Babak Belurs

Sabtu, 03 Oktober 2020

SNP's Margaret Ferrier refuses to quit after flouting Covid self-isolation rules - Daily Mail

SNP's Margaret Ferrier refuses to quit as it is revealed she visited a gym and a beauty salon after contracting Covid as Speaker Lindsay Hoyle blasts her 'completely reckless' behaviour and police probe 400-mile trip

SNP's Margaret Ferrier facing fury for flouting coronavirus self-isolation rules
Travelled to House of Parliament while suffering symptoms and taking a test
Took train 400 miles back to Scotland after testing positive for the disease
One person at Commons has been told to self-isolate as contacts are traced

By Tom Pyman and David Wilcock, Whitehall Correspondent and James Tapsfield, Political Editor For Mailonline

Published: 08:08 BST, 3 October 2020 | Updated: 08:10 BST, 3 October 2020

The SNP MP who flouted coronavirus self-isolation rules by travelling hundreds of miles across Britain is resisting calls to quit.

Margaret Ferrier also visited a gym, shops and a beauty salon on the day she became ill and has faced a barrage of criticism since being diagnosed with the virus.

The 60-year-old posted images on her social media showing her out and about in her Rutherglen and Hamilton West on Saturday - the day she was tested for Covid-19.

Scotland Yard confirmed it was looking into Ms Ferrier's admission on Thursday that she travelled 400 miles from Glasgow to London and then back again while suffering with Covid-19 this week.

She travelled by train to London from Scotland last Monday while awaiting the results of a Covid test taken on Saturday, and then travelled back the following day after being told the test was positive.

Images on her Twitter page showed her in several public places likely to have been busy on a Saturday, including the Vanilla Salon and South Lanarkshire Eastfield Lifestyle leisure centre in Rutherglen, and Sweet P gift shop in Burnside.

Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle lashed out at her astonishing actions as she faced calls from her own party leader to quit the Commons.

Nicola Sturgeon used a series of expletives and her 'head was in her hands' on being told that her 'friend and colleague' had broken the law, sources told the Times.

However, Ms Ferrier is resisting calls to quit and may seek to stay in the Commons as an independent, having referred herself to the parliamentary standards watchdog having been stripped of the party whip.

Margaret Ferrier posted images on her social media showing her out and about in her Rutherglen and Hamilton West on Saturday - the day she was tested for Covid-19

Images on her Twitter page showed her in several public places likely to have been busy on a Saturday, including the Vanilla Salon and South Lanarkshire Eastfield Lifestyle leisure centre in Rutherglen (pictured)

Speaker Sir Lindsay told Sky News he learned the 60-year-old had coronavirus while in the Speaker's Chair in the House of Commons at around 4pm on Wednesday.

He said: 'Obviously this is completely reckless behaviour for a Member of Parliament - to put staff and fellow MPs at risk is not acceptable.'

He added: 'What made it worse was only being told on Wednesday on something that people knew about on Monday - well the MP themselves knew about it on Monday.'

He said the reaction was immediate and 'within 20 minutes we were in full swing on what we needed to do to ensure the safety and security of staff and members'.

He also voiced anger than some in the SNP knew of the situation long before he was informed.

The Metropolitan Police confirmed tonight that it was investigating the journeys along with British Transport Police over potential breaches of the Health Protection Regulations 2020.

Ms Ferrier could face a £4,000 fine for a first-time offence of 'recklessly' coming into contact with others when she should have been self-isolating under a law that came into force on the day of her positive test.

The First Minister Nicola Sturgeon urged Margaret Ferrier to 'do the right thing' as she faced universal condemnation for her 'utterly indefensible' behaviour .

Ms Sturgeon said she had made it 'crystal clear' to Ms Ferrier that she must resign. 'I've spoken to Margaret Ferrier and made clear my view that she should step down as an MP,' she said.

'I did so with a heavy heart - she is a friend & colleague - but her actions were dangerous & indefensible. I have no power to force an MP to resign but I hope she will do the right thing.'

Astonishingly, the 60-year-old received a positive result on Monday night and still appeared in the Commons chamber (pictured), speaking in a debate on coronavirus and its impact on the economy and jobs

Nicola Sturgeon urged Margaret Ferrier to 'do the right thing' as she faced universal condemnation for her 'utterly indefensible' behaviour

Margaret Ferrier's statement in full

'I apologise unreservedly for breaching Covid-19 restrictions by travelling this week when I shouldn't have. There is no excuse for my actions.

