Downing Street

Downing Street has denied that government scientific advisers called for the closure of UK borders to prevent the spread of new coronavirus variants ‘weeks ago’. The discovery of the South Africa strain of coronavirus has prompted a series of travel bans, with people arriving into England from anywhere outside the UK, Ireland, the Channel Islands […]

The first inaugural meeting between the UK’s new diplomatic team in Brussels and senior EU officials since Brexit has been “postponed” in response to a spat over the bloc’s diplomatic status. Lindsay Croisdale-Appleby, formally appointed this month to represent the UK in Brussels, was due to meet the chief aide to the European council president, Charles Michel, […]

The Home Office has launched a voluntary repatriation scheme for EU nationals living in the UK. The Guardian has learned EU citizens are being offered financial incentives to leave the UK, months before the deadline to apply for settled status. Since January 1, EU citizens have been added to the government scheme which promises to pay […]

Sky has brought the rights to a television drama about Boris Johnson’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic and his first year as prime minister. This Sceptred Isle is a five-part series focusing on Johnson’s appointment as prime minister, the Covid-19 cases in the UK, through to him falling ill with the virus, and the arrival of his […]

Downing Street has said there are “no plans” to go ahead with a proposal to pay £500 to everyone who tests positive for coronavirus in order to increase the number of people abiding by quarantine rules. Ministers have considered a proposal to extend payments to anyone who tests positive for Covid-19 in England amid concerns […]

Bob Geldof has claimed “lying is second nature” to Boris Johnson’s government as he accused it of betraying British businesses to deliver Brexit. Geldof said Downing Street were “a hapless lot” who put politics ahead of the economic wellbeing of the nation. The Irish singer-songwriter turned political activist claimed No 10 was never serious about clenching a […]

Downing Street has declined to criticise Joe Biden for removing a bust of Sir Winston Churchill from the Oval Office, despite Boris Johnson’s previous attack on Barack Obama for the same move. The prime minister said in much-criticised comments in 2016 that Obama removing the sculpture “was a symbol of the part-Kenyan president’s ancestral dislike […]

Downing Street has insisted Boris Johnson’s exchanges at Prime Minister’s Questions fit the criteria of ‘kind and civil’ politics which the PM had called for days before. Johnson’s press secretary Allegra Stratton was asked if nicknaming Keir Starmer “Captain Hindsight” was rude or unpleasant, something she denied. Stratton said it was a way of making […]

Downing Street has rebuked Theresa May over an accusation that Boris Johnson has abandoned Britain’s position of “global moral leadership”. May used a Daily Mail article saying that while the UK was well placed to play a decisive role in shaping a more co-operative world, she suggested it had not been helped by her successor’s actions. Number […]

Downing Street has rejected a suggestion Boris Johnson clears time in his diary for a nap. It comes after a Downing Street insider told The Times “it would not be entirely uncommon in the diary for him to shut the door and have a kip for half an hour or so — a power executive […]

Boris Johnson’s official schedule includes time for him to “power nap” during the day, a Downing Street insider has claimed. Times Radio reported an anonymous source as saying that it “would not be entirely uncommon in the diary for him to shut the door and have a kip for half an hour or so,” before […]

Boris Johnson has blamed seafood exporters for a collapse in sales after Brexit, claiming they were “not filling in the right forms”. Johnson also said the UK would control “all the fish” in its coastal waters in years to come. And he linked the crisis – caused by a mountain of new red tape imposed […]

A new television drama is to focus on Boris Johnson’s first year in Downing Street, with particular focus on his handling of the pandemic, his own experience with Covid-19, and the birth of his son Wilfred. The drama, to be produced by Freemantle, will focus on the private lives of the prime minister and his […]

Scottish seafood lorries have parked on the roads near Downing Street in protest against being “tied in knots with paperwork” by the Brexit fishing deal. Footage showed a number of HGVs descending on roads near 10 Downing Street in response to the issues they have faced in exporting seafood to the EU. A number of […]

