Brexit: UK in 'last leg' of trade talks with EU, says Raab - BBC News

PA Media

The UK is in the "last leg of negotiations" with the EU over a post-Brexit trade deal, the foreign secretary has said.

Dominic Raab told the BBC it was likely the talks were entering the "last real major week", and an agreement remained possible if the EU showed "pragmatism".

He added that the talks now depended on resolving a "fairly narrow" set of issues, including fishing rights.

Negotiators are racing to reach a deal, with a looming deadline in four weeks.

Face-to-face discussions resumed in London over the weekend, after chief EU negotiator Michel Barnier left self-isolation following a colleague's positive Covid-19 test last week.

The two sides are trying to strike an agreement to govern their trading relationship after the UK's post-Brexit transition period ends on 31 December.

• Barnier arrives in UK for face-to-face Brexit talks
• What's happening with Brexit?
• Brexit: What is a level playing field?

Speaking on the BBC's Andrew Marr programme, Mr Raab said: "We're down to really two basic issues, but I think in particular the issue around fisheries.

"I do think this is a very significant week, the last real major week, subject to any further postponement of the goalposts in terms of the timing."

He added that a deal was subject to the EU accepting the "point of principle" that the UK would require "control" over its fishing grounds after the transition.

"If the EU understand that point of principle and we have some pragmatism, we can get there," he said.

"We ought to be able on both sides to resolve fisheries, if you take the context of the wider economic gains and potential downsides of not having a further deal."

Reuters

Ahead of in-person negotiations resuming on Saturday, Mr Barnier said the "same significant divergences persist" between the two sides.

Negotiators had continued via video-link for the past week or so, after the positive Covid-19 test in a member of the EU negotiating team.

Alongside fishing, the Frenchman has for a while said post-Brexit competition rules and how any deal would be enforced remain the most difficult areas.

The two sides are continuing to haggle over how much access European fishing boats should have to British waters, and how much they would be allowed to catch from next year.

They are also at odds over how closely the UK should have to follow the EU's social, labour, and environmental standards after the transition.

Transition deadline looms

The UK left the EU on 31 January, but it is continuing to follow the bloc's rules until the end of the year as part of an 11-month transition period.

If a trade deal is not agreed by then, trading between the two will default to World Trade Organization rules.

The EU and UK can keep negotiating if they want to after this, but the two sides would face import taxes on goods traded between them.

The UK would have no access to the EU's energy market, and no agreement on police and judicial co-operation.

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2020-11-29 12:02:00Z
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Brexit: UK in 'last leg' of trade talks with EU, says Raab - BBC News

PA Media

The UK is in the "last leg of negotiations" with the EU over a post-Brexit trade deal, the foreign secretary has said.

Dominic Raab told the BBC it was likely the talks were entering the "last real major week", and an agreement remained possible if the EU showed "pragmatism".

He added that the talks now depended on resolving a "fairly narrow" set of issues, including fishing rights.

Negotiators are racing to reach a deal, with a looming deadline in four weeks.

Face-to-face discussions resumed in London over the weekend, after chief EU negotiator Michel Barnier left self-isolation following a colleague's positive Covid-19 test last week.

The two sides are trying to strike an agreement to govern their trading relationship after the UK's post-Brexit transition period ends on 31 December.

• Barnier arrives in UK for face-to-face Brexit talks
• What's happening with Brexit?
• Brexit: What is a level playing field?

Speaking on the BBC's Andrew Marr programme, Mr Raab said: "We're down to really two basic issues, but I think in particular the issue around fisheries.

"I do think this is a very significant week, the last real major week, subject to any further postponement of the goalposts in terms of the timing."

He added that a deal was subject to the EU accepting the "point of principle" that the UK would require "control" over its fishing grounds after the transition.

"If the EU understand that point of principle and we have some pragmatism, we can get there," he said.

"We ought to be able on both sides to resolve fisheries, if you take the context of the wider economic gains and potential downsides of not having a further deal."

