Starmer highlights Labour leadership in response to Tory MPs' revoltpublished at 12:12 Greenwich Mean Time 15 December 2021

12:12 GMT 15 December 2021

Iain Watson
Political correspondent

I wasn’t expecting the PM to be mauled from his own side today – but there seems to be a conscious decision on the Conservative benches to sound vocally supportive.

But Keir Starmer seeks to draw a dividing line not on policy but on personality – that it was Labour leadership led to new public health measures.

He doesn’t quite land the ‘weak, weak, weak’ attack that Tony Blair in opposition successfully deployed against John Major, but there is little doubt the current Labour leader wants this PMQs to reinforce that impression.

Image source, hoc

Keir Starmer says Boris Johnson has "quite rightly" not ruled out further restrictions in response to Omicron cases - and pledges to vote in "the national interest" if further restrictions are needed to "protect the NHS".

He calls on the prime minister to "get his house in order" after last night's rebellion among Tory MPs.

Boris Johnson promises that MPs will get a say "if further regulations are needed".

He accuses Labour of having "wibble-wobbled" over whether to support the government's Plan B measures to slow the spread of Omicron.

Image source, HoC

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer begins by encouraging everyone to get their jabs and boosters.

He then asks if the prime minister agrees that the 100 Conservative MPs who voted against Plan B measures on Tuesday evening voted against "necessary measures to protect the NHS and protect lives".

Boris Johnson says the government has taken a "balanced and proportionate" approach.

He accuses the Labour leader of being "a late convert" to the booster programme.

And he tells MPs that on Tuesday more than 500,000 jabs were delivered.

Image source, hoc

Labour MP Nick Smith asks whether last week's series of announcements related to criminal justice - billed as "crime week" in Westminster - was a "success" for the prime minister.

The week was dominated by calls for the police to investigate gatherings in Downing Street last year, and accusations the PM himself broke Covid laws by taking part in a Christmas quiz.

"Yes it was," replies the prime minister - adding that the Conservatives are putting in "the resources to fight crime".

Boris Johnson gets to his feet, and PMQs gets under way.

The big rebellion of Tory MPs last night was focused on the government's proposals for Covid passes.

So what are they?

Over-18s in England will have to prove they are fully vaccinated or have a recent negative lateral flow test to enter a number of large venues.

It will cover nightclubs, indoor unseated venues with more than 500 people, unseated outdoor venues with more than 4,000 people, or any venue with more than 10,000 people.

Venues will be able to apply to their local council to only carry out spot-checks on a percentage of attendees, if checking everyone before entry would cause unsafe crowds to gather outside.

The government backtracked on introducing the scheme earlier this year, but is now introducing it in response to the spread of the Omicron variant.

Ministers say it will help control infections in crowded venues, but a significant number of Tory MPs have doubts about how useful it will really be.

Image source, Reuters

Boris Johnson was pictured in his customary black face mask earlier as he left Downing Street to head over to the House of Commons.

As he departed, he was asked by a reporter in the street: "Is the party over for you now, Prime Minister?"

Dr Jenny Harries - UK Health Security Agency chief - has been warning that the NHS could be potentially in "serious peril" because of the Omicron wave.

Speaking to MPs on the Transport Committee, she says testing people who travel to the UK from abroad "still remains a key point, particularly when we can foresee a very large wave of Omicron coming through and our health services potentially being in serious peril".

One of the MPs asks her whether she is concerned that countries might not report new variants, after South Africa complained it was being punished by the strict travel bans after it identified Omicron.

Harries replies it's an "important point", adding: "It's really important that countries feel able and supported to develop their genomic capacity, to signal that to the world and for the world to support them in return."

A challenging PMQs ahead for Boris Johnsonpublished at 11:41 Greenwich Mean Time 15 December 2021

11:41 GMT 15 December 2021

Iain Watson
Political correspondent

Image source, Reuters

PMQs will obviously be challenging for Boris Johnson – less than 24 hours after the biggest rebellion of his premiership.

It was a rebellion which united those on different sides of the Brexit division: former ministers and lifelong backbenchers; veteran MPs and some of the new intake - all against his Covid passport.

So Keir Starmer will undoubtedly argue that the PM no longer has the authority to lead the country through the latest Covid crisis.

I’d expect, having delivered such a powerful shot across Boris Johnson’s bows last night, that most of his own MPs will resist the temptation to spray him with further with friendly fire.

But PMQs also poses a challenge for Keir Starmer – will he continue to portray himself as a statesman who can stand above party politics when the nation demands it, or will he try to push home his advantage by also renewing attacks on alleged rule breaking in No10?

Boris Johnson’s best tactic will be to stress the seriousness of the situation the UK faces from Omicron, and to try to make attacks on his authority seem trivial.

Nonetheless, he will have behind him MPs whose critical tongues may be bitten, but whose minds will be turning to events in Shropshire, ahead of tomorrow’s by-election and worrying if their leader, in recent weeks, has gone from being an electoral asset to a liability.

Image source, Reuters

Today’s PMQs session also comes against the backdrop of the spread of the Omicron variant, and warnings about the effect this could have on NHS capacity.

On Tuesday, the UK recorded 59,610 new Covid cases, the highest number since January.

Health officials are predicting that the real number of infections to be much higher, and warn that a big wave of infections could put unsustainable pressure on hospital beds.

Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the final session Prime Minister’s Questions before MPs head on their Christmas recess from tomorrow.

Boris Johnson is facing pressure over his leadership, after his backbenchers last night inflicted the biggest rebellion of his premiership.

Despite making a personal plea to support him in the hours before the vote, nearly 100 Tory MPs voted against his Covid pass scheme for England.

But, with the support of Labour, the plan passed and has kicked into force today.