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Starmer chameleon
It’s been coming for some time, but today Keir Starmer finally served notice on Boris Johnson that he really does mean business. Devoting all six of his PMQs to the UK’s awful death toll in care homes from Covid-19, the Labour leader showed a flash of steel that ought to worry even this 80-strong majority government.
Ever since he was elected, some on the Left of his party have accused Starmer of being too soft on Johnson, too evenly toned, too lawyerly. After his first PMQs, there was even a Momentum-style meme that the word ‘forensic’ was overused, and somehow a badge of shame. Anything that was seen as even an implicit attack on Jeremy Corbyn was to be ridiculed, even if it had Johnson squirming.
But no-drama-Starmer showed last week, and even more this week, that he can mix it up, throwing combinations of punches to keep his opponent on the parliamentary ropes. Left hooks (on austerity) and right hooks (on the dignity of the WW2 patriots) were today supplemented by uppercuts on the growing scandal of the care home death rate.
Putting the ‘opposition’ into ‘constructive opposition’, Starmer showed a chameleon-like ability to shift easily from loyal public servant, offering support in the national interest, to ruthlessly focused critic. Yes, it was his prosecutorial (you could even call it ‘forensic’) nous that unearthed the pre-March 12 government guidance to care homes. But it was the raw politics of competence that was most on display. No wonder Jacob Rees-Mogg wants the protective wall of cheering Tory MPs to return as soon as possible.
The key line - “it remains very unlikely that people receiving care in a care home or the community will become infected” - certainly sounded woefully complacent. It was a killer quote, in every sense of the word. Johnson blurted out that “it wasn’t true” and even later tried to accuse Starmer of being misleading, when in fact he had indeed quoted the advice accurately.
Deputy chief medical officer Jenny Harries tried to defend the guidance but her argument (that there was no “sustained community transmission” at the time) didn’t feel like it would hold up in the court of public opinion. Just as damaging was the cardiologist cited by Starmer, who said the NHS discharged known and unknown cases of Covid into care homes without enough testing or PPE.
With elderly patients in hospital dubbed ‘bed blockers’ for far too long, the political upsides for Labour in fighting for a key voter group are obvious. Much more importantly, if Starmer can somehow help develop a consensus on a national care service, something of real value could still come out of this awful pandemic.
The PM tried to use PMQs to hail a new £600m injection of cash into social care. But even this appeared more like an admission of error than a present to be received by a grateful nation. When Robert Jenrick told the No.10 press conference that the package would ensure care homes got “the best infection control, access to testing, the right protective equipment”, many will have wondered why all those were lacking in the first place.
Similarly, Jenrick’s talk of “the new discharge policies” to ensure residents only arrive or leave “once we know that they are free from Covid-19” begged the question why the ‘new’ policies had taken this long.
As I’ve written before, only a fool would write off Johnson’s ability to defy political gravity. The Telegraph’s leak of the Treasury’s economic response to the crisis underlines that Johnsonomics means higher levels of debt over the long term, far from the austerity of the Osborne era. Freezes on public sector pay were ruled out today, but tax hikes were not.
Yet even on the economic response, Starmer can claim plenty of credit for pushing the government to make the right (Left) choices. The furlough scheme and its extension, the extra state backed loans for business, the self-employed scheme (which began today with big numbers, and surely soon to be extended too), are all the products of ‘constructive’ Opposition pressure, just as more PPE and testing are.
The real danger for Johnson is that a global recession, particularly if the US is hard hit, could rip away every sticking plaster he has so far applied to our wounded economy. Given that Labour was blamed by the Tories in 2010 for a global financial crisis, the irony of a role reversal won’t be lost on some. There’s often talk among ministers of ‘balancing’ health and wealth in the lockdown exit plan, yet mass unemployment on top of mass deaths would truly be the worst of both worlds.
Meanwhile, a YouGov poll has put Starmer ahead of Johnson on a net rating of +23 for the first time. After barely four weeks in the job, and with lots of people still in the ‘don’t know’ camp, that’s not a bad achievement. It’s a reminder too that there is one big job loss that Starmer may ultimately be happy to see out of this Covid crisis: the prime minister’s.
Quote Of The Day
“The people who suffer the most from schools not being open are those children who are so desperate to attend”
Education secretary Gavin Williamson on why the poorest pupils need to catch up in the classroom
Wednesday Cheat Sheet
Chancellor Rishi Sunak admitted that it was “very likely” the UK is in a “significant recession”, as new figures showed GDP fell by 2% in the first three months of 2020. With just one week of lockdown in those stats, the next quarter will be much much worse.
Boris Johnson should “step back” from his June 1 return date for schools amid continuing safety fears, an alliance of education trade unions warned. Gavin Williamson hit back at what he called Labour “scaremongering” over claims that new chains of infection would result. He also hinted some schools could open this summer with volunteers offering ‘catch up’ tuition.
Williamson’s chief scientific adviser Osama Rahman had to ‘clarify’ his evidence to the Commons science and tech committee after he suggested he had not assessed the reopening plans and claimed they were a ‘first draft’.
More than 110,000 self-employed people hit by coronavirus applied for government grants on the first day of the new Self Employed Income Support Scheme. It aims to match the support being given to furloughed employees.
Police in England revealed they have no powers to enforce two-metre social distancing. New guidelines issued by the College of Policing and the National Police Chiefs’ Council urges officers to only enforce what is written in law.
Transport secretary Grant Shapps warned the public they would be “taking a chance” with their money if they booked a summer holiday at present. He added he would avoid packed buses
Housing secretary Robert Jenrick said building sites would be able to stay open as late as 9pm or even longer during the summer months to allow workers to socially distance in staggered shifts.
Commons leader Jacob Rees-Mogg faced a backlash as declared the “virtual veneer of a parliament” stifled real debate. He signalled that current video questions and remote voting would end on 2 June.
What I’m Reading
The Future Of University Education Post-Covid - New York Magazine
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