Reuters

Ahead of in-person negotiations resuming on Saturday, Mr Barnier said the "same significant divergences persist" between the two sides.

Negotiators had continued via video-link for the past week or so, after the positive Covid-19 test in a member of the EU negotiating team.

Alongside fishing, the Frenchman has for a while said post-Brexit competition rules and how any deal would be enforced remain the most difficult areas.

The two sides are continuing to haggle over how much access European fishing boats should have to British waters, and how much they would be allowed to catch from next year.

They are also at odds over how closely the UK should have to follow the EU's social, labour, and environmental standards after the transition.

Transition deadline looms

The UK left the EU on 31 January, but it is continuing to follow the bloc's rules until the end of the year as part of an 11-month transition period.

If a trade deal is not agreed by then, trading between the two will default to World Trade Organization rules.

The EU and UK can keep negotiating if they want to after this, but the two sides would face import taxes on goods traded between them.

The UK would have no access to the EU's energy market, and no agreement on police and judicial co-operation.

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2020-11-29 11:03:00Z
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Covid: Boris Johnson writes to MPs to quell anger over new tiers - BBC News

Reuters

England's new Covid tier system has a "sunset" expiry date of 3 February, Boris Johnson has told his MPs in a bid to prevent a Commons rebellion.

The current lockdown ends on Wednesday, and many Tory MPs are unhappy with the toughened tiers that will replace it.

MPs will vote on the system on Tuesday, with Labour undecided on its stance.

In a letter to his MPs, the PM said rules could be eased in December, MPs could vote again in January, and the tier system could end in February.

And writing separately in the Mail on Sunday, Mr Johnson said he believed Easter would mark a "real chance to return to something like life as normal".

He warned, however, there would be "disastrous consequences" for the NHS if the government did not introduce the new tiered system when lockdown ends.

• Has England's lockdown worked?
• Why is so much of the North and Midlands in the top tier?

England's new system will see regions placed in one of three tiers: medium, high and very high.

In total, 99% of England will enter the highest two tiers, with tight restrictions on bars and restaurants and a ban on households mixing indoors. Only Cornwall, the Isle of Wight and Isles of Scilly will be in the lowest tier.

In a bid to quell MPs' concerns, Mr Johnson wrote to them outlining a timeline of when - and how - the tiered approach will end.

In his letter, Mr Johnson said:

• Regulations have a "sunset" clause - or expiry date - of 3 February
• Tiers will be reviewed every two weeks, and areas can move down the tiers from 16 December
• At the end of January, MPs will have another vote on the tiered approach and decide whether measures stay in place until the end of March
• The government will publish the circumstances that need to change for an area to move down a tier

In his letter to the public, the prime minister urged people to support the new system and "work together" with tiering, testing and vaccines.

He said: "We can't blow it now. We can't just throw it all away - not when freedom is in sight.

"We have worked too hard, lost too many, sacrificed too much, just to see our efforts incinerated in another volcanic eruption of the virus."

Third wave 'risk'

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab told the BBC's Andrew Marr that having a tier approach "allows us to have these localised restrictions".

"Having them at this level allows us to ease off [on restrictions] when we're confident we can do so," he said.

When asked whether he believed the UK would face a third wave of the virus, he said: "There's a risk of that if we don't get the balance right."

Asked by Sophy Ridge on Sky News whether the government was looking at breaking counties into smaller areas for the tiers, given differences in rates of the virus within tier areas, Mr Raab said the measures will be reviewed every two weeks.

"We always look at all things, but the problem is you've got to get the geographic size sufficiently effective that you don't find the smaller enclaves of lower level virus shooting up because they are no subject to the restrictions in the high levels around them," he said.

Elsewhere in the UK, Northern Ireland has begun a two-week circuit-breaker lockdown, while in Scotland each area has been placed in one of five tiers.

In Wales, First Minister Mark Drakeford said pubs, restaurants and bars will be subject to stricter restrictions - which are not yet finalised - in the run up to Christmas. They will come into force from Friday, 4 December.

