2 2GM Tuesday April 5 2022 | the times
News
Boris Johnson did not mislead parlia-
ment about Downing Street parties but
was given “wrong information” by his
staff, Jacob Rees-Mogg said.
Downing Street again refused to ac-
knowledge that rules were broken, but
the argument from the Brexit opportu-
nities minister hints that Johnson will
seek to avoid the charge of misleading
parliament if he is fined by suggesting
the blame lies with staff.
Last night The Daily Telegraph re-
ported that fines had been issued to
people who attended a leaving do at the
Cabinet Office on December 17, 2020,
when London residents were prohibit-
ed from socialising indoors, apart from
with their household or support bubble.
The party was for Kate Josephs, who
was head of the unit responsible for im-
plementing Covid-19 restrictions at the
time. Josephs, who is now chief execu-
tive of Sheffield city council, apologised
when the event came to light this year.
It is not known who has been fined for
attending the party.
Helen MacNamara, the former civil
service ethics chief, apologised yester-
day for an “error of judgment I haveGovernment
wants review
of fracking
Steven Swinford Political EditorMinisters will today ask government
scientific advisers to reassess the safety
of fracking in Britain as a cabinet minis-
ter played down the risk of earthquakes.
Kwasi Kwarteng, business secretary,
will request a review of the evidence
related to fracking from the British Geo-
logical Survey. He wants scientific advis-
ers to establish whether there is new
technology to predict and manage seis-
mic events caused by the process.
Jacob Rees-Mogg, the Brexit oppor-
tunities minister, supports fracking and
he highlighted a Royal Society report
which he said showed the risks were
equivalent to a “rock fall in a disused
coal mine”. He told LBC Radio he was
“very impressed” with the report.
The review comes before the energy
security strategy on Thursday, which
will include plans to build up to seven
nuclear power stations and boost off-
shore wind projects. The prime minis-
ter’s spokesman said the fracking mora-
torium, introduced in 2019, “remains”
but cited the invasion of Ukraine re-
quiring a need to “look at all options for
improving domestic energy supply”.PM ‘didn’t lie about parties,
he was misled by his staff ’
Chris Smyth Whitehall Editor
Steven Swinfordshown” after she was fined for breaking
Covid-19 laws by attending a party.
She is one of 20 people who have
been fined by Scotland Yard so far.
Fines have also been issued to staff who
attended leaving parties on the eve of
the Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral.
Johnson is not among them and
allies say that the prime minster is
confident he will avoid a fixed penalty
notice by arguing that he was at work
events in his own home.
On LBC radio Rees-Mogg stood by
his comments that the parties were
“fluff” compared to Ukraine and the
cost-of-living crisis. “Those words in
the context of what’s going on in
Ukraine are completely reasonable,” he
said. “I don’t think the issue of what
may or may not have happened in
Downing Street and what we are now
finding out is fundamental. What I
think is fundamental is that we look in
the [Covid-19] inquiry at how the rules
were devised and the effect that they
had, because I think some of those rules
were inhuman.
“The fact that the prime minister was
given the wrong information doesn’t
mean he misled people,” he said.
We have a right to know the names of
party offenders, Thunderer, page 30The government is pushing ahead with
plans to privatise Channel 4. Ministers
will end months of speculation by using
the forthcoming Media Bill to pursue a
potential £1 billion sale, unravelling a
broadcasting business model created
by Margaret Thatcher 40 years ago.
Government sources said Channel
4’s ownership structure had become a
“straitjacket”, which will prevent it
from competing effectively with deep-
pocketed rivals such as Netflix.
They said new ownership will allow
Channel 4 to access more capital, make
and sell its own programmes, and in-
vest in overseas expansion. “We expect
a lot of interest in purchasing Channel
4 from a range of serious buyers who
want to build on Channel 4’s strengths
and help unleash its full potential,” said
a government insider.
Proceeds from the deal will be rein-
vested in a “creative dividend”, which a
source said will be used to train up a
new generation of skilled workers for
the UK’s booming film and TV industry.