'On Saturday afternoon, after experiencing mild symptoms, I requested a Covid-19 test which I took that day. Feeling much better, I then travelled to London by train on Monday to attend Parliament as planned. This was wrong, and I am very sorry for my mistake.

'On Monday evening I received a positive test result for Covid-19. I travelled home by train on Tuesday morning without seeking advice. This was also wrong and I am sorry. I have been self-isolating at home ever since.

'I have used Test and Protect and I have notified the House of Commons authorities who have spoken with Public Health England. I have also notified the police of my actions.

'Despite feeling well, I should have self-isolated while waiting for my test result, and I deeply regret my actions. I take full responsibility and I would urge everyone not to make the same mistakes that I have, and do all they can to help limit the spread of Covid-19.'

DUP MP Jim Shannon revealed this afternoon that he dined with Ms Ferrier at Parliament on Monday night and was told to self-isolate, but had since tested negative.

Earlier, the SNP's Westminster chief Ian Blackford, who has already stripped her of the whip, said this morning that she must 'reflect on her position'. 'I think it is obvious what she needs to do,' he told BBC Breakfast.

The Commons said one person who had come into contact with Ms Ferrier had been told to self-isolate, with investigations into who else might be at risk set to continue. Extra cleaning precautions have also been taken - although the damage might already have been done.

The Rutherglen and Hamilton West MP said she took a test on Saturday afternoon after experiencing 'mild symptoms', meaning she should have self-isolated, before travelling by train to London on Monday having felt better.

Labour suggested the party covered up knowledge of Margaret Ferrier's actions after it emerged they knew of her diagnosis a day before she disclosed it on Thursday evening.

She spoke in the coronavirus debate in the House of Commons on Monday and, by her account, tested positive for Covid-19 that evening. She did not make clear whether she received the result before or after she spoke.

In a statement, she said she travelled home to Glasgow on Tuesday, where she has been self-isolating ever since.

'Despite feeling well, I should have self-isolated while waiting for my test result, and I deeply regret my actions,' she said.

Ms Sturgeon was repeatedly grilled on the situation at her daily briefing this afternoon.

But she swiped back by comparing her response to that of Boris Johnson when his chief aide Dominic Cummings was accused of breaching rules.

'Trust me, it's one of the easiest things in the world in politics to call for tough consequences when one of your opponents breaks the rules, that's not hard for any of us,' she said.

'The litmus test, though, is whether you're prepared to do the same when it's one of your own breaking the rules.

Speaker's fury at delay in alerting him to MP's coronavirus status

The Commons Speaker today vented fury at the delay in informing him about Margaret Ferrier's 'reckless' actions.

Sir Lindsay told Sky News he only learned Ms Ferrier had coronavirus while in the Chair at around 4pm on Wednesday.

He said the reaction was immediate and 'within 20 minutes we were in full swing on what we needed to do to ensure the safety and security of staff and members'.

He said: 'Obviously this is completely reckless behaviour for a Member of Parliament – to put staff and fellow MPs at risk is not acceptable.'

He added: 'What made it worse was only being told on Wednesday on something that people knew about on Monday – well the MP themselves knew about it on Monday.'

'And in these abnormal times when everybody has been asked to do difficult things, I think that is more important than ever.

'That's why the SNP whip has been withdrawn from Margaret, and that is the most serious sanction a party can impose on an elected representative.

'I've also spoken to her directly and made crystal clear to her that I think she should now resign as an MP.'

The DUP issued a statement saying that Strangford MP Jim Shannon was seated at the same dining table as Ms Ferrier on Monday night.

'The room seating arrangements included proper social distancing measures,' the party said.

'On Wednesday evening, the Speaker's Office alerted Mr Shannon that he had been identified as a close contact of an individual who had tested positive for Covid-19.

'Upon receiving this news, Mr Shannon immediately self-isolated and on Thursday afternoon he received a negative Covid-19 test result.

'Mr Shannon sought and at all times has followed the advice of Public Health England and the House of Commons' Covid-19 team in dealing with every element of this incident.

'As a precaution, Mr Shannon is self-isolating at home.'

The SNP gained the Rutherglen and Hamilton West seat from Labour in the 2019 general election, when Ms Ferrier won with a majority of 5,230.

But her colleagues turned on her overnight after it emerged she had flouted the rules.

David Linden, the SNP MP for the Glasgow East constituency neighbouring Ms Ferrier's, has called for her to go.

He told BBC Question Time her behaviour is 'utterly inexcusable', adding: 'I don't think her position is tenable and she should resign.'

