coronavirus

Portrait of the week: Gas prices soar, cabinet reshuffled and a green light for travel

25 September 2021 9:00 am

Home To prevent a shortage of meat, which relies on carbon dioxide in its packaging, the government gave millions of…

The Covid pantomime at my father’s memorial

25 September 2021 9:00 am

This last weekend I attended the memorial service for my father, who died in July. This isn’t a bid for…

Could the squeeze on living standards bring down Boris?

24 September 2021 3:00 pm

There is about to be a two-phase onslaught on the living standards of those on low-to-middling incomes. On 1 October…

Javid avoids Tory Covid powers fightback – for now

15 September 2021 7:34 am

Tory MPs were not happy when Sajid Javid unveiled the Covid winter plan in the Commons this afternoon. They’re dissatisfied…

Is the inflation panic over? Probably not

14 September 2021 8:44 pm

So, is the post-Covid inflation panic over? That is how it looked last month, when the government’s preferred inflation index,…

Tories scrap mandatory vaccine passports

13 September 2021 8:56 am

On BBC One’s Andrew Marr show Sajid Javid confirmed that plans for domestic vaccine passports in England were on the…

The emergency is over. Now the government must relinquish its emergency powers

11 September 2021 9:00 am

For 18 months, the government has held power over us as never before in peacetime. The emergency powers granted by…

The stories that are too good to check

11 September 2021 9:00 am

Last weekend, Rolling Stone ran a story about an interview an emergency room doctor had given to a local news…

What Britain should learn from Israel about booster shots

11 September 2021 9:00 am

Third jabs need to be rolled out right away

Covid pingdemic takes its toll on Britain's economic bounce-back

11 September 2021 1:41 am

The arrival of ‘freedom day’ on 19 July enabled people to return to concerts, festivals, and ditch social distancing, but…

Why didn't Tory MPs oppose Boris's tax hike?

7 September 2021 10:55 pm

Boris Johnson has just announced his plans to increase National Insurance by 1.25 per cent for both workers and employers…

Why isn't the vaccine UK approved for 12- to 15-year-olds?

4 September 2021 10:20 am

This afternoon, the JCVI has essentially passed the buck on vaccinating 12- to 15-year-olds. It has declared that the health benefits…

Letters: The agony of the forgotten Australians

4 September 2021 9:00 am

A glimmer of hope Sir: After the debacle of the West’s shambolic withdrawal from Afghanistan, it was comforting to read…

It’s time for NHS GPs to stop hiding behind their telephones

4 September 2021 9:00 am

Nye Bevan famously said that he was only able to persuade family doctors to support the creation of the NHS…

The Tories aren’t in party mood

4 September 2021 9:00 am

Nearly two years on from the general election and 11 years since the Tories took office, they remain comfortably and…

On child vaccination, parents should have the choice

1 September 2021 7:52 am

On Saturday, the Health Secretary made his most bullish comments on child vaccination so far. Writing in the Times, Sajid Javid argued that…

New Zealand’s zero Covid strategy is becoming unsustainable

22 August 2021 5:00 pm

New Zealand has done remarkably well over the past 18 months at protecting its citizens from the worst of the…

China’s zero Covid strategy is being undermined by mahjong

22 August 2021 9:00 am

Mao Zedong once said that the game of mahjong should not be underestimated, because: ‘If you know how to play…

How are the vaccines affected by the Delta variant?

20 August 2021 8:03 am

Has the emergence of the Delta, or Indian, variant reduced the effectiveness of Covid vaccines and if so by how…

How China tried to suppress the lab leak investigation

14 August 2021 11:53 am

The lead figure in the World Health Organisation’s work on the origins of Covid-19 has givena remarkable interview to Danish…

What ministers won’t admit about A-levels

14 August 2021 9:00 am

The tale of A-levels shows how ministers can sometimes find themselves in a position when it is simply too dangerous…

Why vaccine passports are pointless

14 August 2021 9:00 am

Despite having mocked app-happy Albion in my last column, I finally downloaded the NHS app. (Lest I seem a raging…

The great holiday Covid test rip-off

14 August 2021 9:00 am

The great holiday Covid test rip-off

Portrait of the week: Cameron’s cash, A-grades abound and Tower Bridge won’t budge

14 August 2021 9:00 am

Home With less frightening domestic data on the coronavirus pandemic to ponder, subjects such as the rivalry between Boris Johnson,…

Liberté, égalité, vacciné: France’s Covid passport revolt is just beginning

14 August 2021 9:00 am

France’s revolt against Covid passports is just beginning