In pushing forward with a sale, the£1bn sale to let Channel 4
‘compete with digital rivals’
Jake Kanter
Media Correspondentgovernment is likely to face a backlash
from Channel 4 and Britain’s £3.3 bil-
lion TV production sector, which is
overwhelmingly opposed to privatisa-
tion. There is concern that the govern-
ment has produced little or no evidence
to support its position, while Channel
4’s supporters said it had emerged from
the pandemic in fine form. It was on
course to post record revenues of more
than £1 billion last year.
Critics added that privatisation is an
act of “cultural vandalism” and accused
the government of pursuing an ideo-
logical agenda against Channel 4 over
its perceived liberal values. Govern-
ment sources denied this, arguing that
the broadcaster’s news service and re-
sponsibility to serve young and diverse
audiences will remain intact.
Alex Mahon, Channel 4’s chief exec-
utive, said last year: “We have not seen
any evidence that the irreversible
change of privatising Channel 4 will be
in the interests of either the British au-
diences or the UK economy.”
She added that Channel 4’s commit-
ment to supporting the government’s
levelling up agenda would also be at
risk under a new owner. Channel 4 hasfive regional bases, including its head-
quarters in Leeds, and supports pro-
duction companies outside of London.
The government source said: “This is
not a decision ministers have taken
lightly. We know there are some people
who feel strongly about this issue. But it
is sometimes hard for people close to an
institution to envisage how change can
bring a brighter future.”
Ministers launched a consultation on
privatising Channel 4 last July.
Oliver Dowden, the former culture
secretary, said the government was
proceeding on the basis that changing
its ownership model would be “better
for the broadcaster, and better for the
country”.
Nadine Dorries, who replaced Dow-
den in a reshuffle last September, has
kept her cards close to her chest on priv-
atisation, but has been convinced of its
benefits.
ITV, Sky and Paramount, the US me-
dia company that owns Channel 5, have
been mooted as potential buyers.
Sources would not be drawn on whe-
ther the government has received any
serious expressions of interest. Minis-
ters hope to clinch a sale by early 2024.© TIMES NEWSPAPERS LIMITED, 2022.
Published in print and all other derivative
formats by Times Newspapers Ltd, 1 London
Bridge St, London, SE1 9GF, telephone
020 7782 5000. Printed by: Newsprinters
(Broxbourne) Ltd, Great Cambridge Rd,
Waltham Cross, EN8 8DY; Newsprinters
(Knowsley) Ltd, Kitling Rd, Prescot,
Merseyside, L34 9HN; Newsprinters
(Eurocentral) Ltd, Byramsmuir Road,
Holytown, Motherwell, ML1 1NP; Associated
Printing (Carn) Ltd, Morton 2 Esky Drive,
Carn Industial Estate, Portadown, BT63 5YY;
KP Services, La Rue Martel, La Rue des Pres
Trading Estate, St Saviour, Jersey, JE2 7QR.
For permission to copy articles or headlines
for internal information purposes contact
Newspaper Licensing Agency at PO Box 101,
Tunbridge Wells, TN1 1WX, tel 01892
525274, e-mail [email protected]. For all other
reproduction and licensing inquiries contact
Licensing Department, 1 London Bridge St,
London, SE1 9GF, telephone 020 7711 7888,
e-mail [email protected]Rain in the north and west; snow
over high ground in Scotland. Drier
in the south. Full forecast, page 56
THE WEATHER
22824312
13
1313118TODAY’S EDITION
FOLLOW US
thetimes timesandsundaytimes thetimesOFFER
Save up to 33% with a subscription to
The Times and The Sunday Times
THETIMES.CO.UK/SUBSCRIBEAdvice over
trans women
Trans women can be
legally excluded from
women’s lavatories and
changing rooms,
according to the
Equality and Human
Rights Commission. It
is responsible for
enforcing the Equality
Act 2010 and has
issued guidance to
clarify the law. Page 4
Scotland Yard
smart card plan
The Metropolitan
Police is considering
introducing warrant
cards that can be
scanned by phone in
an attempt to restore
public confidence after
the abduction and
murder of Sarah
Everard, 33, by a
serving firearms
