Sajid Javid’s underlings let the cat out the bag

Oh dear. The House of Commons is due to vote on the government’s ‘Plan B’ Covid strategy on Tuesday, with speculation mounting about the scale of parliamentary opposition to the proposed vaccine passports. Mr S has been keeping track of the number of Tory rebels with the current figure standing at 65 MPs – potentially the biggest rebellion since the 2019 election. But with Labour having already announced that they will back the government, it seems inevitable the restrictions will pass, regardless of the Covid Research Group’s manoeuverings.

Still, amid talk of possible concessions, ministers continue to pay lip service to the notion that Parliament is being consulted on the issue. But now it seems that one of Sajid Javid’s underlings at the Department of Health has let the cat out of the bag, with the ministry’s official account breezily declaring this afternoon that ‘from 15 December in England, you will need to show your NHS COVID Pass to enter places where large crowds gather, like nightclubs or big sporting events.’