The pandemic is dividing Britons, not uniting them
Views on covid-19 are splitting along party lines
WHEN BORIS JOHNSON announced lockdown on March 23rd, he was supported by Sir Keir Starmer, front-runner to be Labour leader, and the governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. A furlough scheme to allow workers to be kept on in their jobs was designed with trade unions’ assent. More than 90% of voters backed the shutdown; the support was consistent across parties and around the country. Steve Baker, a self-described libertarian MP, suppressed tears as he told the House of Commons the “dystopian” restrictions were unavoidable.
This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “The pandemic goes partisan”
Britain May 23rd 2020
- London may have gone into a covid-accelerated decline
- Britain’s palaces and stately homes are empty
- Walkers and cyclists are using the covid-19 crisis to swipe road space
- Why the NHS will not be back to normal for a very long time
- As debt soars, the cost of servicing it keeps falling
- The pandemic is dividing Britons, not uniting them
From the May 23rd 2020 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the editionDiscover more
Are British voters as clueless as Labour’s intelligentsia thinks?
How the idea of false consciousness conquered the governing party
The best British companies to work for to get ahead
A new ranking of firms by pay, promotions and hiring practices
How the best British employers find and promote their staff
No degree? Some employers care much less than others
A Northern Irish experiment in recycling
The tiny island aiming to get to net zero
A sticking-plaster policy for Britain’s strained courts
Magistrates get more power. Will they get punch-drunk on it?