officer last year. Page 15Workers to test
four-day week
More than 3,
British workers at 60
companies will take
part in a four-day
week trial from June to
December in what is
thought to be the
world’s biggest pilot
scheme. It will
examine the impact on
conditions and
productivity. Page 19Guardiola backs
knockout tactics
Pep Guardiola, the
Manchester City
manager, has denied
over-complicating his
tactical approach
to knockout games in
the Champions
League. His side
meet Atletico Madrid
at home tonight in
the first leg of the
quarter final. Page 68Orban claims
fourth poll win
Viktor Orban has
goaded the European
Union by proclaiming
that his brand of
illiberal, conservative
nationalism is the
future for the
continent after
winning a fourth
consecutive term in
office as Hungarian
prime minister. Page 34
Musk buys
9.2% of Twitter
Elon Musk, chief
executive of the
electric carmaker
Tesla, has become
Twitter’s biggest
shareholder after
amassing a 9.2 per cent
stake in the social
media platform. His
investment was worth
about $2.89 billion as
of Friday. Page 37COMMENT
Natural history museums should not shrink from
showing us nature’s story, red in tooth and claw
LAURA FREEMAN, PAGE 31COMMENT 29
THUNDERER 30
LEADING ARTICLES 33MARKETS 46-
REGISTER 53
COURT CIRCULAR 55SPORT 57
CROSSWORD 68
TV & RADIO TIMESDAB RADIO l ONLINE l SMART SPEAKER l APPTo day’s highlights
8.05am8.50am10.20am2.05pm
5.15pmTom Tugendhat, Conservative chairman of the
foreign affairs committee
Mike McGear, Paul McCartney’s brother,
on the siblings’ new talent contest
Jeremy Hunt, Conservative chairman of the
health and social care committee, on their
report that cancer survival rates could reverse
The actor Robert Lindsay on his new play
Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, right,
deputy prime minister of Ukraineplace?” Morawiecki said. “Criminals
are not negotiated with, criminals must
be fought. Nobody negotiated with
Hitler. You would negotiate with Hitler,
with Stalin, with Pol Pot afterwards?”
President Zelensky visited Bucha
yesterday, calling the massacre a “geno-
cide”. President Biden said the killings
by Russian forces were “outrageous”
and confirmed he would seek new
sanctions against Russia and Putin.
“You saw what happened in Bucha...
he is a war criminal,” Biden said in
Washington. He stopped short of calling
the massacre at Bucha genocide but
said: “We have to gather the information... so this can be... a war crimes trial.”
Jake Sullivan, the US national
security adviser, said the images from
Bucha were “tragic, they are shocking,
but unfortunately not surprising”.
“Even before the invasion... we
shared information... that Russia was
intending, as a matter of policy, in this
war, to kill dissidents... and to impose a
reign of terror,” he said.
Britain has also been reluctant to
label Russian actions genocide but
Truss called for “justice to be done at
the International Criminal Court”.
The US joined her in seeking Russia’s
suspension from the UN Human
Rights Council. A two-thirds majority
in the 193-member assembly can sus-
pend a state for gross rights violations.
Truss said in Warsaw that when G
and Nato foreign ministers meet thisweek “we need to announce a tough
new wave of sanctions”. EU countries
have talked of setting a 2027 deadline
for ending use of Russian energy. Britain
says it will end imports of Russian oil this
year and is “exploring” options to end
use of its gas.
Her Ukrainian counterpart, Dmytro
Kuleba, spoke alongside her. He said
that “Ukraine won the battle for Kyiv,
but the war goes on”, adding: “The
horrors that we’ve seen in Bucha are
just a tip of the iceberg of all the crimes
committed by the Russian army. The
situation in Mariupol is much worse.”
War in Ukraine, pages 6-
Good intelligence can help to
tame tyrants, William Hague, page 29
Putin should be indicted at a tribunal,
leading article, page 33continued from page 1
Call for tighter Ukraine sanctionsBanca do Antfer
Telegram: https://t.me/bancadoantfer
Issuhub: https://issuhub.com/user/book/
Issuhub: https://issuhub.com/user/book/