Boris Johnson announces new lockdown powers for local authorities

Spitting Image.New portraits of the caricatures show the Prime Minister smiling with his famous blonde mop of hair, while his chief adviser Cummings is portrayed with a seemingly enlarged head. Prince Andrew, meanwhile, sports a tartan coat with a paisley neckerchief.The reboot, which was announced in March, will air on BritBox later this year after a 23-year break.

Ruth Davidson is to be made a peer in the House of Lords, it has been confirmed.The former Scottish Tory leader has been named in the Prime Minister’s dissolution honours list which also make’s Theresa May’s husband, Philip, a Knight of the realm.Davidson led the Scottish Conservatives from 2011 to 2019 and  stepped down after Johnson became Tory leader last year, citing political and personal reasons for the move.Get all the top Scottish politics news sent straight to your Inbox by signing up

Earlier this month, the PM signalled the return of some “socially distanced” live music events this August. Under the proposed plans, from August 1, socially distanced audiences were going to be able to return for indoor performances in theatres, music halls and other venues.However, that decision has now been reversed after the UK’s Chief Medical Officer, Prof Chris Whitty, said the country is now “at the outer edge” of how far it can safely re-open.Speaking at a Downing Street press

coronavirus in the community.Measures due to be lifted on Saturday, including allowing small wedding receptions and reopening bowling alleys and casinos, have been postponed for at least two weeks.Face coverings will also become mandatory in indoor settings such as museums and places of worship from August 8, Boris Johnson said.And England's Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty warned that it might not be possible to ease lockdown further.Get the latest updates from across Greater Manchester

Boris Johnson is set to hire a £100,000 a year spokesperson to run televised Downing Street briefings along the lines of the US White House news conferences. The controversial new post is being created to host the daily televised press briefings the government plans to start holding in the autumn in an attempt to escape detailed scrutiny by the media.

Boris Johnson cannot deny an IndyRef2 if the SNP win a majority of seats at Holyrood at next year's election, Ian Blackford has warned.The Nationalist MP hit back at the Prime Minister after he used a flying to visit to the north of Scotland to once again rule out the prospect of another referendum on independence.Blackford claimed Johnson would be a "democracy denier" if he refused to engage with SNP demands.The Prime Minister insists the issue of independence was settled at the 2014 referendum

a visit to Scotland tomorrow to talk up his dream of a bridge to Northern Ireland. He will also urge Cabinet colleagues to be more "vocal" in Scotland about the UK Government's role in the economic recovery from coronavirus.

Boris Jonhson has played down the prospect of a second national lockdown due to the coronavirus crisis.The Prime Minister said authorities across the country were getting better at identifying and isolating local outbreaks.He said he would not want to use powers to enforce a second UK lockdown, any more than Britain’s Trident nuclear deterrent.Although he added it was important that the power to order national action was held in reserve.Speaking to The Telegraph, Mr Johnson said: "I can’t

Covid-19 pandemic and ramping up testing capacity.

Boris Johnson outlined the government's plans to reopen businesses that have had to remain closed throughout the coronavirus pandemic. July has so far seen the reopening of salons, pubs, restaurants and beauticians, with gyms and indoor pools to reopen later this month.Now, Mr Johnson has outlined how he plans to lift the remaining restrictions, with more businesses set to open from August.

coronavirus shortly. The press conference will be held from Downing Street at 11am.Mr Johnson is expected to announce an extra £3billion in NHS funding to protect against a possible second wave of coronavirus.

“power surge” to Scotland as he prepared to publish legislation for a UK internal market to replace the EU Single Market.