Babak Belurs

Rabu, 27 Januari 2021

Johnson struggles to stem support for Scottish independence - Financial Times

Boris Johnson will visit Scotland on Thursday to try to stem support for independence, as ministers grapple with ways to persuade Scots of the advantages of remaining in the 313-year-old union with England.

The prime minister is expected to focus on the vaccination effort to highlight the role of the whole UK in what has so far been one of the world’s most successful Covid-19 inoculation programmes.

Meanwhile, ministers in London are looking to bypass the pro-independence Scottish National party government in Edinburgh by funding some “UK projects” north of the border directly from London.

But while Mr Johnson wants to remind Scotland that the UK Treasury has underpinned economic support packages during the coronavirus crisis, some ministers are uneasy at a strategy depicting Scots as recipients of cash from London.

Alister Jack, Scotland secretary, told Conservative MPs at a Burns night event on Monday that Scots should “feel valued as partners in a shared endeavour rather than just a recipient of UK largesse”, according to one person who was present.

Mr Jack reminded Tory MPs representing English constituencies of the role Scotland played in the economic and cultural life of the UK — from the Edinburgh festival to whisky exports and research into artificial intelligence.

22% Percentage of Scots who think Boris Johnson has done a good job on Covid-19

One former Conservative cabinet minister criticised the government’s strategy for countering the SNP, saying: “I don’t think there has been a coherent strategy on the union.”

He added that the cabinet was split between those such as Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove, who wanted to work collaboratively with the devolved administrations, and others who sought a more “muscular” unionism. “I think that’s where a lot of Boris’s instincts are — the idea we should tell the Scots why the union is good for them,” said the former minister.

In his speech to the Scottish Tory conference in November, Mr Johnson suggested taking powers from the Edinburgh parliament and reallocating them to local authorities and communities.

Mr Johnson’s visit to Scotland comes after opinion polls over the past year have suggested that a majority of voters in a Scottish referendum would back independence.

A poll by Panelbase for The Sunday Times put support for independence on 49 per cent, with 44 per cent opposed and 7 per cent undecided.

The poll also found that only 22 per cent of Scots thought Mr Johnson has done a good job on Covid-19, compared with 61 per cent for Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s first minister.

Ms Sturgeon on Wednesday called on Mr Johnson to “lead by example” by refraining from unnecessary travel. The prime minister’s allies said his visit to Scotland would be Covid-secure, as with other events around the UK.

Some Conservative politicians hope that spending more money directly in Scotland — and badging resulting projects clearly with the union jack — will help build support for the UK government.

Legislation approved last year allows Westminster to bypass the devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to spend funds on infrastructure, education, and any cultural and sporting activities that UK ministers judge will “directly or indirectly benefit the UK”.

The UK government already partly funds so-called city deals to support economic growth in Scotland, but does so in co-operation with Scottish ministers. Chancellor Rishi Sunak is also promoting a series of freeports across the UK, including in Scotland, that ministers hope will become hubs for high-value manufacturing and innovation.

Mr Gove, who is leading the fight in the cabinet to save the union, is focused on making the wider case for the UK and British identity, rather than devolving more powers to the Scottish parliament.

A review by Andrew Dunlop, former Scotland Office minister, into how to make the union function more effectively is lying on Mr Gove’s desk. Completed in November 2019, Mr Gove has promised to publish it soon.

Ms Sturgeon has vowed to try to hold a second referendum on independence if parties that favour it control the Scottish parliament after elections scheduled for May. Mr Johnson insists that UK approval is required for such a vote and that he will not give it.

Iain Anderson, executive chair of Cicero, a financial consultancy, and a former Tory adviser, said business was “increasingly taking an interest” in the future state of the union when making investment decisions.

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2021-01-27 22:39:00Z
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PM's trip to Scotland deemed 'non-essential' by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon - Sky News

Boris Johnson is flying into a storm of protest with a visit to Scotland that First Minister Nicola Sturgeon claims is not an essential journey.

The prime minister is heading to Scotland on a one-day trip aimed at highlighting the value of the United Kingdom in fighting the coronavirus pandemic.

The PM's controversial visit is part of a Tory fightback against polls suggesting growing support for independence and Ms Sturgeon's threat to hold an advisory referendum.

"The people of the UK have stood together during this pandemic," Mr Johnson declared ahead of his visit. "From our doctors and nurses in our hospitals to our shop workers, scientists, lorry drivers and teachers."

And in a claim that will be hotly disputed by the Scottish National Party, he said: "Working together as one truly United Kingdom is the best way to build our COVID recovery."

But earlier Ms Sturgeon, who has imposed a stay-at-home lockdown in Scotland, said the PM's visit was not essential and political leaders should abide by the same rules as they ask of the general public.

Speaking at her daily COVID-19 briefing, she said: "We are living in a global pandemic and every day I stand and look down the camera and say 'don't travel unless it is essential, work from home if you possibly can'.

