Boris Johnson claims he considered raid into Holland to recover ‘kidnapped’ Covid vaccines – UK politics live

Boris Johnson has written of the second he was confronted with the partygate story dismissing it initially as “outdated cobblers”.

Writing in Unleashed which isbeing serialised within the Mail +

“[Former Downing Street Director of Communications] Jack defined that the Day by day Mirror had a narrative a few breach of ­lockdown guidelines in No 10 in the course of the pandemic. They have been accusing the press division of getting a celebration on December 18, 2020 – nearly precisely a yr beforehand.

“Jack mentioned the story was nonsense, as a result of it was conventional for the press division to have a glass of wine at their desks on a Friday night. I checked out him blankly. ‘So no guidelines have been damaged?’

“‘No, PM,’ he mentioned firmly, ‘no guidelines have been damaged.’

“‘Nice,’ I mentioned, and carried on.

“It seemed like a load of outdated cobblers – most likely some determined nonsense being peddled by embittered former advisers – and I forgot about it. I used to be most shocked when it was raised at PMQs the subsequent day – as Labour’s most important line of assault.”

Labour known as on each the PM after which chancellor Rishi Sunak to go, saying they have been “unfit to control”.

Boris Johnson has claimed his Brexit deal allowed a sooner rollout of the Covid vaccine saving lives.

Writing in Unleashed, serialised in Mail +, he mentioned: “Underneath my deal, we got here out. We took again management. That meant that when it got here to the approval of vaccines, we now not needed to go on the tempo of the remainder of the European Union.

“We had our personal company – the ­Medicines & Healthcare merchandise Regulatory Company – and we might do our personal factor.

“It meant, bluntly, that we have been in a position to immunise big numbers of aged and susceptible individuals who – if they’d been dwelling in an EU nation, or in pre-Brexit ­Britain – would unquestionably have been compelled to attend for EMA approval for his or her medication, and who may due to this fact have died of Covid.

“It wasn’t lengthy earlier than some ­graffiti appeared on the wall in Portobello Highway, West London.

“‘Brexit saves lives,’ it mentioned.

“It wasn’t the form of writing you anticipate on the wall within the largely Stay-backing Kensington and Chelsea, and I do know that a few of you’ll nonetheless discover it a reasonably indigestible assertion. However painful as it might be for some individuals, it’s true.”

Kemi Badenoch has doubled down on her declare that she “turned working class” when she received a job at McDonald’s.

The Tory management hopeful mentioned she got here to the UK “with no cash, no buddies, no mother and father”.

She instructed LBC at that time in her life she was working class as she “needed to work to eat”.

“I grew up in a center class household however coming right here I turned working class – my dad gave me his final £100, he mentioned ‘ that is all we’ve’ as a result of all our cash was gone and this is among the issues that folks don’t perceive,” Ms Badenoch mentioned.

Watch her unique feedback under:

Pension credit score claims have hit nearly 75,000 amid Authorities efforts to spice up advantages take-up.

Division for Work and Pensions figures launched on Friday confirmed the Authorities acquired round 74,400 pension credit score claims within the eight weeks since 29 July, when Chancellor Rachel Reeves introduced means testing for the winter gasoline fee.

That is up from 29,500 claims within the eight weeks earlier than the announcement.

However within the seven days starting on 16 September, the division acquired 11,800 claims, down from 13,400 the week earlier than.

The overwhelming majority (92 per cent) of claims made within the week starting 16 September have been made on-line.

Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall has beforehand urged pensioners to examine if they’re eligible for the profit, which might unlock winter gasoline funds of as much as £300.

Boris Johnson has written of the second he handed earlier than he went to the ICU struggling with Covid-19.

Writing in Unleashed, serialised in Mail + he mentioned: “With the oximeter on my finger, we might see that my oxygen ranges began slowly to creep up once more, and I started to really feel sleepy. Earlier than I folded, there was one factor I needed to do.

“I rang Dominic Raab. ‘First Secretary of State,’ I mentioned.

“‘PM,’ he mentioned. “‘You realize I mentioned that you simply may need to deputise for me,’ I mentioned.

“‘Properly, that second has come.’

“‘No drawback, PM,’ he mentioned. ‘Get properly quickly.’

“He didn’t sound remotely rattled – in actual fact, he went on to do an ­excellent job.”

If Mr Johnson had died, Mr Raab would have taken over as caretaker prime minister whereas a successor was chosen from a management election.

Boris Johnson has insisted he didn’t see something unlawful at his Downing Avenue celebration writing in his memoir Unleashed, being serialised in Mail +.

Writing in regards to the fallout of the occasion he mentioned: “I relied upon Sue Grey, who (although I didn’t know this) had already been approached to be the chief of employees to Ed Miliband, former Labour chief, and who was to go on to be the chief of employees to Keir Starmer, my primary political foe.

“Among the allegations in her report – vomiting, fights and so forth – turned out to be unfaithful, and needed to be withdrawn.

“As for all the opposite fines that have been issued – greater than 120 fastened penalty notices – the reply is in fact that I don’t know. I wasn’t there, or didn’t see something that regarded unlawful. If the fines have been like mine, they will need to have been a bit puzzling.

“However what might I do? I paid the fantastic and received on with the job. I had so much on.”