Conservative rebels were increasingly confident that they could demolish Boris Johnson's majority of 80 on Tuesday when the Commons votes on the proposed three tiers of restrictions in England.

That would make the PM reliant on Labour votes to get his measures through - and the opposition hasn't yet committed to backing him.

So, on Saturday night, there was a dramatic intervention to try to defuse the revolt.

In the letter to his MPs, Mr Johnson - in effect - pleads with them to give him the benefit of the doubt this week, in return for a new vote on the restrictions at the end of January.

If the government were to lose that vote, restrictions would end on 3 February.

He also seeks to reassure them that the review of restrictions on 16 December will be genuine, so it's possible some areas could move down a tier before Christmas

But one potential rebel, the former minister Tim Loughton told the BBC that the PM would have to do more to win him over.

He said: "We asked for a lot of information and that letter doesn't contain it. So unless we get it by Tuesday... then it doesn't change anything I'm afraid."

It's still possible Mr Johnson's new promises will sway some waverers, though a major rebellion may simply be postponed rather than avoided entirely.

Mr Johnson's pleas to MPs and the nation come after Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove warned hospitals in England face becoming "overwhelmed" with cases if the new restrictions are not introduced.

Mr Gove said MPs needed to "take responsibility for difficult decisions".

He added that, across the UK, about 16,000 beds are filled with Covid-19 patients, compared to a peak in April of almost 20,000 and a low of 740 on 11 September.

However, Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood said all seven Nightingale hospitals, built during the first wave of the pandemic, lie "largely empty", adding that military medical staff could help run them.

And Tory MP Steve Baker reiterated the request to see the data the government was basing its new system on.

He tweeted that MPs were "glad to share in the burden of decision", but added: "That's why we need the information necessary to show the government's restrictions will do more good than harm, in full and in time. It is a modest request."

On Saturday, a further 479 deaths within 28 days of a positive test were reported in the UK, bringing the total to 58,030. There were also a further 15,871 positive cases registered in the past 24 hours.

• LOCKDOWN LOOK-UP: The rules in your area
• SOCIAL DISTANCING: What are the rules now?
• SUPPORT BUBBLES: What are they and who can be in yours?
• FACE MASKS: When do I need to wear one?
• TESTING: How do I get a virus test?

Meanwhile, the government has secured a further two million doses of a coronavirus vaccine from US firm Moderna, which has shown to be 95% effective in trials.

This brings the UK's Moderna order to seven million - enough for around 3.5 million people.

Separately, the UK has placed orders for 100 million doses of the Oxford vaccine, and 40 million doses of the jab from Pfizer and BioNTech, which has also been shown to be 95% effective.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: "We stand ready to deploy a vaccine should they receive approval from our medicines regulator, starting with those who will benefit most."

• BAD PEOPLE: Dr Julia Shaw and comedian Sofie Hagen dissect the criminal cases that shock, intrigue and scare us the most
• RADIO 1'S DANCE ANTHEMS: An hour of non-stop classic dance tunes to soundtrack your weekend

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2020-11-29 10:22:00Z
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Ex-con who fought London Bridge terrorist reveals he's become friends with victim's father - Daily Mail

The ex-convict who battled London Bridge terrorist with a fire extinguisher reveals he's become friends with the father of victim Jack Merritt

• John Crilly, 49, was devastated when his mentor was killed a year ago today
• Crilly had been on a prisoner rehabilitation programme after leaving prison
• At a convention in London, Usman Khan killed Jack, 25, and Saskia Jones, 23
• Crilly has now said that he has become friends with Jack's father, David Merritt

By Chris Jewers For Mailonline

Published: 02:11 GMT, 29 November 2020 | Updated: 08:18 GMT, 29 November 2020

The ex-convict who battled the London Bridge terrorist with a fire extinguisher has revealed he's become friends with the father of victim Jack Merritt.

John Crilly, 49, was devastated when Merritt - his mentor on a prisoner rehabilitation scheme - was stabbed to death by jihadist Usman Khan a year ago today.

