On the eve of the announcements, a backbench revolt against the Prime Minister was revitalised after three Tory MPs announced they had entered letters of no confidence in Boris Johnson.
One of them was Anthony Mangnall, elected as the MP for Totnes in 2019, who today tells Chopper’s Politics podcast (which you can listen to here) that the party has the right policies but the wrong leader.
The trio of MPs took the total number of Conservatives who have publicly called on Mr Johnson to quit to 14. The letters needed to force a vote is 54.
Lockdown prevented only 0.2pc of first wave deaths
Covid restrictions such as closing schools, shutting shops and asking people to stay at home likely led to a reduction in deaths of about 18 per cent in total, a study suggests. But mandatory lockdowns prevented just 0.2 per cent of deaths, compared with trusting people to follow recommendations. Researchers said that the economic and social costs of lockdown far outweighed the benefits, and called for the policy to be abandoned in future. Science Editor Sarah Knapton explains why they warned that lockdowns might actually cause more deaths than recommendations. It came as it was claimed that holidaymakers from the UK are being penalised with a Covid “Brexit penalty” within the EU.
PS: SNP ministers plan to chop the bottoms off hundreds of classroom doors in a “crackpot” DIY effort to try to stop the spread of Covid.
Cambridge and Oxford clash in culture row
A Cambridge college dean has said chapels should be a “safe space” for students in an ecclesiastical court battle to have a memorial to a donor linked to slavery removed. Jesus College, Cambridge, wants to remove a plaque to Tobias Rustat, which is said to “distress” some students. It is the first time a university cancel culture row will be heard in court. Daniel Capurro explains how fellows at Cambridge have been pitted against academics from Oxford University. Meanwhile, Prof Mary Beard said that people who cheered the toppling of Edward Colston’s statue should confront the fact that their own lifestyles rely on modern slavery.
Daily dose of Matt
View Matt‘s latest cartoon as he imagines an ingenious way to level up the North.
Also in the news: Today’s other headlines
Brexit | Britain will deny colluding with the DUP over its order to halt Irish Sea border checks, but will tell Brussels today it will not overrule the controversial decision on the Northern Ireland Protocol. Europe Editor James Crisp understands that Foreign Secretary Liz Truss will tell Maros Sefcovic, her counterpart in the European Commission, that it is a matter for the Northern Ireland executive alone.
Around the world: ‘Ukraine has right to join Nato’
Boris Johnson insisted in a phone call to Vladimir Putin that Ukraine has a right to join Nato, prompting an angry response from the Kremlin. The Prime Minister made the call as US President Joe Biden ordered 3,000 American troops to eastern Europe in the biggest allied deployment since the start of the crisis. In response, the Kremlin said it was a “fairly detailed exchange of views”. Read the latest on the deepening crisis.