"That has to apply to all of us. People like me and Boris Johnson have to be in work for reasons people understand, but we don't have to travel across the UK. We have a duty to lead by example."

The first minister revealed that her team had suggested she visit a mass vaccination centre in Aberdeen in the coming weeks, but she had questioned whether the journey was genuinely essential.

"If I'm standing here every day saying to all of you watching: 'don't leave your house unless it is essential', I have a duty to subject myself to that same discipline and decision making," she said.

"I would say me travelling from Edinburgh to Aberdeen to visit a vaccine centre is not essential - Boris Johnson travelling from London to wherever in Scotland to do the same is not essential.

"If we're asking other people to abide by that then I'm sorry, I think it's incumbent on us to do likewise."

Defending the prime minister's trip, his official spokesman said: "It remains the fact that it is a fundamental role of the PM to be the physical representative of the UK government.

"It's right that he is visible and accessible to businesses, communities and the public across all parts of the UK, especially during the pandemic."

And in the Commons, the Scotland Secretary Alister Jack told MPs: "The prime minister is the prime minister of the United Kingdom, and wherever he needs to go in his vital work against this pandemic, he will go."

Earlier this month, after travelling more than 100 miles to a vaccination centre in Bristol during lockdown, Mr Johnson was asked why he made the trip while his government was telling the public to stay at home.

"I have come because it's part of my job," he said. "And the guidance also says that you should go to work and do your job normally if you absolutely have to.

"I think it is essential that I explain to the public what we are doing to roll out the mass vaccination centres."

Speaking about his visit to Scotland, the PM said: "The great benefits of cooperation across the whole of the UK have never been clearer than since the beginning of this pandemic.

"We have pulled together to defeat the virus, providing £8.6bn to the Scottish government to support public services whilst also protecting the jobs of more than 930,000 citizens in Scotland.

"We have a vaccine programme developed in labs in Oxford being administered across the United Kingdom by our armed forces, who are helping to establish 80 new vaccine centres across Scotland.

"That's how we are delivering for the people of Scotland so we can ensure the strongest possible recovery from the virus.

"Mutual cooperation across the UK throughout this pandemic is exactly what the people of Scotland expect and it is what I have been focussed on."

Over three nights Sky News will host a series of special programmes examining the UK's response to the pandemic.

Watch COVID Crisis: Learning the Lessons at 8pm on 9, 10 and 11 February.

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2021-01-27 22:34:35Z
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Lockdown and school closures will continue for many weeks “until conditions are right” - BBC News - BBC News

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2021-01-27 22:24:05Z
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Nicola Sturgeon 'doesn't care' if she is called woke as she posts video on alleged SNP transphobia - Daily Record

The First Minister has released a video addressing alleged transphobia in the SNP and says reports of young people leaving the party over the issue 'grieves' her.

Nicola Sturgeon tweeted the video and said the message was not scripted but had come from the heart.

She said reports of 'significant numbers' of young people leaving the party 'grieves her deeply'.

And she said it was 'not acceptable' that they considered the SNP not to be a 'safe, tolerant, or welcoming place for trans people'

Nicola Sturgeon issues message on alleged transfobia in the SNP

The First Minister continued: "As SNP leader I will do everything I can to change that impression and persuade all of you that the SNP is your party and that you should come home where you belong."

She said differences of opinion on gender recognition reform should be debated but said 'no debate can be a cover for transphobia'.

She added that trans people have 'as much right as any of us'.

And she concluded her message by saying that she didn't care if critics called her 'woke'.

The First Minister said: "Some will criticise this message. Say it doesn't go far enough and that the words are hollow unless we prove we mean them. I am determined we will.

Covid: English schools could return 8 March 'at the earliest' - PM - BBC News

Schools in England will not be able to reopen to all pupils after the February half-term, but could do so from 8 March, the prime minister has said.

Boris Johnson said this was the earliest schools could reopen and "depends on lots of things going right".

The BBC has been told the aim is for all schools and year groups in England to return at the same time.

Their return would mark the first stage in lifting the lockdown, the PM said.

He told a Downing Street news conference: "The date of 8 March is the earliest that we think it is sensible to set for schools to go back and obviously we hope that all schools will go back."

"I'm hopeful, but that's the earliest that we can do it and it depends on lots of things going right, and... it also depends on us all now continuing to work together to drive down the incidence of the disease through the basic methods we've used throughout this pandemic," he added.

There was not enough data yet to decide when to end the lockdown, he said, but intended to set out a plan for how it could be eased - and the criteria involved - in the final week of February

BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg described the 8 March date as "very much a hope and certainly not a guarantee".

Meanwhile, a further 1,725 people have died in the UK within 28 days of a positive coronavirus test, according to the latest government figures. The UK's official coronavirus death toll surpassed 100,000 on Tuesday.

Mr Johnson told MPs the country remained in a "perilous situation" as he said UK nationals and residents arriving from 30 high-risk countries would soon be ordered to quarantine in hotels.