The 25-year-old Cambridge graduate had encouraged Mr Crilly to start a law degree behind bars, and was his guest of honour when he graduated after his release.

Now, the hero ex-convict has spoken of how he turns to Jack's father David for guidance, saying he has forgiven Khan - because that's what Jack would have wanted.

Mr Crilly keeps in contact with the Merritt family, and has arranged for a socially distanced meeting for the one-year anniversary of the brutal attack that also left Jack's fellow graduate Saskia Jones, 23, dead. 

John Crilly, right, has spoken of how he has become friends with the father of Jack Merritt, 25 (left) who died following the terror attack during a prisoner rehabilitation event near London Bridge on November 29 last year. Mr Crilly tried to fight off Jack's killer with a fire extinguisher

'I have conversations with Jack's dad regularly,' Mr Crilly said, speaking to the Sunday Mirror ahead of today's anniversary.

'He says he doesn't want what his son sacrificed to be in vain. He is so encouraging. Jack's parents are always giving me support when it's me who should be supporting them.'

'It’s no surprise Jack turned out to be who he was with the foundations they laid with him,' he said. 'His dad told me, "Jack would want you to put yourself first, concentrate on getting better and go from there".' 

Terrorist Usman Khan, 28, killed Saskia Jones, 23, and Jack Merritt, 25, near London Bridge on November 29 last year

Sharing David Merritt's message, Mr Crilly said that people 'should borrow Jack's intelligence, share his drive, and extinguish hatred with kindness'. 

In the midst of the attack, which began at an offender rehabilitation conference in Fishmonger's Hall next to London Bridge on the north-side of the Thames, Mr Crilly grabbed a fire extinguisher in an attempt to fight off Khan, 28. 

He added that Jack would have wanted others to consider what Khan might have been going through to lead him to such actions, saying that people - including Jack's parents - are asking what went wrong in his life.

Forgiving him, he says, 'keep's Jack's memory alive' by showing his power. 

David, from Cottenham in Cambridgeshire, confirmed he was meeting John from a distance 'just to say hi' adding that he is a lovely guy who has 'really worked hard to turn his life around', according to The Mirror.

Saskia Jones, 23, a fellow graduate of Jack Merritt's who was also working with the prisoner rehabilitation programme, was also killed by Khan

Last year, in the wake of the attacks, Mr Crilly had described Jack Merritt was 'the best guy I ever met'.

Khan attacked five people including the graduates, armed with two kitchen knives and wearing a fake suicide vest, before he was tackled by Mr Crilly and several others on London Bridge.

He was then shot dead by police at point-blank range.

Mr Crilly had served 13 years in prison after being convicted of murdering 71-year-old Augustine Maduemezia, but his conviction was quashed after a Supreme Court ruling and he was released in 2018.

The court said the joint enterprise law – where defendants were prosecuted for murder even if they did not strike the fatal blow – had been misinterpreted.

John Crilly is seen attempting to fight off Usman Khan with a fire extinguisher as another bystander is shown using a narwhal tusk on London Bridge. Khan was later shot dead by police on the bridge

Mr Crilly met Mr Merritt while in prison, where the graduate from Cottenham, Cambridgeshire, was a course co-ordinator for the Learning Together programme.

The 48-year-old studied for an Open University law degree while in prison and graduated this year.

Speaking after his release last year, Mr Crilly said: 'I had a bad life, I’ve changed it, I wasn’t guilty of murder.

'I totally accept what I did and it was wrong … I would have done the time, I would have done every day of that.'

Family of Fishmonger's Hall terror attack victim SUE the government after their son, 25, was stabbed to death by convicted terrorist Usman Khan while he was out of prison on licence 

The family of a Fishmongers' Hall terror attack victim are suing the Government over his death. 

Jack Merritt, 25, and Saskia Jones, 23, were fatally stabbed by Usman Khan, who was out on licence, during a prisoner rehabilitation event near London Bridge on November 29 last year.

