Matthew Taylor

Alok Sharma: Net zero targets can be met with incentives With the UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow looming ever closer, Andrew Marr spoke this morning to Alok Sharma, the President for COP26. Marr asked about what the UK government was preparing to do in order to meet its ambitious targets of zero carbon emissions

Sajid Javid – I’m not anticipating any more lockdowns The Health Secretary was the main guest of the day on BBC One’s Andrew Marr show, hosted this morning by Nick Robinson. Robinson asked Javid about the likelihood that Christmas could be threatened once again by lockdown. Javid responded by saying that it was highly unlikely

No one could argue that there hasn’t been anything to talk about since the Sunday shows made their last appearance in July. From Afghanistan to vaccine passports, the government has had plenty on its plate, and the latest thorny issue to hit the headlines is the government’s plan to reform the social care system. It

Perhaps ‘freedom day’ eve was never destined to run smoothly. Nevertheless, the breaking news this morning that both the Prime Minister and the Chancellor had been contacted by NHS Test and Trace falls in the realm of absurdities that one just couldn’t make up. It had initially been announced that Johnson and Sunak would be

Nadhim Zahawi – Government will set out unlocking steps tomorrow The government’s original plans for ‘Freedom Day’ on 21 June came and went, but this morning the vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi re-asserted that the blueprint for Freedom Day Mk 2 had been given the green light: NZ: I am confident that we can proceed… but

Robert Jenrick – We will have to ‘learn to live with the virus’ The Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick was the government’s chief spokesman today as England edges ever closer towards the planned relaxation of Covid restrictions on 19 July. Jenrick continued to make positive noises about this date, telling Trevor Phillips that data being examined

Brandon Lewis: Matt Hancock has ‘ultimately’ made ‘the right judgement’ There is only one story in town at the moment: Matt Hancock’s resignation after the Sun splashed a picture of him and his Department of Health colleague Gina Coladangelo on Friday’s front page. Their embrace, recorded on CCTV in early May, has prompted accusations of

John Bercow – ‘I do not identify with the Conservative party’ Last night, it was revealed that the former Commons Speaker John Bercow had not merely distanced himself from his former party, but had disowned it altogether. Interviewed by the Observer, he castigated the Conservative party as ‘reactionary, populist, nationalistic and sometimes even xenophobic’. Bercow’s

Not all is harmonious in Carbis Bay this morning. Amid the sun and sea air, a row has erupted between Boris Johnson and French President Emmanuel Macron. Macron reportedly suggested to the Prime Minister that Northern Ireland was not part of the same country as the rest of the UK, as part of a heated

The Health Secretary was back in front of the cameras this morning, and there was plenty to discuss, from the planned lifting of all restrictions on 21 June to the fallout from Dominic Cummings’ testimony before MPs last week. Dominic Cummings’ most wounding accusation last week was that Hancock had deliberately lied to the Prime Minister’s

Nadhim Zahawi – Government ‘absolutely’ threw protective ring around care homes Dominic Cummings’ much anticipated testimony before the lessons learnt joint inquiry on Wednesday has proved as volcanic. Earning his particular ire was the health secretary Matt Hancock. Cummings claimed that Hancock should have been fired for ’15 to 20’ different reasons, and alleged that Hancock

Priti Patel: The BBC’s reputation ‘has been compromised’ Today’s political shows were dominated by the fallout from the Dyson inquiry into the BBC and its relationship with the journalist Martin Bashir. The findings of Lord Dyson’s report have already seen Tony Hall, the BBC’s former director-general, resign his post as chair of the National Gallery.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock was urged to justify the government’s roadmap for easing Covid restrictions during his TV round this morning. From tomorrow in England and Wales, indoor hospitality and entertainment businesses will be able to reopen their doors, and rules on meeting other people both inside and out will also be relaxed significantly. Hancock insisted it

The results from the ‘Super Thursday’ elections are now in, and they are raising existential questions, both for the Labour party and for the United Kingdom. The SNP re-established their dominant position across Scotland, hoovering up most of the constituency seats, but falling just short of an overall majority once the ‘list’ seats were taken

Douglas Ross – PM should resign if he broke the Ministerial Code Andrew Marr’s first guest of the day was Douglas Ross, the leader of the Scottish Conservatives. With potentially crucial elections being held all across the UK next week – including to Holyrood – the row about the Prime Minister’s arrangements to pay for

Liz Truss – I ‘absolutely believe and trust’ the PM on Downing Street refurbishment The International Trade Secretary Liz Truss was the government’s chief spokesperson this morning, meaning that she would be the lightning rod for the questions raised by Dominic Cumming’s latest blog post. The most incendiary part of the blog concerned the Prime

George Eustice – David Cameron’s behaviour ‘is acceptable’ Both Andrew Marr and Sophy Ridge were joined this morning by the Environment Secretary George Eustice – and much of their conversations focused on the recent lobbying debacle sparked by the former Prime Minister’s texts to the Chancellor Rishi Sunak. Cameron was attempting to secure support loans

Oliver Dowden – We have ‘every confidence’ there will not be future lockdowns The Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden was in the hot seat this morning amid reports that a third wave of Covid-19 is engulfing much of continental Europe. Many of the UK’s close neighbours, including France, Germany and the Netherlands, are re-introducing or extending

Steve Baker – Coronavirus Act is ‘excessive and disproportionate’ This week, before Parliament breaks up for the Easter recess, the government will seek to extend the Coronavirus Act by a further six months. The act, which was first passed almost exactly one year ago, has been met with serious discontent by many Conservative backbenchers, who

Victoria Atkins – Police response to Sarah Everard vigil ‘very upsetting’ On Saturday, a vigil was held on Clapham Common in memory of Sarah Everard, a 33-year-old woman who disappeared from London’s streets earlier in March and whose body was later found in a Kent woodland. After talks between the police and the organisers of