The DUP issued a statement saying that Strangford MP Jim Shannon was seated at the same dining table as Ms Ferrier on Monday night, but has since tested negative for Covid

The actions of Ms Ferrier are all the more astonishing because earlier this year she was outspoken in criticising the Government for defending No10 advisor Dominic Cummings when he was accused of breaching lockdown

Margaret Ferrier said she was 'very sorry' for travelling from her Rutherglen seat to attend the Commons.

Margaret Ferrier: Comeback MP who won her old seat off Labour in 2019 - only to be suspended less than a year later for Covid-19 train journey

Margaret Ferrier, 60, is MP for Rutherglen and Hamilton West, in central Scotland.

As an SNP candidate, she won the seat in 2015 in the party's landslide on the back of the 2014 Independence referendum.

She was almost instantly made a party spokesperson on Scotland and was elected to the Commons Scottish Affairs Committee.

However she was narrowly beaten by Labour in the 2017 General Election.

But in last year's poll she retook the seat. Until tonight, she was the SNP's spokesperson on manufacturing.

Ms Ferrier was born in Glasgow but lived in Spain for several years when she was a child.

In an interview with the Daily Record, she said she had been a member of Scottish Labour in her youth.

This has since been echoed by Kirsty Blackman, SNP MP for Aberdeen North, and Stephen Flynn, SNP MP for Aberdeen South.

Ms Blackman said that while Ms Ferrier is an 'unparalleled' campaigner for the party, she must resign.

'Margaret's actions cannot be overlooked,' she added in a tweet.

Mr Flynn retweeted Ms Blackman's post, writing: 'Impossible to disagree. The public will expect nothing less.'

Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross, who resigned from Boris Johnson's Government over Dominic Cummings' lockdown movements, said 'the public deserve clear answers'.

'We now know that the SNP were informed on Wednesday that Margaret Ferrier had been tested, after she had already travelled back to Scotland from London by public transport while infected with the virus,' he said.

'These actions not only broke the law, they will have put lives at risk.

'We must hear from Nicola Sturgeon and Ian Blackford about exactly when they knew and why they kept this information secret from the public for hours or maybe even days.'

Shadow Scottish secretary Ian Murray also demanded answers from First Minister Ms Sturgeon and Mr Blackford.

The Labour MP tweeted: 'SNP in chaos & appear to be covering up serious breach of public health laws.

'FM & Blackford must hold press conference tomorrow am to answer questions about what they did & didn't know.'

An SNP spokeswoman insisted the party did not know until Thursday that Ms Ferrier had taken a test prior to travelling to London.

'Ms Ferrier informed the SNP on Wednesday, when she was in Glasgow, that she had tested positive,' she said.

'The SNP's chief whip immediately informed Parliament authorities. The SNP only became aware on Thursday that Ms Ferrier had been tested prior to travelling to London and had travelled back to Glasgow, knowing that she had a positive result.'

On Monday, Ms Ferrier gave a four-minute speech in the Commons from 7.15pm and focused on the 'economic health' of her constituents, calling for greater financial support.

A Police Scotland spokesman said officers are liaising with colleagues in the Metropolitan Police.

'Margaret Ferrier MP contacted Police Scotland earlier today about travelling between London and Scotland after testing positive for coronavirus,' he said.

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2020-10-03 07:08:19Z
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Coronavirus: Tougher rules for Liverpool, Warrington, Hartlepool and Middlesbrough come into force - Sky News

Liverpool, Warrington, Hartlepool and Middlesbrough have become the latest regions to enter local lockdowns, resulting in more than a third of the UK population living under heightened restrictions.

The new restrictions on northwest England, similar to those imposed in the North East earlier this week, took effect from 12.01am on Saturday.

During his announcement Health Secretary Matt Hancock urged residents in the four regions not to socially mix with those from other households - except in outdoor spaces like parks and outdoor hospitality settings.

And he asked them to avoid "all but essential travel" - meaning people can still go to work and school.

Mr Hancock said the measures were needed because "in some parts of the country, the virus is spreading fast", with cases shooting up to 268 per 100,000 people in Liverpool.

But the second spike in COVID-19 cases was "highly localised", he claimed, adding recent actions were having a "positive impact".

The prime minister has defended the current raft of local lockdowns and pleaded for patience in the struggle against the disease.

Mr Johnson has faced a revolt on his backbenches in recent days over the way ministers have introduced such local lockdowns without giving MPs a say.

But in an interview with the Telegraph he said there was a "moral imperative" to bring in life-saving measures during what he called a "once-in-a-century event".

Addressing the unpopularity of the 10pm pub curfew and other social restrictions, the PM told the paper he sympathised "with people who chafe at the restrictions".

