The Times - UK (2022-01-01)

8 V2 Saturday January 1 2022 | the times

News

Boris Johnson said yesterday that Brit-
ain’s position was “incomparably better
than last year” on everything from vac-
cination to economic growth. For the
prime minister, the start of 2022 will
have to be incomparably better than
the end of 2021.
With the Conservative Party frac-
tious over Covid curbs and a series of
unforced political errors, Johnson must
seek to restore his authority in the com-
ing weeks. But from coronavirus to the
cost of living, he faces problems with
the potential to blow his relaunch off
course. The most pressing issues in-
clude:

coronavirus

Cabinet ministers are still lauding
Johnson for his decision not to impose
coronavirus restrictions over Christ-
mas and the new year. “He followed the
science, the data wasn’t there,” one
minister said. “It was a bold decision
because it pushed against Chris [Whit-
ty, chief medical officer for England]
and others. It looks like the right call.”
That decision will come under scruti-
ny as the number of coronavirus cases
and hospital admissions rise.
As Johnson returns to No 10, a deci-
sion on whether to impose restrictions
on household mixing and large events
in England will be at the top of his in-
tray. Head teachers are planning for en-
tire year groups to be sent home to stop
staff shortages from spiralling out of
control. Workplaces are likely to suffer
as more people go into isolation after
contracting coronavirus.
Cabinet ministers remain optimistic.
“My guess is we’re seeing an endgame
of coronavirus where it is becoming less
powerful with each mutation,” one said.

But Covid-19 will remain in the head-

lines. The government has announced

that a public inquiry into the pandemic

will begin in the first half of this year.

Dominic Cummings, the former

chief adviser to Johnson, will come to

the fore again. Cummings has said the

prime minister’s decision to delay im-

plementing a lockdown last summer

cost thousands of lives. He has suggest-

ed he was willing to provide evidence to

back up his assertions, including What-

sApp messages and emails from John-

son.

cost of living

One cabinet minister said the economy

was the “essential chal-

lenge” facing the govern-

ment, and one that could

define Johnson’s term in

office. Households

face higher bills from

rising energy prices,

inflation, interest

rate increases and

tax rises. The Re-

solution Founda-

tion estimates these

could cost families

£1,200 next year.

The tax rises, in-

creasing National

Insurance and freezing

the personal allowance,

are causing unease

among the Tory faithful.

A government source

said: “You add it all to-

gether and we’re in a really,

really tricky situation. We

need to start announcing

things soon, at the moment

there’s nothing — just gov-

New year, new problems for Johnson

ernment policies [tax rises] making it

worse. It’s the opposite of support.”

Ministers are drawing up plans to

help shield people from a huge rise in

their energy bills in April, when the

energy price cap is due to increase.

small boats

Johnson is all too aware of the damage

the Channel migrant crisis risks inflict-

ing on his government at the polls.

Ministers and government officials

admit that the number of migrants

crossing the Channel is set to rise in

2022 owing to the failure to find viable

solutions to the issue. Johnson’s vow to

“take back control of our borders” is

being eroded by continuous crossings

of small boats. One senior government

source said: “If it looks bad now, it’s

going to look much worse in spring

when it’s warmer.”

Priti Patel, the home secretary, hopes

the Nationality and Borders

Bill will be on the statute

books by then, giving new

powers to the Border

Force and immigration

agencies. Ministers

concede it will not de-

liver the change

needed to reverse the

crossings. Govern-

ment officials say

that only a compre-

hensive deal with the

French to return mi-

grants and deploy joint

patrols in the Channel

and on French beach-

es would reduce the

numbers.

But they have given

up on hopes of a set-

tlement before

French elections in

April after the refusal of

President Macron to offer concessions

that would harm him domestically.

brexit

Brexit still occupies minds in No 10,

even if it has slipped off the front pages.

Johnson hopes to unpick the North-

ern Ireland protocol, the agreement

with the EU that requires customs

checks on goods crossing the Irish Sea.

A breakthrough in talks with the EU

appeared to be close when Johnson ap-

parently dropped a demand to remove

the European Court of Justice as the ul-

timate arbiter in trade disputes.