Khan, 28, attended the event, organised by Cambridge University's Learning Together programme, armed with two kitchen knives wearing a fake suicide vest and killed Mr Merritt and Ms Jones before he was shot dead by police. 

Mr Merritt's parents, Anne and David, along with his brother Joe and his girlfriend Leanne O'Brien, are now taking legal action against the Ministry of Justice and the Home Office at the High Court.

Their solicitor Kate Maynard said that Khan was a convicted terrorist under multi-agency public protection when he killed Mr Merritt and Ms Jones, which raises 'questions about the assessment and management of Usman Khan's risk'.

Ms Maynard, a partner at Hickman and Rose, said that 'where state agents or public bodies, by their acts or omissions, may have caused or contributed to a death', the right to life under the European Convention on Human Rights is engaged. 

Jack Merritt, 25, who died following the terror attack during a prisoner rehabilitation event near London Bridge on November 29 last year

She added that the Merritt family had 'no alternative' but to bring their case this week, shortly before the one-year time limit for claims brought under the Human Rights Act, in order to 'protect their position'.

Ms Maynard said that 'all the relevant public bodies who are legally represented at the inquest' had reached a 'standstill agreement' with the family - except for the MoJ and the Home Office, which she said 'unfathomably' did not agree.

Ms Maynard said families 'normally' reach an agreement with public bodies they may take legal action against 'so that proceedings do not have to be seriously contemplated or issued until after all the investigations are completed, including an inquest'.

She added that such civil cases are 'often' resolved after an inquest 'without involving the courts at all'.

But Ms Maynard said: 'In this case, all the relevant public bodies who are legally represented at the inquest and were approached agreed to a limitation holiday for one year, except - unfathomably - the Secretaries of State for Justice and the Home Department.

'Regrettably, this left the family with no alternative but having to turn their minds to protecting their position by issuing proceedings, at a time when they were otherwise focusing their attention on celebrating Jack's life on the anniversary of his death.'

Last month a court heard that the Prevent team dealing with the Fishmongers' Hall attacker had 'no specific training' in handling convicted terrorists.      

At a pre-inquest hearing, lawyer for Mr Merritt's family Nick Armstrong suggested there was already evidence of a 'systemic problem' as 'all the Prevent officers from Staffordshire' said they had 'no specific training in handling terrorist offenders'.  

Saskia Jones, 23, died following a terror attack at London Bridge after convicted terrorist Usman Khan went on a knife rampage 

He told the court that the monitoring of Khan had been 'handed over by West Midlands Counter Terrorism Unit to the Staffordshire unit for reasons that remain to be explored and all of them are saying they have no specific training.'   

Henry Pitchers QC, for Ms Jones's family, pointed out that Khan had been assessed as the 'highest level of risk' and had 22 licence conditions on his release.  

Mr Pitchers told the court: 'We know he was a convicted terrorist, he had been out of prison for less than a year when this attack occurred.

'We know and it won't be disputed that he was subject to supervision and was also supervised by the probation services and relatively frequent contact they had with him.

'As I understand it he was screened prior to release by police, released and assessed as being at the highest level of risk.

'Looking at the evidence we've seen, his last unannounced visit from police officers was... Around two weeks before the attack.

'They arrived at midday, found the flat to be dark, you see Mr Khan wasn't happy about them taking pictures of his X-box games and he asked to speak to a solicitor. He asked them to leave which they did.' 

Mr Pitchers questioned whether the Prevent team or probation 'should have had an inkling' of the immediate danger Khan posed - he was convicted of being part of an al-Qaeda-inspired cell which plotted to blow up the London Stock Exchange and kill Boris Johnson in 2012. 

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2020-11-29 02:11:00Z
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ISIS fundraising cell raising cash through Facebook to free Western jihadi brides from refugee camps - The Sun

A TWISTED ISIS fundraising cell is raising money in the UK to free western jihadi brides from Syrian camps, it has been reported.

Undercover reporters chatted with a "fixer" online and then dealt with a fanatical courier in London.