He added: "I think everybody is fed up - I just urge people to be a little bit patient.

"We will get through it and we will save a load of lives, and that's really the best I can say.

"I think there is a moral imperative to save life where you can."

His comments come as yet more university students tested positive, with Northumbria University, based in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, saying that as of Friday it was aware of 770 cases, 78 of whom are symptomatic.

New figures showed the reproduction number, or R value, of coronavirus transmission across the country still remains above 1, and is continuing to creep up.

The data released by the government advisory committee SAGE shows the estimate for R for the whole of the UK - the rate at which the virus is spreading - is between 1.3 and 1.6. Last week, the R number was between 1.2 and 1.5.

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2020-10-03 04:50:41Z
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Jumat, 02 Oktober 2020

Conservative Party conference: Will Boris Johnson be able to deliver what his party so desperately wants? - Sky News

Ordinarily, conference season is an opportunity for political parties to push the reset button.

The three-day gathering can help leaders heal rifts with tetchy MPs - a relaxed dinner here, a drink with a group of backbenchers there.

Put plainly, party conferences are the perfect place for leaders to score political brownie points with MPs who need a bit of love,

But this year conference is online, which means no warm white wine, no packed out keynote speech and crucially no opportunity to hug it out.

After weeks of fractious scenes in the Commons with over 80 Conservative MPs lining up to rally against the leadership, this is a much-needed missed opportunity.

So what will the Conservative online conference look like?

The party has created a virtual venue, designed to mirror the Birmingham conference centre where it would have been held.

Participants can hear fireside chats with the cabinet, panel events with ministers and there are still a wealth of fringe events to attend virtually.

Party co-chair Amanda Milling told Sky News more people have signed up than ever before, perhaps because this year the event is free.

She believes it will still be a valuable networking opportunity, as well as a chance to reiterate the party's 'Build Back Better' message and dedication to its manifesto.

Critics question the point of a conference where people can't meet in person to catch up and take stock, but most accept a virtual event is better than nothing at all.

:: Subscribe to the All Out Politics podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Spreaker

The big question for the prime minister is will he be able to deliver what his party so desperately wants? A bit of that Boris Johnson sparkle.

After months of watching him from behind a screen and a nagging fear that Mr Johnson may have lost his mojo, activists want to know he's still their man.

They want to feel the groundswell they felt at last year's event, when the party was riding high on big promises and a renewed sense of optimism in their leader.

And crucially they need a message to take back to voters who backed the party - many for the first time - that the pledges they made to get into parliament won't be forgotten in the wake of a global pandemic.

The Conservative Party conference runs from today until Tuesday, with speeches from Dominic Raab, Priti Patel, Rishi Sunak and Boris Johnson.

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2020-10-03 00:19:31Z
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UK weather: More heavy rain for parts of Britain with 'danger to life' warning - Sky News

Parts of the UK will be covered by weather warnings for rain during the weekend as Storm Alex subsides.

An amber weather warning is in place for North West England, South West England, Wales and the West Midlands from midday Saturday until 6am on Sunday.

Many places will see between 25 and 50mm of rain, with up to 90mm on higher ground in Wales and southwest England, the Met Office said.

Exposed parts of Snowdonia and Exmoor could see more than 120mm.

The unusual wind direction associated with the rainfall will mean that previously well-sheltered areas could be affected.

Homes and businesses "are likely to be flooded", the Met Office warning said, adding that fast flowing or deep floodwater is likely, causing "danger to life".

There is also a "good chance" that some communities could be cut off by flooded roads.

Another amber warning for rain covers Central, Tayside & Fife, and the Grampian region in Scotland from 6pm Saturday until 6am on Sunday.

These areas are likely to see between 40 and 70mm of rain, with more than 120mm possible over higher ground.

There is also the likelihood of flooding, "danger to life" from fast-flowing floodwater, and a "good chance" of communities being cut off by the flooded roads.

Most of the rest of the country is covered by a yellow weather warning for rain between Saturday and Sunday.

Autumnal temperatures of 10-15C are forecast over the weekend, with the coolest temperatures expected in Scotland.

Breakdown cover provider Green Flag said it expected an average of nine breakdowns per minute on UK roads between Friday and Monday.

Mark Newberry, commercial director at Green Flag, said he expected Saturday to be their busiest day, with a 10% increase in breakdowns compared to usual.

The RAC and AA also warned drivers to take extra care on the roads during the weekend.

It comes after heavy rain and winds of up to 61mph battered parts of the UK on Friday, as Storm Alex - named by the French meteorological office - arrived from Europe.

