Omicron New Variant Thread 2 *title edited by MNHQ at OP's request*

[Thewiseoneincognito]

Continuation of the last thread

I didn't think Johnson would go for passports. He has.

He still has to get it enacted in law. There may yet be drama along those lines.

We will see.

Simon Jupp MP @simonjamesjupp
I don’t support Plan B.

Vaccine passports are divisive & discriminatory. They do not stop the spread of Covid.

Plan B will cost jobs in many sectors, including hospitality. Working from home won’t help our social or economic recovery.

I won’t vote for these measures.

Thats the first I've seen. I will be surprised if its the last.

Something is stirring in the waters.

And genuinely given the super spread Norway event and the Dutch plane episode and the implication that incubation is much shorter for omicron, I'm not sure how well vaccine passports are going to hold up...

Sebastian Payne @SebastianEPayne
There was a Cabinet split on Plan B: Rishi Sunak voiced concerns over the economic costs, Michael Gove feared they did not go far enough.

But officials say Sunak was relieved hospitality industry was excluded from the passports and new mask restrictions

Plus the unhappiness about No10 Christmas party mess is deep tonight.

One minister described the situation as “completely appalling”, adding: “I feel really quite repulsed by it and cannot believe they allowed it to get this place.”

There’s also louder chatter among Tories about whether Johnson’s time in power could be drawing to a close.

One minister: “In a way I haven’t heard before, colleagues I wouldn’t have expected are talking about what the end-game might be for the PM.”

One longstanding ally of Johnson described the situation at Westminster as “finely balanced”, adding the prime minister was “down a couple of cat lives in last month” and could not “afford many more of these mistakes”.

I saw that too @RedToothBrush. I agree that something is stirring.

@RedToothBrush

Simon Jupp MP *@simonjamesjupp* I don’t support Plan B.

Vaccine passports are divisive & discriminatory. They do not stop the spread of Covid.

Plan B will cost jobs in many sectors, including hospitality. Working from home won’t help our social or economic recovery.

I won’t vote for these measures.

Thats the first I've seen. I will be surprised if its the last.

Something is stirring in the waters.

And genuinely given the super spread Norway event and the Dutch plane episode and the implication that incubation is much shorter for omicron, I'm not sure how well vaccine passports are going to hold up...

Sebastian Payne @SebastianEPayne
There was a Cabinet split on Plan B: Rishi Sunak voiced concerns over the economic costs, Michael Gove feared they did not go far enough.

But officials say Sunak was relieved hospitality industry was excluded from the passports and new mask restrictions

Plus the unhappiness about No10 Christmas party mess is deep tonight.

One minister described the situation as “completely appalling”, adding: “I feel really quite repulsed by it and cannot believe they allowed it to get this place.”

There’s also louder chatter among Tories about whether Johnson’s time in power could be drawing to a close.

One minister: “In a way I haven’t heard before, colleagues I wouldn’t have expected are talking about what the end-game might be for the PM.”

One longstanding ally of Johnson described the situation at Westminster as “finely balanced”, adding the prime minister was “down a couple of cat lives in last month” and could not “afford many more of these mistakes”.

They do need to be voted on don’t they?

I’ve thought this today but haven’t understood why it’s not been mentioned

Yes they do. Masks in shops had to be voted through. It got through but there was a sizeable rebellion.

They should vote first

Wonder if it will get through

I suppose Labour will vote for it

Sebastian Payne @SebastianEPayne
Another MP said colleagues could start putting in letters of no confidence if more details emerged about parties in No10.

“If the prime minister has misled us on what he knew about the parties and what he attended, then the letters will start flying in”

All eyes on the North Shropshire by-election next Thursday. If the Tories don’t hold on (majority 22,949, Lib Dems think they have a chance) then things could get much dicier for Johnson.

Politics and reality.
The two just don't mix well do they?

@MarshaBradyo

They should vote first

Wonder if it will get through

I suppose Labour will vote for it

There is disquiet in the ranks that Johnson presented it to the press conference before the commons.

This precident started under May and its considered to be rather dismissive of Parliament.

This actually puts labour in something of a difficult position. Many people who dislike passports and restrictions are younger. It risks alienating some. Plus there is a realistic chance that Johnson will have to rely on opposition support to get through the rules. Thus giving a opportunity for labour to point score politically to try to destabilise Johnson.

It has echoes of the dynamics of division with Brexit and the mess that was.

I don't know how this is going to play out, but I'm not convinced it will definitely be as straightforward as it seems. Even if Johnson manages it, it may come at a cost to his leadership...

