Government gives parliament say over future Covid restrictions
The government has agreed to give parliament a level of oversight over future Covid restrictions that affect the whole country in a bid to quell a rebellion from backbench Tories.
Health secretary Matt Hancock said the government would “consult parliament” before announcing future England or UK-wide Covid restrictions and would “wherever possible…hold votes before such regulations come into force”.
He added: “But of course responding to the virus means the government must act with speed when required and we cannot hold up urgent regulations which are needed to control the virus and save lives.”
The proposed changes to the coronavirus legislation come after up to 80 Tory MPs were prepared to vote for an amendment to the bill that would have likely resulted in an embarassing defeat for Boris Johnson.
The amendment – which was drawn up by head of the 1922 committee of Tory backbenchers Sir Graham Brady – would have seen parliament have a final vote on every new coronavirus measure taken by the government.
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The amendment was not chosen by Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle to be voted on by MPs today, however Downing Street still moved to quell the rising rebellion in the Conservative ranks.
“I believe in the sovereignty of parliament and I believe scrutinised decisions are better decisions and I believe in this house as the cockpit of this nation,” Hanock said.
Brady told MPs that he “thanked” the government for giving the House of Commons greater oversight over the country’s coronavirus response.
He said: “Members on both sides of the House understand the importance of ministers to have freedom to act where necessary, but we are grateful that he and other members of the government understand the importance of proper scrutiny in this place and the benefits it can bring to government as well.”
Many of the Conservative parliamentary party’s libertarian and right-wing MPs have been disgruntled at the government’s willingness to swiftly apply new coronavirus restrictions, the amount the Treasury has spent during the pandemic and speculation that Rishi Sunak is considering tax rises to pay for the Budget deficit.
A growing number of Tory MPs also believe the government’s latest Covid restrictions are too strict, with one telling City A.M. today that another national lockdown would lead to “open rebellion” on the Conservative benches.
“This is becoming an economic crisis instead of a health crisis,” they said.
Some of the new restrictions include a decree that all pubs in England have to keep music under a certain level and that hospitality venues have to “take all reasonable measures” to stop singing”.
Inter-household mixing has also been banned in large parts of the North East, with much speculation that similar measures will be imposed on London.