Tier 2-faced Keir
SIR Keir Starmer and his sidekick Sadiq Khan are no strangers to political skulduggery.
For months they tried to have it both ways on Covid — berating Boris for not locking down the entire nation, while simultaneously blaming the “clueless” PM for trashing the economy by imposing draconian restrictions locally.
Then when crunch time came in the form of a parliamentary vote on the tier system, Starmer’s Labour abstained.
Which is why it comes as no surprise that the pair are now cravenly exploiting this new emergency for their own political advantage.
Captain Hindsight implies he would have foreseen this Christmas carnage if he were PM because the new strain was first spotted in mid-September.
But that claim is nonsense: medics say that this particular variant was first identified in October, while scientists briefed ministers on the full enormity of the new mutations only on Friday.
Meanwhile Khan, who just weeks ago was lobbying for London to stay in Tier 2, is now quaking with confected rage because the Government didn’t impose stricter restrictions earlier.
There’s no doubt that Boris Johnson has made a pig’s ear of things recently.
Hard-up families waking up in Tier 4 this morning will long remember the way in which their festive reunions were cancelled at the eleventh hour —after the cash had been spent.
But we applaud the PM for standing up to Cabinet colleagues who pushed for even more ruinous restrictions.
And it’s clear to all but the most fervent Tory-haters that he is at least acting in good faith: his agonised flip-flopping on Christmas is proof that the heart-breaking decision was not made lightly.
The same cannot be said for the Leader of the Opposition.
Sir Keir has form when it comes to fence-sitting — his line on Brexit has changed with the wind.
We have a feeling that voters won’t forget this particular bout of shameless opportunism any time soon.
Marc of honour
MARCUS Rashford is fast becoming a national treasure.
His brilliant campaign over the summer ensured thousands of children didn’t go hungry.
And in October his moving words on food poverty inspired an outpouring of generosity from cafes, pubs and restaurants that made us proud to be British.
The footballing star richly deserves the special award he received at the BBC’s Sports Personality of The Year ceremony last night.
Unlike the throngs of vacuous celebrities who spent this year whining on social media from their mansions, he has used his fame to articulate a powerful argument with authenticity.
He is a credit to his family, to his sport, and to this country.
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