Ian Dunt says this is the most severe and unforgivable example of government failure that we have seen in our lifetime. The UK Covid death toll now stands at more than 80,000 people. By the time it is over, it’ll almost certainly hit 100,000. Every afternoon, the same terrible bell tolls announcing the number of […]

TIM WALKER reports on the latest on a scheme to modernise Downing Street, the long wait for Paul Dacre’s TV show, and those mystery Michael Gove press briefings… Having  blown tens of thousands of pounds on new offices for his former henchman Dominic Cummings, Boris Johnson is now focusing on making Downing Street a sufficiently opulent place for […]

It’s the 1246-page document that changed the lives of millions at the stroke of 11pm on New Year’s Eve – but has Boris Johnson read it? The prime minister’s spokesperson was earlier repeatedly unable to confirm whether Johnson had read every word of the treaty setting out the UK’s new trading relationship with the EU. […]

A group of Scottish fishermen furious over Brexit red tape has vowed to dump rotting seafood outside Downing Street. Jamie McMillan, boss of the world-renowned Loch Fyne Seafarms, said he would not hesitate to dump rotting stock outside the prime minister’s house if Scottish seafood exports continue to rot at British ports. In a furious video message yesterday, he […]

Labour has accused Boris Johnson of deliberately trying to delay the local elections beyond May for his own advantage. Downing Street is considering plans to delay the elections until June, arguing it would be too dangerous to proceed. The elections had been set for May 6 and will take place alongside the mayoral elections – […]

Home secretary Priti Patel has said that “outdoor recreation” is permitted in a “restricted and limited way” – despite it being prohibited during the lockdown. Moments after insisting the coronavirus rules are “actually very simple and clear”,  Patel apparently misspoke during a Downing Street press conference when trying to explain that exercise is permitted. She […]

Downing Street is seeking to hire someone to help improve its image through engagements with social media influencers. The Cabinet Office is currently advertising for a Relationship Manager – Influencers and Civil Society to sell Britain’s “climate action” efforts and role in the COP26 – the UN’s annual climate change summit meeting – to “high profile influencers […]

James O’Brien has accused companies distributing free school meals of ‘profiteering’ after pictures emerged of parents receiving meagre packages surfaced online. Downing Street has pushed for an investigation after parents began sharing pictures online of what they have been given to feed their children for ten days. Children’s Minister Vicky Ford said she would “urgently” look into the matter after one […]

Number 10 has sidestepped a key question about Boris Johnson’s bike ride in east London during coronavirus lockdown. The prime minister’s official spokesperson insisted the prime minister’s exercise was permitted under coronavirus guidance.  He added: “The prime minister acted in accordance with the Covid guidance while he was exercising. “We have always trusted the public to […]

The government has made a speedy u-turn on how it selects questions for ministers from the public at coronavirus press briefings, after previously updating its guidance to suggest it would now choose what was asked. Byline Times reported the government’s website was updated on Monday to state that it no longer leaves an independent polling company to decide […]

Downing Street has denied there is demand for coronavirus vaccines to be delivered out-of-hours after Labour called for a ramping up of the roll-out. Number 10 said that Covid-19 vaccines could be delivered into the night but that there is currently “not a clamour for jabs after 8pm”. Boris Johnson’s press secretary Allegra Stratton was […]

Downing Street has defended Boris Johnson’s father receiving two coronavirus vaccines – insisting the move was made before a change in policy. The prime minister’s press secretary Allegra Stratton said: “This is a matter for the prime minister’s father. “It’s not something I’ve spoken to Stanley Johnson about. By way of explanation in the early […]

The government has dropped proposals to hold White House style press briefings at Number 10 – on the day the first was set to be held. The briefings were intended to replicate the regular events held by Donald Trump’s team in America, with Allegra Stratton – a former journalist – hired to front the weekly […]

A former pro-Brexit Conservative aide marched out of Downing Street by armed police after being sacked by Dominic Cummings has said she was “never given a reason” for her dismissal. Sonia Khan, who was fired as a special adviser to then chancellor Sajid Javid in August 2019 over the alleged leaking of secrets surrounding no-deal […]