Brexit news – live: Tories dismiss ‘hallucinogenic’ Irish Sea tunnel plan as Irish-French trade routes boom

Our reporter, Joe Middleton, has more details below on what is expected from Boris Johnson’s press conference later today:

A senior Conservative MP has suggested a one-off wealth tax could help repair the UK’s finances following the damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Mel Stride, the chair of the Commons Treasury Committee, noted that poorer people, women and ethnic minorities had been “disproportionately impacted” by Covid-19 and needed to be “taken into account” in government policy.

Our political correspondent, Ashley Cowburn, has the full story below:

Here’s a potentially important note worth remembering on Boris Johnson’s commitment today for an “irreversible” easing of lockdown from our deputy political editor Rob Merrick:

Boris Johnson is facing an “acute” dilemma between following his scientific advisers and winning the support of Tory backbenchers as he prepares to unveil his plan for easing England’s national lockdown, according to our political columnist Andrew Grice.

Andrew writes:

“The dispute between Johnson and the Covid Recovery Group (CRG) of Tory MPs is about how quickly retail and hospitality should return. There are welcome signs the prime minister has learnt lessons from last year, when restrictions were lifted too quickly.”

You can find his full piece below:

There has been a lot of talk this week about how successful Sir Keir Starmer has been a Labour leader, with the opposition party still behind the Conservatives nearly one year into his leadership.

Polling by YouGov shows that Sir Keir has recorded his worst favorability ratings to date in recent weeks (-7), but that figure still puts him above Boris Johnson (-13) and easily above Jeremy Corbyn – who recorded negative favourability ratings throughout his time as leader.

However, it may be concerning for the opposition leader that he is currently more popular with 2019 Lib Dem voters (68 per cent favourable) than 2019 Labour voters (60 per cent favourable).

You can find more details from the polling below:

Boris Johnson will lead a Downing Street press conference at 5pm today, joined by NHS England chief executive Sir Simon Stevens and England’s chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty, Downing Street has said.

A shock £400m cut to the funding available for mending potholes has sparked anger and fears of a return to austerity for local councils.

The Conservative-led County Councils Network (CCN) accused the government of breaking its promises to support communities through the coronavirus recovery, as research showed a repairs backlog is leaving holes on roads for up to four months.

Our deputy political editor, Rob Merrick, has the full story below:

The bosses of Burger King, Pizza Express and Fuller’s are among more than 160 hospitality chiefs who have called on chancellor Rishi Sunak to extend the VAT cut by another year.

They want to see the reduction of VAT from 20 per cent to 5 per cent on food and soft drinks extended into the next financial year amid uncertainty over when hard-hit venues will be allowed to reopen.

Pub, restaurant and hotel bosses have also urged Mr Sunak to reduce VAT for on-premise alcohol sales, leisure activities and weddings in next month’s spring budget.

“Should we be allowed to reopen in the run up to Easter, it could also help us avoid having to pass on substantial price rises to customers in early April as a result of returning to a 20 per cent rate, just prior to the Easter trading weekend,” the bosses said in a letter, co-ordinated by industry body UKHospitality.

They have also called for the current business rates holiday, which is due to expire by April, to be extended again.

“We are hopeful that, in the coming weeks and months, we can begin to welcome customers back and we know that people will be eager to socialise with their friends and families safely in our venues,” Kate Nicholls, chief executive of UKHospitality, said.

“That means we need to start laying the groundwork now. We need to make sure that the hospitality sector is in the best possible position to help rebuild as we have done in the past.”

Andy Burnham has had a bit more to say about the big story of the day so far – the call from the Centre for Policy Studies’ and Northern Research Group Tory MPs for “radical” Thatcherite policies for the north.

The mayor of Greater Manchester said: “These right-wing “Red Wall” Tory MPs are revealing how they don’t understand the seats they won. It was Thatcherism which laid them low in the first place. People haven’t forgotten that.”

“All parties have let these places down,” he added. “But a return to Thatcherism is most certainly NOT the answer.”

EU Commission vice president Maros Sefcovic gave a very interesting interview with Ireland’s RTE on Sunday.

The top Brussels official suggested an agreement between the UK and EU on common animal health and food-safety standards would ease some of the problems getting animals, meat and plant produce over the border.

Downing Street has previously spurned the idea of a veterinary standards pact because it would keep Britain legally aligned with EU standards on animal health and food safety.

Sefcovic told the broadcaster he and his counterpart Michael Gove would discuss “practical and solution-driven” next steps – and said the kind of agreement on veterinary standards needed to avoid export health certificates was still “on the table”.

Sefcovic said he would try to speak with “people on the ground” on both sides of the Irish border this week to hear about “the real problems”.