Power cuts were recorded in some areas, including in Portsmouth, Southampton, towns east of Reading, Devon, Cornwall, Dorset and Somerset.

Met Office spokeswoman Nicola Maxey said: "A second rain front is coming to replace Storm Alex over the weekend, pushing in from the east on Saturday morning and affecting western areas later on.

"The rain is slowly pushing north but it will be relieved as it goes.

"On Saturday, most of the country will be affected by rain, and it's looking heaviest in the centre, down the spine of the country from Aberdeen to Bristol."

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2020-10-03 00:19:20Z
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Conservative conference: Worried party want to see the 'Old Boris' - BBC News

Boris Johnson is being urged to show he has got his "mojo" back, as the Conservatives' virtual conference gets under way.

In January, the prime minister predicted that 2020 would be a "fantastic year for Britain".

As forecasts go it was not the finest. Of course, no one could have predicted a global pandemic, and the impact it has had on the country's economy and way of life.

And it is not hard to understand why his enthusiasm was uncurbed 10 months ago.

After the chaos of a hung parliament, he'd delivered an 80-seat majority - the best general election result for the Conservatives for more than 30 years - and he was about to "get Brexit done".

Rebellious noises

Some of his own colleagues believe he is a fairweather prime minister, and he's all at sea in turbulent political climes.

But even during the coronavirus lockdown - and just before he was taken in to hospital - on 3 April, polling company YouGov gave the Conservatives a 52-28 lead over Labour.

The main opposition party changed its own leader the day after.

But even by mid-May, the governing party was leading by 48% to 33% in a YouGov survey.

Going in to the virtual party conference season, the few clouds that were on the horizon in the spring now represent a gathering storm in the autumn.

With Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer spending some months accusing the government of lacking competence, a mid-September YouGov poll suggested Labour and the Conservatives were neck-and-neck, on 40% apiece.

Covid infections have risen significantly since the summer.

The prime minister himself seemed confused over some of the rules that he had introduced.

There were rebellious noises from a swathe of his own backbenchers over a lack of scrutiny.

'Dependent on Dom'

There is nervousness on the Conservative benches over just how many jobs the new Job Retention Scheme will actually retain.

And once private mutterings about the state of the prime minister's health have found their way in to the newspapers.

In The Spectator (the magazine Boris Johnson once edited), columnist Toby Young concluded last month that the prime minister's critics had been right about "his inability to focus on anything for very long".

Yet only in April, the same Toby Young had defended the PM as a "remarkable individual" who "cannot resist the pull of obligation to his country, the need to be of service".

And last month, Lord O'Donnell - formerly the UK's most senior civil servant - argued that the PM had "expended' much of his political capital by defending the lockdown trip to Durham by his aide Dominic Cummings.

Privately, some very senior Conservative MPs agree.

One of them said to me: "He is finding it hard to live with Dom, but he can't live without him. He is too dependent."

So can Boris Johnson use this week's Conservative conference to prevent simmering discontent - whether from voters or his own politicians - from boiling over?

Lockdown fears

The mood in the Parliamentary party is, at the very least, restless.

Well-connected senior backbenchers have described the mood to me variously as "apprehensive", "worrying", "bitter" and "concerning".

It isn't, as yet though, mutinous.

There are deep concerns over the effect some of the lockdown measures are having on the economy.

And some say - whatever the wider polling - that many grassroots members who were initially supportive of lockdown, want an assurance that the government will "pull back from the precipice of doing it again".

One senior MP, who has been in direct touch with the prime minister, wants an explicit commitment in the coming week to rule out a new, national lockdown.

But the concern goes deeper than what the government's measures are - there is also disquiet and discontent over how they have been introduced.

'Bridge-building'

The public complaints from some Conservative MPs over a lack of consultation and scrutiny is the tip of jagged iceberg.

Beneath the surface, a frustration with how Mr Johnson's administration operates extends beyond the righteous anger of the sacked and the never-promoted.

There has been a feeling that MPs have been treated as irrelevant at best and idiots - not even useful ones - at worst.

"There has been an attitude that they can just push anything through with a big majority and that attitude needs to be corrected," said one long-standing MP.

A former minister complained that the PM's advisers "are draining the life out of him, they are suffocating him".

Another said: "There is a need for No 10 to build bridges".

So far this call for bridge-building, rather than bridge-burning, suggests that most Conservative MPs would like Mr Johnson to perform better, and perhaps behave better, rather than see him replaced.

Indeed, some efforts at bridge building - such as a recent address to the backbench 1922 committee - between the prime minister and and his MPs has met with the approval of some in the Parliamentary party.

But such is the mood at Westminster that one former adviser in the Boris Johnson administration believes that the main target audience of the prime minister's conference speech should be his own MPs.

So what can he do to improve their morale and provide the wider public with a sense of his political mission?

'Message of hope'

One of the most prominent Tory backbenchers feels Boris Johnson has already missed a trick.

Instead of settling for a virtual conference, he believes that a physical, but socially-distanced event, would have provided a better sounding board for the prime minister.

But rather like Toby Young, some former admirers of the prime minister are more critical now - they seek the return of the Old Boris, with a gleam in his eye.

"He must above all give a message of hope", said one.

Rather colourfully, a senior backbencher said he "must banish the prophets of doom", meaning the PM's scientific and medical advisers, and give a sense of where Britain would be when the virus is finally in retreat.

Some say he needs to do more - mixing the Churchillian "we'll get through it stuff" with "an apologetic, regretful tone on the need for draconian measures - that that is not really him, or who we are".

One former minister said: "We need him to make a case for modern Conservatism. What is the party for? Too many people just associate us with Brexit, the coronavirus and austerity."

Protecting 'the Red Wall'

There is a remarkable consensus on two points:

That the speech shouldn't be a vehicle for policy-heavy announcements (though some would like to see a limited number designed to symbolise a direction of travel)
That there must be a relentless focus on voters in the "red wall" seats that turned blue in December

I say "remarkable" because some MPs representing seats that are deep blue are happy with a message directed at those in non-traditional seats.

As one of them put it: "The only reason we were elected to government was because of the swathe of red wall seats that came our way".

And a recent government adviser put it like this: "These people made it clear on the doorsteps that they were only lending us their vote."

So what message will resonate with these vote-lenders?

There is a feeling that a more voter-friendly phrase than "levelling up" - which dominates the conference fringe guide - needs to be coined.

Beyond 'Get Brexit Done'

It means spreading wealth and opportunity out of London and the South East of England - but there are complaints that it is too vague a concept for some of the party's more recent supporters.

But insiders also argue against a return to the very clear "Get Brexit done" election mantra. "Whether or not we get an agreement, people are just fed up hearing about it," one insider suggested.

An MP who strongly campaigned both for Brexit and for Boris Johnson to lead the Conservatives told me: "We now need a road map for the next few years, a sense of mission, as we move on - hopefully - from the Brexit era".

There is both hope and expectation that the PM will have more to say on the NHS, that symbolic infrastructure projects should be highlighted.

And that last week's skills announcement, along with the language of "radical change" that accompanied it, will be built upon.

"We need flesh on the bones of the levelling up agenda. It has to be about more than a couple of shiny new train stations," said one member of the new intake, who defeated a Labour MP.

'Butcher's dog'

It's also an unwritten rule of conference speeches that that party leaders take aim at their opponents.

And there is an expectation , with next year's Holyrood elections looming, that the prime minister will have the SNP and not just Labour in his sights.

It is likely to be intentional that the session which precedes the prime minister's speech on Tuesday is about defending the Union.

Almost as important as the tone and content for some MPs will be body language.

Last week, even though Covid has a long tail, Boris Johnson claimed he was "fit as a butcher's dog".

Yet those who are claiming that the post-Covid prime minister resembles more of an emaciated stray seem to be getting a willing hearing in what are usually supportive newspapers.

Some of those the prime minister has met in recent weeks say he is back to his usual self and don't recognise the downbeat portrait being painted of him.

The prime minister himself told the BBC the idea that he wasn't his old self was "sinister disinformation".

His conference speech will give him an opportunity to exude the impression that he is up to, and up for, the job.

'Police state'

What has got some Conservative MPs scratching their heads is why the usually outwardly ebullient prime minister has so often been the main bearer of bad news during the Covid crisis.

Sure, there is the talk of "moonshots" and "building back better" - distant sunlit uplands - but on a day-to-day basis he has had to front up what one MP described as "police state" restrictions, while leaving the "good cop" announcements to his Chancellor.

A strategist who has worked with and for various ministers wondered why the prime minister hadn't "nicked" the best announcements for himself.

He described Chancellor Rishi Sunak's "hugely popular" Eat Out to Help Out scheme as the "promote Rishi" campaign.

He now felt Boris Johnson should reclaim some of the economic agenda, "making it clear some businesses that otherwise would have gone under only exist because of this prime minister".

One former minister felt the shine could soon come off the chancellor, saying: "What happens when Father Christmas turns in to Scrooge?"