@MarshaBradyo

They should vote first

Wonder if it will get through

I suppose Labour will vote for it

I'd guess so, but if I were KS I probably wouldn't want them going that way. The groups most affected by passports will be young and/or BAME people, and Labour could really do with continuing to win substantial support from both groups.

If Labour do back vaccine passports, they'll get passed, but Johnson could well need Opposition support to do it which would be embarrassing.

I appear to have cross posted with RTB there! Saying basically the same thing.

Thanks for interesting answers both

The political nature of this is distracting me from Covid downer

The bold thing to do, which obviously is not Starmer's style, would be to oppose. Force Johnson to make himself as unpopular as possible getting it passed, or to lose the vote/withdraw the proposal. It's a risk but one with potentially substantial gains.

@VikingOnTheFridge it would certainly win him some points. Labour haven’t made themselves particularly popular in recent months.

Ben Bradley on Twitter:

“I said I would not vote for vaccine passports, which I believe are ineffective & discriminatory. I also cannot vote for restrictions 'just in case' at a time when hospitalisations and deaths are falling. I don't believe the evidence supports Plan B and I will not vote for it.”

I think his aim has always been to try and get through the pandemic unscathed, in a good position to kick the Tories as the bones are picked over. But the longer this goes on the less viable that is as a strategy. And he really does need to take every opportunity he might get to kill Boris off. The Tories have nobody suitable in waiting, and his personal vote for some ungodly reason has always been substantial, so it would hugely improve Labour's chances.

@bumbleymummy

Ben Bradley on Twitter:

“I said I would not vote for vaccine passports, which I believe are ineffective & discriminatory. I also cannot vote for restrictions 'just in case' at a time when hospitalisations and deaths are falling. I don't believe the evidence supports Plan B and I will not vote for it.”

Very interesting

If it doesn’t get through but the just in case isn’t good news then we have another vote potentially looming for more

Not that I want anything harsher but I didn’t think we’d get to a let it run position

I think it’ll get through though I can’t see KS being too out there

Has he says anything on this topic so far?

@VikingOnTheFridge

The bold thing to do, which obviously is not Starmer's style, would be to oppose. Force Johnson to make himself as unpopular as possible getting it passed, or to lose the vote/withdraw the proposal. It's a risk but one with potentially substantial gains.

When we end up in lockdown, with another 50,000 on the death toll it's important that we all know it's because the ERG voted down sensible measures to prevent that.

So Keir Starmer et al will mostly vote FOR Plan B I expect. He's never struck me as a clueless idiot who doesn't recognise an exponential when he sees one.

0 hospitalisations from omicron in the U.K. princess. Zero.

@bumbleymummy

0 hospitalisations from omicron in the U.K. princess. Zero.

Have you seen The Big Short?

No. Should I have?

It’s very funny, there’s a line where he says zero like that.

Highly recommend for a laugh, good actors in it too

@VikingOnTheFridge

The bold thing to do, which obviously is not Starmer's style, would be to oppose. Force Johnson to make himself as unpopular as possible getting it passed, or to lose the vote/withdraw the proposal. It's a risk but one with potentially substantial gains.

Or it could fall completely flat on its arse and backfire on Starmer.

The public mood is they are sick of this type of game playing.

It is interesting that Labour apparently have just done this in the commons:
Wes Streeting MP @wesstreeting
The heckling of the Health Secretary by his own side this evening was ugly and unnecessary.

We’ve made it clear that Labour will support the measures backed by the chief medical officer and chief scientific advisor.

We will put public health before party politics.

John Rentoul @JohnRentoul
Assured response by Wes Streeting, telling Javid he can rely on Labour to support him in the national interest

Mirror image of Cameron telling Blair he could rely on Tory votes to get his schools reforms through in 2005

Beginning to look as if Johnson will need Labour votes to get coronavirus passports through

Could still be dropped or amended

It looks a lot like the Health Secretary has already actively asked Labour to support Health Passports.

You would only do this if you thought the vote was going to be a major issue with your own back benches.

It probably will pass if this is the cases.

But watch carefully. The idea that backbenchers will stand for being outmanuved and sidelined by the PM in this way for long is going to go down line a cold cup of sick.

I fear politics are about to very much over take whats happening in hospitals very quickly, at just the wrong moment.

I’ve give it watch. Need a good laugh this evening! Thanks :)

Well that's the risk RTB, and as I say, Starmer is nothing if not risk averse.

Am I misunderstanding? You can show a negative lateral flow test as an alternative to a vaccine passport, so vaccine passports won’t be compulsory anyway?