An ISIS bride tells social media users to help raise cash to smuggle her out of a Syrian campCredit: Facebook

According to the Mail on Sunday, the Met Police is now probing the sinister network which it says is helping terror brides in camps in north east Syria.

Reporters contacted a jihadi named Sumaya who was smuggled out of Al-Hol and now lives in Turkey.

Sumaya, the widow of a Brit covert who died fighting for the death cult, now acts as a fixer helping to bring more brainwashed extremists back to Europe.

Recently, she called the warped fanatic who beheaded French teacher Samuel Paty a "hero" in a gushing online post.

On her Facebook page, she openly asks for donations while also posting pictures of women holding up signs pleading for help.

One of the ISIS brides photographed held a placard which read: "Assalam Alaykum (May peace be upon you all) I am a sister from camp Al-Hol and I need $6,000 (£4,500) so that I can escape from PKK (Kurds).

"Please, I ask everyone to help me and donate as much as they can."

Below the post, Sumaya wrote: "This is my friend and she is in need of help.

"She sent me this photo yesterday.

"Please, even if you can't help, pass it to those who can donate to her. Jazakallah Khayr [May God reward you]."

Another message from inside the camps read: "You can trust Sumaya on FB, she is trying to help me raise money needed."

The Mail on Sunday says an undercover reporter communicated with Sumaya via Telegram - an encrypted messaging app popular with jihadis.

After declining to make a donation with cryptocurrency Bitcoin, the journalist was sent the contact details of a man called 'Anas' in the UK who would collect the money in person.

Reporters watched as Anas arrived wearing a white crash helmet at the arranged pick up location near an undisclosed service station.

An offer of £4,500 was reportedly made but never delivered - instead the scooter-riding courier picked up a brown envelope containing a crossword puzzle.

This comes as the UK's terror threat level is at "severe" following the recent terror killing in Paris as well as a sickening gun massacre in Vienna on November 2.

Meanwhile, British ISIS bride Shamima Begum - who was once held in Al-Hol - is attempting to return to the UK through the Supreme Court.

Lawyers for Begum, now 21 and living in Syrian camp Al-Roj, say she must be allowed to return to fight a decision to strip her of UK citizenship.

Another jihadi who joined the terror cult, Samia Hussein - from Southall, West London - is now back in Britain after she was successfully smuggled out of Al-Hol this year.

Shamima Begum wants to return to the UK to fight for her citizenship

ISIS bride Samia Hussein, 25, is back in BritainCredit: Facebook

The jihadi bride was smuggled out of a Syrian camp this year

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2020-11-29 01:49:00Z
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Michael Gove was told 500,000 could lose jobs if he got his wish to shut London in Cabinet meeting - Daily Mail

Michael Gove was told 500,000 could lose jobs if he got his wish to shut London in fraught Cabinet meeting to discuss the new tiering system

• Mr Gove called for London to be subject to the most severe, tier 3 restrictions
• Briefing notes projected the possible loss of 550,000 jobs in London in Tier 3
• Johnson dismissed Gove's argument as borrowing is set to reach £394 billion 

By Glen Owen and Brendan Carlin for The Mail on Sunday

Published: 22:28 GMT, 28 November 2020 | Updated: 01:23 GMT, 29 November 2020

As the fraught meeting to discuss the new tiering system drew to a close at 8.16pm on Wednesday, Boris Johnson essayed one of his cod Churchillian riffs – combined with an upbeat sporting reference.

'This is the beginning of the end,' said the Prime Minister, referencing the hope offered by the imminent vaccines, before adding slightly less hopefully: 'Or maybe the beginning of the second half'.

The ten-strong, hour-long Zoom meeting had just finished carving up the country into the new post-lockdown regimes, placing 99 per cent of the population under the tightest two tiers – a move that would trigger open revolt among Tory backbenchers.