Such a concession could harm John-

son’s reputation with Tory backbench-

ers, many of whom are already dis-

mayed at the resignation of Lord Frost

as Brexit minister and regard the in-

volvement of the ECJ as unacceptable.

Johnson is under pressure to set out

exactly how Britain will diverge from

EU laws and what taxes can be cut.

“What’s the point in gaining new pow-

ers if we choose to align with Brussels

on everything?,” one senior Tory said.

Tory backbenchers will be eager for

the dividends of Brexit to become ap-

parent this year. But, some companies

will experience greater bureaucracy,

not least when full customs checks

come into effect today for businesses

exporting to the EU.

christmas parties

The furore over Christmas parties in

No 10 during the lockdown will return

to the fore this month.

Sue Gray, a former director of propri-

ety and ethics at the Cabinet Office, will

begin interviewing officials and advis-

ers about events that took place in 2020.

Gray was drafted in after Simon

Case, the cabinet secretary, recused

himself from the investigation after ad-

mitting he knew about an event that

was held in his own office.

Early indications are that she is not

taking her task lightly. A dozen staff

were contacted over Christmas and

asked to give evidence. They are said to

be “pissing themselves”. For Johnson

the issue is particularly dangerous

given his and No 10’s repeated denials

that the events were Christmas parties.

The issue has also cut through with the

public, with polls suggesting there is

considerable anger.

net zero. can he keep 1.5c alive?

Johnson has set himself some bold tar-

gets for cutting carbon emissions. How-

ever, with gas bills set to increase, the

prime minister will come under pres-

sure from a caucus of Tory MPs known

as the “net zero scrutiny group” to slow

the transition away from fossil fuels.

Johnson will launch a boiler upgrade

scheme in the spring, offering house-

holds £5,000 grants to install low-car-

bon heating systems. But campaigners

say more drastic action is needed.

At Cop26 in Glasgow, Johnson’s aim

was to limit global warming to 1.5C or

“keep 1.5 alive”. Those hopes are fading

after China and India watered down

the language at the last minute about

phasing out coal.

leadership challenge?

Johnson went into Christmas with his

authority at its lowest ebb after revela-

tions over alleged lockdown parties in

No 10 and Tory revolts.

Johnson will be looking to reset the

febrile relations with his backbenchers.

He is considering an overhaul of his

team and also a mini-reshuffle in which

Mark Spencer, the chief whip, could be

demoted. Managing a disparate and

dislocated party is no easy task. If John-

son does push ahead with further Covid

restrictions he is likely to again face a

revolt. Tax rises, which come into effect

in April, will only exacerbate tensions.

With Johnson weakened, allies of Liz

Truss, the foreign secretary, and Rishi

Sunak, the chancellor, are making dis-

creet approaches to senior Tory MPs.

With his party authority falling and household

bills rising, the PM may not relish 2022, write

Steven Swinford, Matt Dathan and George Grylls

Boris Johnson married

his wife Carrie in May

Gender not

same as sex,

says Rowling

Kieran Gair

JK Rowling has said that sex rather

than gender identity should be at the

heart of laws to protect women as she

defended herself against accusations of

transphobia.

The creator of Harry Potter spoke as

it was reported that Scotland’s police

watchdog had been asked to investigate

a policy of allowing people accused of

rape to self-identify as women. Rowling

compared the policy to George

Orwell’s book 1984.

She clarified her stance yesterday

after a headline in the US claimed an

opinion poll showed that “most Ameri-

cans agree with JK Rowling, there are

only two genders”.

She tweeted: “Small but important

point: I’ve never said there are only two

genders. There are innumerable gender

identities.”

She added: “Using the words ‘sex’ and

‘gender’ interchangeably obscures the

central issue of this debate.”

Rowling has faced a backlash from

transgender activists and former sup-

porters who have labelled her a bigot.

Kenny MacAskill, a former Scottish

justice secretary, has written to Martyn

Evans, chairman of the Scottish Police

Authority, asking for clarification over

the policy on sexual assaults.

Colour vision The recently completed long barrow at Soulton Hall, in Shropshire, is aligned so that at winter solstice and for a few weeks afterwards, the sun sets
directly through the stained glass door of the main chamber, where people can reserve niches to place the ashes of the dead in an echo of neolithic practices

ANDREW FUSEK PETERS/SWNS