Boris Johnson has refused to apologise for a text in which he suggested that Covid-19 was only killing people over-80 in the autumn of 2020, as he took part in Prime Minister’s Questions from self-isolation today.
Speaking in the House of Commons, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer also labelled the PM as a “super-spreader” of confusion on Covid policy following U-turns over self-isolation guidance and vaccine passports.
It came as Sir Keir was forced into self-isolation himself due to one of his children testing positive for the virus this afternoon.
Meanwhile, the UK government has demanded a “standstill period” to freeze the Northern Ireland Protocol and to end oversight by EU courts, setting ministers on a collision course with Brussels.
Brexit minister Lord Frost told peers on Wednesday that “we cannot go on as we are” with the current Protocol arrangements but stopped short of unilaterally suspending the measures.
It isn’t unusual to renegotiate treaties, Lord Frost insists
Brexit minister Lord Frost has insisted it is not unusual to renegotiate treaties after the EU rejected the UK government’s plans to change the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Lord Frost was asked on Wednesday whether Boris Johnson had lied in 2019 when he said there would be no extra customs checks on goods travelling between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
He replied: “What we expected at the time was that we would be able to operate the protocol in a light touch way, taking account of the delicate politics and the peace process in Northern Ireland and obviously that’s not how it’s turned out.”
Speaking to broadcasters, the minister added: “I don’t think that there’s anything unusual or surprising in looking again at a treaty.
“We have a lot of experience now about how it’s operating that we did not have in 2019.”
Our deputy political editor, Rob Merrick, has more details below on the EU rejecting the UK government’s call for a renegotiation the Brexit deal:
EU ‘will not agree to renegotiation’ of NI Protocol, European Commission VP says
The European Commission’s vice-president has said that the EU “will not agree to a renegotiation of the Protocol” in response to the UK’s call for major changes to the post-Brexit trading arrangements with Northern Ireland.
Maros Sefcovic said that the bloc would “continue to engage” with the UK but solutions had to be within the framework of the Protocol and in the interest of all communities in the region.
“However, we will not agree to a renegotiation of the protocol,” Mr Sefcovic added.
“Joint action in the joint bodies established by the Withdrawal Agreement will be of paramount importance over the coming months.
“We must prioritise stability and predictability in Northern Ireland. I look forward to speaking to Lord Frost soon.”
Irish premier says EU willing to engage on NI Protocol in ‘positive way’
Ireland’s premier has said that the “bulk” of his conversation with Boris Johnson on Tuesday was focused on the Northern Ireland Protocol, as he insisted that the EU would be willing to engage on the issue “in a positive way”.
Speaking in Dublin, Micheal Martin said: “We’ve made it very clear to the UK government that the mechanisms exist within the Withdrawal Agreement, for issues that need to be resolved within the operation of the protocol, that they can be resolved with goodwill on both sides.
“The British government has indicated that they are willing to give this significant engagement over the coming months.”
Mr Martin added: “Our sense from the EU all along, and I spoke to Ursula von der Leyen about this on Friday, the EU has always been willing to engage in a positive way.
“There has to be engagement on both sides. The EU stands ready to engage with the UK on these issues.”
No 10 says it expects EU to consider new approach to Northern Ireland Protocol
The UK government will expect the EU to consider a new approach to the Northern Ireland Protocol following post-Brexit tensions, Downing Street has said.
“I think we would expect the EU to take the time to consider our approach and our suggestions and come back with a considered view,” Boris Johnson’s spokesperson said.
“We’ve been saying consistently for some time now that the way the Protocol is being applied is simply not acceptable – it’s not acceptable to the people of Northern Ireland, it’s not acceptable to the businesses there who are losing out, and it needs to be urgently addressed.”
Starmer self-isolating after one of his children tests positive for Covid
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer is self-isolating after one of his children tested positive for Covid-19 today, a party spokesperson has said.
“One of Keir’s children tested positive for Covid this lunchtime. In line with the rules, Keir and his family will now be self-isolating,” the party said on Wednesday, shortly after PMQs.
“Keir was already doing daily tests and tested negative this morning. He will continue to take daily tests.”
Our political correspondent, Ashley Cowburn, has more on this breaking story below:
Government ‘insults’ NHS staff by rejecting chance to deliver pay rise, Labour says
The government has sparked anger from Labour by rejecting the chance to announce a promised pay rise for NHS staff in England after a minister suggested that the decision would be delayed.
The party’s shadow health minister Rosena Allin-Khan said that the failure to offer a pay rise before the summer recess was “an insult of the highest order” to NHS staff who “deserve better”.
Our reporter, Adam Forrest, has the full story below:
indy100: Who won this week’s PMQs?
It is 60 years since the first PMQs.
In this week’s contest, Boris Johnson appeared by video link from Chequers, where he is self-isolating. But did he or Keir Starmer have the upper hand?
Starmer was buoyed by the support of his MPs cheering for him, while Johnson was alone and adrift, writes Kate Plummer.
People in Northern Ireland do not trust the British government, SDLP warns
The Conservative government has lost the trust of people in Northern Ireland, one of the territory’s parties has said.
The SDLP leader Colum Eastwood made a comment to this effect after ministers laid out their plans to re-work part of the Brexit deal.
Speaking in the Commons, he said: “This statement is the second attempt in one week that this government has made to distance itself from agreements that they have negotiated.
“Why does he think that any other country, or any person in Northern Ireland, will trust anything that this government says from this day forward?”
Video: PM refuses to apologise for Cummings Covid text
In PMQs earlier, the prime minister refused to apologise for a leaked text in which he said that coronavirus only kills the over-80s.
Watch his exchange with Keir Starmer here:
