lockdown
Sajid Javid says restrictions could return after ‘freedom day’
In another sign of the government’s more cautious approach to the July 19 unlocking, Sajid Javid has just told the…
Are ministers prepared for ‘freedom day’?
Is the government having a wobble over ‘Freedom Day’ on 19 July? Well, for one thing you won’t hear ministers…
Real life
‘Oh, I do so love to see all the lovely pheasants running around the place,’ said the lady walking the…
What price freedom?
The long-awaited easing of restrictions will not be the triumphant moment that many expected back in May. The Delta variant…
Opening time
A charge repeatedly made against Boris Johnson over the past 16 months is that he has ‘ignored scientific advice’. But…
Labour’s unlocking problem
Labour is unhappy with the government’s plan for unlocking, with leader Sir Keir Starmer calling it ‘reckless’. In the Commons…
Boris’s ‘freedom day’ spells misery for many
The projection from Sajid Javid that Covid-19 infections could surge to a record 100,000 per day in a few weeks,…
The economic case for ditching mask mandates
After many months of hardship and sacrifice, freedom is finally within grasp. Boris Johnson has reclaimed his buccaneering, libertarian spirit…
Who cared?
Lockdown killed my mother – and thousands like her
Low life
The village square is a long and pedestrianised oblong shaded along its length by massive pollarded plane trees. It’s known…
High life
New York I hope this is my last week in the Bagel. I plan to fly first to Switzerland and…
The wrong track
Under what circumstances can a government restrict the liberty of the people? An example was given last year: in a…
The party elite
Politicians made the rules – so they know how to bend them
The people’s choice
Richard Bratby talks to one of Britain’s most successful impresarios about his promoter’s nose, Arts Council spinelessness and ENO madness
Portrait of the Week
Home The lifting of coronavirus restrictions was delayed from 21 June until 19 July, probably. The motive was to avoid…
We’re all in favour of lockdown, darling
I’ve just written an essay for the People’s Lockdown Inquiry, a new collaboration between Buckingham University, the Institute of Ideas…
A dead cert
Covid or no Covid, we’re all going to snuff it
The long Covid revenge
Boris Johnson’s predecessor was destroyed by her inability to meet deadlines. Theresa May extended the Brexit transition period so many…
High life
New York I haven’t felt such shirt-dripping, mind-clogging wet heat since Saigon back in 1971. The Bagel is a steam…
Does ‘Johnson’s law’ explain why people won’t work from home?
Even after the one metre rule and the limits on numbers are removed on July 19th, we will not be…
Delay, data and the need for transparency
Boris Johnson delayed 21 June, he said, because the data did not merit a full reopening. The specific data government…
Brexit, lockdown and the fracturing of British politics
Is our society becoming less tolerant and more viscerally tribal? Or is our politics provoking people into committing more angry…
Lockdown delay is a price worth paying
For the first time during this pandemic, I think we should delay lifting restrictions. Looking at the latest data, it…
Covid and the difficulty with ‘following the science’
Did anyone fancy being in Boris Johnson’s shoes before he made the decision to delay the full lifting of Covid…
Is furlough holding back the jobs market?
The latest employment figures, published this morning, confirm a remarkable aspect of the Covid pandemic: that it appears to have…
