New Covid restrictions pass in parliament despite large Tory rebellion
MPs have agreed to implement new tiered Covid restrictions from tomorrow, however Boris Johnson was rocked by the largest Tory backbench rebellion he has faced.
Seventy-eight MPs, including 55 Tory MPs, voted against the government and against the three-tier Covid restrictions.
The largest previous rebellion against Johnson was when 44 Conservative MPs voted against bringing in a 10pm hospitality curfew in England.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer instructed his MPs to abstain from the vote.
The vote means London will tomorrow be put into Tier 2, meaning the hospitality and retail sectors can open their doors.
Chair of the 1922 committee of Tory backbenchers Graham Brady voted against the new restrictions and argued that the government had not provided enough evidence for its approach.
“If government is to take away fundamental liberties of the people whom we represent, they must demonstrate beyond question that they are acting in a way that is both proporaitonate and absolutely necessary,” he said.
“I believe the government has failed to make that compelling case.”
Health secretary Matt Hancock told the House of Commons that “we can’t learn to live with [Covid]” as some MPs have suggested.
“The measures we take in this county, and the measures in these regulations, are similar in kind and seek to strike the same balance as measures in similar countries the world over,” he said.
From tomorrow, London’s pubs and restaurants can only serve patrons if they order a “substantial meal” and household mixing will not be allowed indoors.
Environment secretary George Eustice said yesterday that a scotch egg would count as a substantial meal, opening the door to an animated discussion in the media on what else would count under the new rules.
Johnson announced today that all pubs in Tier 2 that cannot open under the new restrictions will be given a £1,000 grant.
The government will review the status of each region on 16 December.