Significantly, Labour , too, are focussing, laser-like, some of their political attacks on the Chancellor not the prime minister.

One Tory MP with a background in government felt there was plenty of "unexploded ordnance".

In due course, what - and how much - to tax will potentially put the chancellor in the firing line.

But for now, Mr Sunak - who will make his conference speech on Monday - hands things out to voters, rather than takes them away.

There are deep mutterings about whether some in government would like to see Rishi Sunak's profile grow to the proportions of a credible replacement for - but not challenger to - his next door neighbour should the need arise. One MP described it as "an insurance policy".

'Bojo's mojo'

Another MP cautions that "we are not there yet" but waxes lyrical about the chancellor's ability to devise and implement bold policies- and, crucially, to wrap them in a coherent Conservative narrative.

He contrasts Mr Sunak favourably with many of his cabinet colleagues: "They are not so much the tall poppies, but the weeds."

But a strong supporter of Boris Johnson said: 'I'm not so interested in the machinations between 10 and 11. "The acolytes on both sides know it was Boris that won it. Rishi is Robin to Boris's batman."

There are perhaps far more challenges ahead for the prime minister than he envisaged when he declared that this would be a fantastic year - but dissent hasn't led to any attempted dethronement.

As one MP put it: "He won us the election and, on his game, he can win us the next one."

One adviser put it slightly differently: "The only question the conference has to answer is this: does Bojo have his mojo back?"

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2020-10-02 20:13:23Z
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'Scandal-ridden SNP can be stopped!' Nicola Sturgeon SHAMED in fight to save the Union - Daily Express

SNP and First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has continued to push for a second independence referendum in Scotland, much to the dismay of the UK Government and opposition parties in the country, including the Tories. This renewed push comes despite Scotland voting by a margin of 55 percent to 45 percent in favour of Scotland remaining part of the UK during the independence referendum more than six years ago in September 2014. But, a poll by Survation of 1,018 people from September 2-7 found 53 percent of respondents saying they would vote yes in a referendum to leave the Union, compared to 47 percent saying no.

This week a new scandal has engulfed the party over MP Margaret Ferrier's rule-breaking visit to the House of Commons and train journeys between Glasgow and London while suffering coronavirus symptoms.

On Friday, the First Minister said Ms Ferrier's actions were "dangerous & indefensible", and in a meeting, urged her to resign from her post as an MP.

Scottish Conservative leader Mr Ross, who is seeking to win a Holyrood seat in May, will use a fringe event at the party's online conference on Saturday to warn “defeatism and disinterest” towards the Union is rife, and must end quickly.

He will say the "scandal-ridden SNP can be stopped" and warn some Conservative members in England must stop playing to the SNP’s strengths, adding by “devolving and forgetting”, conservatives and unionists make the SNP’s divisive arguments for them.

The Scottish Conservative leader will tell the fringe event: “You cannot be a Conservative and not be a Unionist, the two values are inseparable. Too many representatives of the Conservative party in England have forgotten this.

“Defeatism and disinterest towards the future of the Union is rife. I am told that independence is inevitable by people that have barely been to Scotland.

“As if we Scottish Conservatives are wasting our time in trying to hold our country together because the SNP have already won.

“These attitudes extend to some of those governing our country. Despite bold promises, the Union too often becomes an afterthought. By devolving and forgetting, you play into the SNP’s hands.

The MP admitted she was tested for coronavirus on Saturday after displaying symptoms but still travelled by train to London on Monday when she should have been following strict self-isolation rules.

Ms Ferrier then gave a short speech in the House of Commons on Monday evening as part of a debate on coronavirus crisis.

The SNP politician said she received her positive test result that same evening - although it is not known if this was before or after speaking in Parliament - before returning by train to Glasgow on Tuesday morning.

Ms Sturgeon said the SNP had acted quickly and "appropriately" when party members learned the details, insisting she only found out about Ms Ferrier's actions after First Minister's Questions on Thursday afternoon.

She believed the SNP at Westminster was told about Ms Ferrier positive coronavirus test result on Wednesday but was not aware she already had symptoms and had taken a test before attending Parliament.

The First Minister said Ms Ferrier referred herself to police and informed those close to her about her positive test result before releasing a statement on Thursday afternoon.

That same day, the SNP's Westminster leader Ian Blackford flew to Inverness in Scotland and spoke to Ms Ferrier, later announcing the party whip had been withdrawn.

Ms Sturgeon insisted on Friday: "It was not until yesterday my colleagues in the House of Commons realised the circumstances - that she'd actually taken the test before travelling to London and then travelling back having been told that she was positive.