Mr Gove, pictured, has led calls for London to be subject to Tier 3 lockdown restrictions

Leading the charge for shutdown was Michael Gove, who has grown in to such an evangelist for crippling lockdowns that some of his more conspiratorially-minded colleagues even wonder if the ambitious Cabinet Office Minister is trying to dynamite Mr Johnson's Government from within.

Mr Johnson 'looked askance', one source said, as Mr Gove called for London to be subject to the most severe, tier 3 restrictions, despite the savage impact it would have on the capital's economy. 'Michael didn't muck about,' said the source. 'He referred to the pressure on wards in areas such as Redbridge and said, "We need tier 3 for the whole of London, without doubt. We want to save lives".'

Mr Gove's pro-lockdown polemic came despite a Government briefing note prepared for the meeting which projected the possible loss of 550,000 jobs if London was put into tier 3, compared to 50,000 for tier 2.

Mr Johnson 'looked askance', one source said, as Mr Gove called for London to be subject to the most severe, tier 3 restrictions, despite the savage impact it would have on the capital's economy. Pictured: Mr Johnson in Parliament on November 26

Mr Gove's fellow Covid-cautious dove, Health Secretary Matt Hancock, gave a more nuanced overview. In the capital, he suggested that the boroughs with the sharpest spike in cases – including Redbridge in the East – could be sectioned off and placed in tier 3, with the rest of London put into tier 2.

The concept of a partial tiering was opposed by Treasury Minister John Glen, standing in for Chancellor Rishi Sunak, who pointed out that the latest data pointed to a drop in infections, and Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick, who argued against the sub-division of local authority areas.

Business Secretary Alok Sharma made the economic case against tier 3 in the capital, while Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden argued for tier 2 across London, but with additional help for hospitals in the worst affected areas.

Mr Gove's pro-lockdown polemic came despite a Government briefing note prepared for the meeting which projected the possible loss of 550,000 jobs if London was put into tier 3, compared to 50,000 for tier 2.

At that point the Prime Minister took charge of the meeting again, and made clear that he was dismissing Mr Gove's arguments following a report from the Office for Budget Responsibility which outlined how borrowing was set to reach £394 billion as the economy shrinks by 11.3 per cent.

Mr Johnson said: 'I have listened very carefully to what Michael said but I am persuaded we have to think about the overall situation with respect to what the OBR went through today on the economy. Things will be reviewed regularly but I am satisfied that we should put London in tier 2'.

He concluded with a flourish: 'Does anyone violently disagree with me? Well, I don't suppose it matters if you do. Well, that's what I think.'

Businesses have been struggling since the pandemic and closed retailers do their best to promote Black Friday and Christmas sales

A source said: 'The evolution of Michael's thinking is fascinating and perplexing. At the start of the crisis, no one could work out if he was a hawk or a dove, or a hawk camouflaged as a dove. Then he seemed to grow increasingly worried about the optics for a Tory Government having to deal with an overwhelmed NHS – particularly if it coincided with a no-deal Brexit – and so started offering increasing support to Hancock in key meetings.

'Now he is the biggest dove of the lot, to the dismay of the Treasury. If he had succeeded in shutting London we could have kissed goodbye to half a million jobs.'

Mr Gove's spokesman last night declined to comment on 'private Cabinet committee discussions'.

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https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMifmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmRhaWx5bWFpbC5jby51ay9uZXdzL2FydGljbGUtODk5Njg4Ny9NaWNoYWVsLUdvdmUtdG9sZC01MDAtMDAwLWxvc2Utam9icy1nb3Qtd2lzaC1zaHV0LUxvbmRvbi1DYWJpbmV0LW1lZXRpbmcuaHRtbNIBggFodHRwczovL3d3dy5kYWlseW1haWwuY28udWsvbmV3cy9hcnRpY2xlLTg5OTY4ODcvYW1wL01pY2hhZWwtR292ZS10b2xkLTUwMC0wMDAtbG9zZS1qb2JzLWdvdC13aXNoLXNodXQtTG9uZG9uLUNhYmluZXQtbWVldGluZy5odG1s?oc=5

2020-11-28 22:28:00Z
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