He revealed a plan for the "gradual and phased" lifting of the lockdown in England could come in the week beginning 22 February.

Other restrictions on daily life could be eased after schools reopen, but he explained this would depend on hitting vaccination targets, the capacity of the NHS, and deaths falling.

An earlier plan for mass testing for pupils and staff remains in place, the BBC has been told.

England's schools have been closed to all but vulnerable children and those of key workers since the Christmas break.

In Scotland, it is hoped schools may begin a phased return in the middle of February.

In Wales, measures including school and college closures will be reviewed on Friday. In Northern Ireland, a review will take place on Thursday.

Catch-up plan

The prime minister said he understood frustration among pupils and teachers "and for parents and for carers who spent so many months juggling their day jobs, not only with home schooling but meeting the myriad other demands of their children from breakfast until bedtime".

The government initially planned to review England's lockdown measures - including school closures - on 15 February, which had raised hopes that pupils could return to classes after half term.

Acknowledging the impact of continued school closures, Mr Johnson pledged to "work with parents, teachers and schools to develop a long-term plan to make sure that pupils have the chance to make up their learning" before 2024.

He said £300m "of new money to schools" would fund a catch-up programme over the coming year, with financial incentives for providers to educate pupils who have missed lessons due to the pandemic.

Delay is 'no surprise'

Analysis box by Sean Coughlan, education correspondent

After complaints about confusion and drift about when schools in England are going back, Boris Johnson has sought to bring some certainty.

They won't be going back straight after half term - but the target date will be 8 March.

Sources say the aim is for all schools and year groups in England, in primary and secondary, to return back on that date - rather than it being the starting date of a phased or regional return.

Although that could be subject to any changes in local Covid-19 levels.

When schools do go back it is expected there will be mass testing for pupils and staff, in the scheme initially planned for the start of term.

It still leaves parents home schooling for another five weeks - and means most of this term will have been without face-to-face lessons.

This will be a particular worry for pupils heading for whatever replaces GCSEs and A-levels this summer, after almost a full year of stop-start lessons.

Head teachers say the delay is "no surprise" - and reopening must be done safely.

And Labour says half term should be used to vaccinate teachers to help schools stay open.

But the prime minister will hope that parents would rather have some clarity about what's happening with schools, even if that means a longer delay.

Teachers' and head teachers' unions said they supported reopening schools but added that it must be safe and not rushed.

Mary Bousted, joint general secretary of the National Education Union, said that although the most vulnerable would be protected by March, most parents would not be.

"It fails completely to recognise the role schools have played in community transmission. The prime minister has already forgotten what he told the nation at the beginning of this lockdown, that schools are a 'vector for transmission'," she said.

Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders' union NAHT, said the government needs to work with head teachers to review safety measures and create a "workable plan" for schools to reopen fully.

"The government will also have to put effort into reassuring families that it is safe to send their children back to school - there is a confidence test the government must pass to make the return a success," he said.

In other developments:

The EU has urged pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca to supply it with more doses of its Covid-19 vaccine from UK plants, amid a row over shortages
Cough, fatigue, sore throat and muscle pain may be more common in people who test positive for the new UK variant of coronavirus, a study suggests
Nicola Sturgeon has suggested that Boris Johnson should not visit Scotland, as he is expected to on Thursday, because it is not an "essential" journey

Coronavirus in the UK data for Wednesday 27 January 2021

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2021-01-27 18:45:00Z
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Covid-19: England's schools will not reopen before March - BBC News

Schools in England will not be able to reopen to all pupils after the February half-term, but could do so from 8 March, the prime minister has said.

Boris Johnson said this was the earliest schools could reopen and "depends on lots of things going right".

The BBC has been told the aim is for all schools and year groups in England to return at the same time.

Their return would mark the first stage in lifting the lockdown, the PM said.

He told a Downing Street news conference: "The date of 8 March is the earliest that we think it is sensible to set for schools to go back and obviously we hope that all schools will go back."

There was not enough data yet to decide when to end the lockdown, he said, but intended to set out a plan for how it could be eased - and the criteria involved - in the final week of February

Mr Johnson told MPs the country remained in a "perilous situation" as he said UK nationals and residents arriving from 22 high-risk countries would soon be ordered to quarantine in hotels.

He revealed a plan for the "gradual and phased" lifting of the lockdown in England could come in the week beginning 22 February.

Other restrictions on daily life could be eased after schools reopen, but he explained this would depend on hitting vaccination targets, the capacity of the NHS, and deaths falling.

An earlier plan for mass testing for pupils and staff remains in place, the BBC has been told.

England's schools have only been open to vulnerable children and those of key workers since the new year, with remote learning in place for others.

In Scotland, it is hoped schools may begin a phased return in the middle of February.

In Wales, measures including school and college closures will be reviewed on Friday. In Northern Ireland, most school pupils are being taught remotely until at least mid-February.