“British holidaymakers faced travel chaos yesterday amid anger over the government’s “disastrous” decision to introduce a two-week quarantine on arrivals from Spain. Passengers told of a scramble to book last-minute flights back to the UK on Saturday evening — hours before the restrictions were imposed — in an attempt to beat the quarantine rule. Many warned of a complete breakdown in communication from the government and airlines over the change to travel rules which were suddenly introduced following a spike in coronavirus cases in the country. An estimated 1.8 million Britons are either in Spain or due to fly there over the coming month — the peak of the summer getaway.” – The Times
“Grant Shapps was mocked by Government figures on Sunday after falling foul of his own “air bridges” policy by jetting off on holiday to Spain. The Transport Secretary will have to self-isolate for 14 days when he returns home after ministers closed the travel corridor with Spain on Saturday. Business minister Paul Scully fell into the same trap by going on holiday in the Canary Islands. Mr Shapps was unaware that his Government colleagues were about to remove Spain from the “safe list” of countries with lower levels of coronavirus infection when he set off on holiday last week. On Saturday, the Government decided to re-impose a 14-day quarantine period for all arrivals from Spain after Matt Hancock, the Health Secretary, was shown data revealing that coronavirus was on the rise in 15 of the country’s 19 provinces.” – Daily Telegraph
“We’ve all grown used to Coronavirus trampling our well-laid plans. But the Spain quarantine shambles over the weekend isn’t just causing inconvenience. Those being asked to stay away from work on their return aren’t legally entitled to sick pay. Which means that unless employers do the right thing and offer paid leave, sticking to the rules could mean losing two weeks’ income. It’s hard to blame the Government for acting quickly: cases in Spain spiked suddenly, and it would be a crying shame to undo all the good work over lockdown by allowing returning holidaymakers to roam freely around the UK. But you don’t need a crystal ball to realise that in the long run, imposing quarantines with four hours notice will destroy travellers’ confidence and decimate the struggling tourism industry.” – The Sun
“Everyone who is overweight should lose at least 5lbs in order to save countless lives and spare the NHS a £100million cost, the Health Secretary has said. Matt Hancock said coronavirus was the “deadly wake-up call” Britain needed to tackle obesity, as the Government unveils a strategy to slim the nation’s waistlines. The advertising of unhealthy food will be banned online and before the 9pm watershed on television, with buy one get one free deals on chocolate and crisps axed and calorie counts placed on menus. An army of “weight loss coaches” at GP surgeries will be trained to persuade millions of people to change their diets and reform couch potato lifestyles.” – Daily Telegraph
“Rishi Sunak is considering a new tax on goods sold online amid mounting concern about the collapse of the high street as Britain emerges from the coronavirus crisis. The chancellor is examining proposals for an online sales tax to provide a “sustainable and meaningful revenue source for the government” and help bricks-and-mortar retailers to compete. The Treasury is also considering radical plans to abolish business rates and replace them with a “capital values tax” based on the value of land and the buildings on it. The tax would be paid by the owner of the property rather than the business leasing it.” – The Times
“Everyone over 40 would start contributing towards the cost of care in later life under radical plans being studied by ministers to finally end the crisis in social care, the Guardian can reveal. Under the plan over-40s would have to pay more in tax or national insurance, or be compelled to insure themselves against hefty bills for care when they are older. The money raised would then be used to pay for the help that frail elderly people need with washing, dressing and other activities if still at home, or to cover their stay in a care home. The plans are being examined by Boris Johnson’s new health and social care taskforce and the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC). Matt Hancock, the health and social care secretary, is a keen advocate of the plan.” – The Guardian
“Priti Patel has criticised Twitter and Instagram for being slow to remove antisemitic posts by the rapper Wiley as the Jewish Board of Deputies called for him to lose his MBE. The home secretary demanded that social media companies act faster on “appalling hatred”. Messages by the grime artist, including one likening Jews to the Ku Klux Klan, were visible for 12 hours before some were removed. The Board of Deputies, the country’s largest Jewish group, called for the removal of his MBE, an honour awarded in 2018 for his services to music.” – The Times
“Downing Street is facing questions from parliament’s spending watchdog over a surge in public money being spent on opinion polling. Analysis by The Times reveals that the Cabinet Office spent at least £833,000 with polling companies between January and May this year, more than was spent during the whole of last year. Meg Hillier, Labour chairwoman of the Commons public accounts committee, will write to the Cabinet Office this week over the increase. The figures put the department on track to spend £2 million on polling by the end of the year, which would be triple the £686,000 spent last year.” – The Times
“Expelling Jeremy Corbyn from Labour could spare the party legal action over a leaked anti-Semitism report that would bankrupt it. Some ex-party staff now poised to take part in multi-million pound lawsuits against Labour say they will drop their claims if the former leader is thrown out of the party. But the extraordinary ultimatum will enrage backers of Mr Corbyn already furious that Labour under new leader Sir Keir Starmer last week apologised to anti-Semitism whistleblowers and agreed to pay them damages in a separate case.” – Daily Mail