"I think the SNP has acted quickly, appropriately and, actually, we have not tried to protect a colleague here.

"We've tried to do the right thing, given the circumstances we're dealing with."

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2020-10-02 23:01:00Z
52781096815328

Conservative conference: Worried party want to see the 'Old Boris' - BBC News

Boris Johnson is being urged to show he has got his "mojo" back, as the Conservatives' virtual conference gets under way.

In January, the prime minister predicted that 2020 would be a "fantastic year for Britain".

As forecasts go it was not the finest. Of course, no one could have predicted a global pandemic, and the impact it has had on the country's economy and way of life.

And it is not hard to understand why his enthusiasm was uncurbed 10 months ago.

After the chaos of a hung parliament, he'd delivered an 80-seat majority - the best general election result for the Conservatives for more than 30 years - and he was about to "get Brexit done".

Rebellious noises

Some of his own colleagues believe he is a fairweather prime minister, and he's all at sea in turbulent political climes.

But even during the coronavirus lockdown - and just before he was taken in to hospital - on 3 April, polling company YouGov gave the Conservatives a 52-28 lead over Labour.

The main opposition party changed its own leader the day after.

But even by mid-May, the governing party was leading by 48% to 33% in a YouGov survey.

Going in to the virtual party conference season, the few clouds that were on the horizon in the spring now represent a gathering storm in the autumn.

Covid infections have risen significantly since the summer.

The prime minister himself seemed confused over some of the rules that he had introduced.

There were rebellious noises from a swathe of his own backbenchers over a lack of scrutiny.

'Dependent on Dom'

There is nervousness on the Conservative benches over just how many jobs the new Job Retention Scheme will actually retain.

And once private mutterings about the state of the prime minister's health have found their way in to the newspapers.

Yet only in April, the same Toby Young had defended the PM as a "remarkable individual" who "cannot resist the pull of obligation to his country, the need to be of service".

Privately, some very senior Conservative MPs agree.

One of them said to me: "He is finding it hard to live with Dom, but he can't live without him. He is too dependent."

So can Boris Johnson use this week's Conservative conference to prevent simmering discontent - whether from voters or his own politicians - from boiling over?

Lockdown fears

The mood in the Parliamentary party is, at the very least, restless.

Well-connected senior backbenchers have described the mood to me variously as "apprehensive", "worrying", "bitter" and "concerning".

It isn't, as yet though, mutinous.

There are deep concerns over the effect some of the lockdown measures are having on the economy.

One senior MP, who has been in direct touch with the prime minister, wants an explicit commitment in the coming week to rule out a new, national lockdown.

But the concern goes deeper than what the government's measures are - there is also disquiet and discontent over how they have been introduced.

'Bridge-building'

The public complaints from some Conservative MPs over a lack of consultation and scrutiny is the tip of jagged iceberg.

Beneath the surface, a frustration with how Mr Johnson's administration operates extends beyond the righteous anger of the sacked and the never-promoted.

There has been a feeling that MPs have been treated as irrelevant at best and idiots - not even useful ones - at worst.

"There has been an attitude that they can just push anything through with a big majority and that attitude needs to be corrected," said one long-standing MP.

A former minister complained that the PM's advisers "are draining the life out of him, they are suffocating him".

Another said: "There is a need for No 10 to build bridges".

So far this call for bridge-building, rather than bridge-burning, suggests that most Conservative MPs would like Mr Johnson to perform better, and perhaps behave better, rather than see him replaced.

But such is the mood at Westminster that one former adviser in the Boris Johnson administration believes that the main target audience of the prime minister's conference speech should be his own MPs.

So what can he do to improve their morale and provide the wider public with a sense of his political mission?

'Message of hope'

One of the most prominent Tory backbenchers feels Boris Johnson has already missed a trick.

Instead of settling for a virtual conference, he believes that a physical, but socially-distanced event, would have provided a better sounding board for the prime minister.

But rather like Toby Young, some former admirers of the prime minister are more critical now - they seek the return of the Old Boris, with a gleam in his eye.

"He must above all give a message of hope", said one.

One former minister said: "We need him to make a case for modern Conservatism. What is the party for? Too many people just associate us with Brexit, the coronavirus and austerity."

Protecting 'the Red Wall'

There is a remarkable consensus on two points:

That the speech shouldn't be a vehicle for policy-heavy announcements (though some would like to see a limited number designed to symbolise a direction of travel)
That there must be a relentless focus on voters in the "red wall" seats that turned blue in December