Boris Johnson news – live: Huawei banned from UK's 5G network, as PM warned of new 'Cold War' with China

Explaining why face coverings are not yet mandatory in Welsh shops, finance minister Rebecca Evans said the virus is currently at its “lowest ebb” in the country and that it was important to take a “proportionate response” to the pandemic.

Her comments came hours after Ms Evans’ Labour colleague in Westminster, shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth, accused the UK government of being “slow and muddled” in introducing the rule for English shops.

In Wales, face coverings will only become mandatory for public transport on 27 July.

Ms Evans added that “there will be places where it becomes difficult or impossible to maintain that two-metre rule from other people, and in those cases, it’s appropriate then to consider the use of face masks” and said the Welsh Government had been consistent in making changes to measures only “once we have a plan in terms of how we will deliver that”.

Government dismisses concerns over signal blackouts

Returning to Dowden’s remarks in the Commons earlier, the culture secretary said mobile customers will not suffer signal blackouts as a result of the decision to strip company’s equipment from the 5G network.

Labour’s Tulip Siddiq highlighted these concerns and asked for assurances that this will not happen. Dowden replied: “[Ms Siddiq] is absolutely right to raise the risk of that kind of disruption and blackouts, and that’s one of the reasons that led us to the timetable we’ve set out. Put bluntly, the shorter the timetable for the removal, the higher the risk of that happening.

“But I can give [Ms Siddiq’ and indeed her constituents and people up and down the country, that this risk will not materialise in relation to the proposals that we have outlined today.”

Dowden also told MPs: “I would caution that cyber attacks will not be prevented by removing Huawei equipment from the system.”

Government’s exclusion of care staff from new NHS visa ‘devasting’, says Sturgeon

Scotland’s first minister Nicola Sturgeon urged to think again on the exclusion of care home workers from a proposed new immigration scheme, with Scotland’s first minister warning this could have a “devastating impact”.

Nicola Sturgeon said barring social care staff from obtaining a new health and care visa is the “wrong decision”, adding it risks sending a message to workers that their contribution in the Covid-19 pandemic is not appreciated.

Sturgeon added: “In my view, it is essential that care home workers are included in any scheme for post-Brexit work visas. The Scottish government will continue to make strong representations on that point to the UK government.”

Health and care staff exempt from surcharge, Hancock confirms

All health and social care staff will be exempt from the immigration health surcharge, Matt Hancock has confirmed – and those who have paid to use the NHS will be re-paid.

Hancock also said 144,000 people have been contacted through NHS Test and Trace.

Ex-health secretary Jeremy Hunt, meanwhile, pressed Hancock over the preparations for winter, given the “sobering” Academy of Medical Sciences report suggesting the number of people every day over winter who have Covid-19 symptoms will increase from 100,000 to 360,000.

Hancock said: “We’re engaged in a massive ramp up of testing and the contact tracing [Mr Hunt] has long championed. The scale of the ramp up of testing will be big enough to cope with the sorts of figures that are described in the royal college report – that’s even on the current testing technology.”

Government will review Leicester lockdown on Thursday, says Hancock

Matt Hancock said on Tuesday the government would assess whether lockdown measures in the English city of Leicester could be eased on Thursday, but warned that the number of coronavirus cases was still high.

A stringent lockdown was imposed in Leicester, in central England, two weeks ago – even as many restrictions were being lifted for the rest of the country – after a spike in cases of COVID-19 in the city.

“I set out that there is process for whether changes can be made in Leicester,” he said.

“The process is that we will look at 14 days of data … on Thursday of this week and make a public announcement as soon as is reasonably possible about whether and if any changes can be made to the situation,” Hancock told parliament – adding that the number of positive cases was still well above the rest of the country.

Shops can call police if customers don’t wear face coverings, says Hancock

Health secretary Matt Hancock has said that those shops can call the police if people without an exemption from wearing a face covering refuse to comply.

“Should an individual without an exemption refuse to wear a face covering, a shop can refuse them entry and can call the police if people refuse to comply,” he said in the Commons. “The police have formal enforcement powers and can issue a fine.”

He said face coverings can help to protect shop workers and restore the confidence of shoppers.

Hancock told MPs: “In recent weeks we have re-opened retail and footfall is rising. We want to give people more confidence to shop safely and enhance protection for those who work in shops. Both of these can be done by the use of face coverings.”

“Sadly sales assistants, cashiers and security guards have suffered disproportionately in this crisis. The death rate of sales and retail assistants is 75 per cent higher amongst men and 60 per cent higher amongst women than in the general population.”

Tory activists destroy membership cards over mandatory mask wearing

It looks like Boris Johnson is facing a sizeable grassroots Tory backlash over plans to require people to wear face masks when visiting shops in England.

Conservative party members have taken to Twitter to post pictures of their cut-up membership cards and declare themselves “politically homeless” over the new rule – which comes in on 24 July.

Francis Hoar, a Tory-supported barrister, posted a photograph of his card, stating: “It may only be one straw, but there comes a point where any association with this government must end.”

Long-time Conservative-supporting journalist Toby Young pledged ahead of the announcement that he was “never voting Tory again” if the ban came in, described masks as “mandatory face nappies”.

What the Huawei U-turn means for UK mobile users

One of the most significant impacts of the decision to strip Huawei out of the 5G network will delay the rollout of that technology in the UK by two to three years – as well as costing up to £3bn.

Very few phones are currently able to use 5G networks, and the rollout of devices as well as the network is likely to be slow, meaning that the delay will probably hit fewer people than it would if it affected 4G networks, for example.

But with any delay to the infrastructure, users may not be able to get the full value out of their 5G phones, some of which are already out, but many more of which will arrive over the coming months. 

Our technology editor Andrew Griffin has more on the ramifications.

Majority of Britons back removal of Huawei from 5G

We know No 10 pays very close attention to opinion polls for key decisions. Only 16 per cent of the British public wanted Huawei to play a role in the 5G network, while 52 per cent backed the idea of removing the company from the roll-out.

‘We urge them to reconsider’: Huawei responds

Huawei UK spokesman Ed Brewster said: “This disappointing decision is bad news for anyone in the UK with a mobile phone. It threatens to move Britain into the digital slow lane, push up bills and deepen the digital divide.

“Instead of ‘levelling up’, the government is levelling down and we urge them to reconsider.

“We remain confident that the new US restrictions would not have affected the resilience or security of the products we supply to the UK. Regrettably our future in the UK has become politicised, this is about US trade policy and not security.”

He added: “We will conduct a detailed review of what today’s announcement means for our business here and will work with the UK government to explain how we can continue to contribute to a better connected Britain.”

‘Why is there delay until 2027?’: Huawei ban reaction

Tory MP Tobias Ellwood, chair of the defence committee, said he was “pleased” at the decision, adding: “This is a first opportunity for the government to stand up and say, ‘No more’. It’s the first indication that we are going to stand up.”

Nigel Farage described it as only “a partial victory”, tweeting: “No to Huawei is great but we cannot wait until 2027 for removal of the kit.”

Tory MP Bob Seely, one of the party’s leading anti-Huawei backbench rebels, said: “If the telecoms firms believe Huawei can be taken out of 5G by 2025, why is there delay until 2027?”

Huawei must remove equipment by 2027, says minister

Huawei has seven years before all of its equipment must be removed from the 5G network.

“We have concluded it is necessary and indeed prudent to commit to a timetable for the removal of Huawei equipment from our 5G network by 2027,” said Dowden.

But those sums are on top of costs already incurred by delays over the Chinese tech giant. The minister explained the whole saga would cost between £2bn and £3bn and cause a delay of between two to three years.

Make masks free, says Independent Sage group scientist

The Independent Sage group of scientists – or at least most if it – supports the compulsory wearing of face coverings in shops and would like it extended to other indoor settings, writes deputy political editor Rob Merrick.

However, several members are urging ministers to recognise a big public information campaign is needed to make the new policy a success, to give the public detailed advice on how to wear them and the benefits of doing so.

Susan Michie, a health psychologist, said the less well-off should not expected to pay for coverings, saying: “We need to ensure that everyone who needs them and cannot afford them is provided with them without cost.”

Robert West, a professor of health psychology, acknowledged the true medical benefits of face coverings – particularly for the wearer – were still uncertain, but argued it was worth taking the step. “In the normal course of events, lots of us feel there is not enough to legislate to make people do something – but these are unusual times. The balance has shifted to some form of mandating.”

But the plan to fine refuseniks was criticised. Stephen Reicher, a professor of social psychology said: “I don’t think fines are necessary. The first instinct should not be to punish.”

Business chief calls for ‘absolute clarity’ on face covering rules

The head of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has urged the government to provide “absolute clarity” to retailers on the new rules around wearing face coverings in shops and supermarkets.

Marshall said the BCC was supportive of the new rules, which he said would help to “restore consumer confidence” and encourage more people to return to shops.

Sabrina Barr has everything you need to know about the new rules, and who is exempt from them.

Two-thirds agree face coverings should be mandatory in shops

Debate continues to rage on social media about the mandatory wearing of masks, and whether it’s necessary for the government to give England’s shops and shoppers 11 days to prepare.

A reminder that 60 per cent of the public agree it should be compulsory in shops, and only 34 per cent say it should be left to the people to decide whether to or not.

When it comes to “common sense” voluntary behaviour (as Michael Gove recently called it), a recent YouGov poll found that 36 per cent of Britons a face mask in public places, compared with 65 per cent of people in Germany, 78 per cent in France, 83 per cent in Italy and 86 per cent in Spain.

When will Huawei be removed from Britain’s 5G?

So how long might Huawei play a role in Britain’s 5G network? It’s not yet clear what deadlines culture secretary Oliver Dowden will be setting out today.

The minister is expected to say that no new Huawei equipment can be installed in the network from as soon as next year.

The Telegraph has reported that the government is “targeting” 2024 for removal of all of the company’s kit, but according to The Times the firm’s technology will not be totally removed from the network until 2027.

Sir Iain Duncan Smith is one of 60 Tory MPs said to have written to warning against “unreasonable delay”.

The letter said: “Knowing how lightly China takes the assurances it has given, many colleagues are even more uncomfortable about a role for Huawei in our networks. Given that, we fervently hope you will end Huawei’s ability to supply the UK’s critical national infrastructure.”

‘Rocco, put your tail down’

They say never work with children or animals. MP John Nicolson’s cat Rocco has become an instant social media star after interrupting the SNP politician’s contribution to this morning’s Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) committee session.

“Rocco, put your tail down,” he said after trying in vain to continue during laughter.