surgery, pharmacy or hospital.
FURTHER LINKS TO GOVERNMENT ADVICE
– – –
(All information taken from Government sources.
Updated as of 19.00 on Friday June 12.)