Today, British Prime Minister announces easing of lockdown restrictions in the House of Commons.

From the 4th of July, provided that no more than two households stay together, people will be free to stay overnight in self-contained accommodation including hotels and bed and breakfasts, as well as campsites as long as shared facilities are kept clean. Most leisure facilities and tourist attractions will reopen if they can do so safely including outdoor gyms and playgrounds, cinemas museums, galleries, theme parks and arcades as well as libraries, social clubs and community centres. Close proximity venues such as nightclubs, soft play areas, indoor gyms, swimming pools and spas will I’m afraid need to remain closed for now as well bowling alley and water parks. But my Right Honorable Friends the business and culture secretary will establish task forces with public health experts and these sectors to help them become covid secure and reopen as soon as possible. We will also work with the arts industry on specific guidance to enable choirs, orchestras and theatres to resume live performances as soon as possible. Recreation and sport will be allowed, but indoor facilities, including changing rooms and courts, will remain closed and people should only play close contact team sports with members of their household.

Mr. Speaker, I know that many have mourned the closure of places of worship and this year Easter passover and Eid all occurred during the lockdown, so I’m delighted the places of worship will be able to reopen for prayer and services including weddings with a maximum of 30 people all subject to social distancing. Meanwhile, our courts, Probation Services, police stations and other public services will increasingly resume face-to-face proceedings. Wraparound care for school-aged children and formal childcare will restart over the summer. Primary and secondary education will recommence in September with full attendance, and those children who can already go to school should do so because it is safe. Mr. Speaker, Mr. Speaker, we will publish covid secure guidelines for every sector that is reopening and slowly, but surely these measures will restore a sense of normality.

After the toughest restrictions in peacetime history, we are now able to make life easier for people to see more of their friends and families and help businesses get back on their feet and get people back into work.

Coronavirus: Government briefing
Education Secretary Gavin Williamson is leading the briefing.

I’ll start with an update on the progress we are making to beat the virus before moving to update on schools.

The first slide shows the latest covid alert level, the covid-19 alert level across the United Kingdom has moved down from level 4 to level 3 as recommended by The Joint Biosecurity Center. The chief medical officers for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have reviewed the evidence and agree with this recommendation. In all four nations, there’s been a continuing steady decrease in cases, but this doesn’t mean that the pandemic is over, the virus is still in general circulation, and localised outbreaks are likely to occur.

The second slide shows cases confirmed with the test. 7, 433,114 test for Coronavirus have now been carried out or posted out in the United Kingdom. This includes a 169,600 tests carried out or posted out yesterday. 301, 815 people have tested positive, an increase of 1,346 cases since yesterday. SAGE has confirmed today that their estimate for the R rate for the United Kingdom is unchanged on last week at 0.7 to 0.9. We want to keep the R number below 1. R is the average number of additional people infected by each infected person.

The third slide shows the latest data from hospitals, 494 people were admitted to hospital with coronavirus in England, Wales and Northern Ireland on the 16th of June, down from 534 a week earlier, and down from a peak of 3,432 on the 1st of April. 354 coronavirus patients are currently in mechanical ventilation at in the United Kingdom. Down from 392 a week ago and down from a peak of 3,301 on the 12th of April.

The fourth slide shows what is happening in hospitals right across the country. There are now 5,030 people in hospital with coronavirus in the UK, down 10% from 5,608 a week ago and down from a peak of 20,699 on the 12th of April. As the graph show, while there is some variation, most Nations and regions of United Kingdom of broadly following a similar pattern.

The fifth slide shows the daily figures of those who sadly lost their lives after testing positive for Coronavirus. Across all settings, the total number of deaths now stands at 42,461. That’s an increase of 173 fatalities since yesterday.

When measured on a seven-day rolling average, the daily number of deaths currently stands at 140, down from a peak of 943 on the 14th of April.

Asked by Lib Dem MP Wera Hobhouse:
All I am hearing from today’s exchange is that we will only help the poorest in the world if they are buying British goods, [and I , and I Madam Deputy Speaker cannot] words fail me cowardly abdication of Britains global responsibility towards the poorest in this world, and we are shooting ourself in the foot. We know covid crisis can only be resolved if the poorest country to get rid of the virus or control it. So, will he reconsider this globally illiterate and morally apprehensible move?

Answered by PM:
I think that she should look at what this country is actually doing to tackle coronavirus around the world giving more than any other country to tackling to search for virus. I do not think she saw what happened at the recent Gavi summit, but she should be proud of what this country is doing to tackle that virus around the world.

On the future relationship with the European Union, Minister Michael Gove deliver a statement in the House of Commons.

“I would now like to make a statement on the government’s negotiations of our future relationship with the European Union. Yesterday, the Prime Minister met the president of the European Council Charles Michel, the president of the European commission Ursula von der Leyen and the president of the European Parliament David Sassoli via video conference. The purpose of this high-level meeting as the political declaration puts it; was to take stock of progress on the negotiations and to agree actions to move forward.

All parties agreed that now was the moment to accelerate the pace of these negotiations in the Prime Minister’s words to put a tiger in the tank. The three presidents welcomed Prime Minister’s call for greater peace focus and flexibility in the negotiations, and the tempo of the talks process has now been escalated. I’m pleased to say that both sides pledged yesterday in a joint statement, which is made public immediately afterwards that they would intensify the talks in July and if possible seek to find an early understanding on the principles underlying any agreement. Our respective chief negotiators and their teams will therefore intensify talks from the end of this month, starting on June the 29th. I also welcome the commission president statement yesterday that the EU is available 24/7 and we will be too. Meetings will take place every week in July with a keen focus on finding an early understanding on the principles which will underpin a broad agreement. And as the Prime Minister said yesterday the faster we can do this the better. We are looking to get things done in July. We do not want to see this process going on into the autumn and then the winter. We all need certainty and that’s what we’re aiming to provide. Yesterday’s high-level meeting followed the second meeting of the withdrawal agreement joint committee, which took place on Friday the 12th of June, again via video conference. I’m grateful to the vice president of the European Commission for the very constructive way in which progress is made on the his chairmanship. In that meeting, I set up our plans to implement the protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland an update to the EU and our ongoing work to protect the rights of EU citizens in the UK. This is a priority for the UK government. I also sought assurance for our part that the EU intended to meet its obligations under the withdrawal agreement around the protection of the rights of our Nationals currently living in the EU. We have concerns in this area and we will continue to press the EU to ensure that our citizens rights are properly protected. [Mr. Speaker…Madam Deputy Speaker, please forgive me] If we are to make the progress that we all wants to see in our negotiations on the future relationship, we all need to be both clear-eyed and constructive. Our EU partners agreed yesterday that during the for fall and negotiating rounds completed to date, we’ve all gained greater clarity and understanding of our respective positions. Discussions have been productive, legal texts have been exchanged, and even…this has has occurred as both sides have had to deal with uniquely difficult challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic. But as my Right Honourable friend the paymaster general advised the house last week, following the fourth round of negotiations, it is still the case has been insufficient movement on the most difficult areas where differences of principle remain. We are committed in long with a political declaration to securing a comprehensive free trade agreement with the EU, built on the precedents of the agreements that the EU has reached with other sovereign states such as Canada, Japan and South Korea. And we’re ready to be flexible about how we secure an FTA which works from both sides.

The UK however has been clear throughout that the new relationship we seek with the EU, must fully reflect our regain sovereignty, independence and autonomy. We did not vote in June 2016 to leave the EU but still to be run by the EU. We cannot agree to a deal is the EU court of justice a role in our future relationship. We cannot accept restrictions on our legislative and economic freedom unprecedented in any other free trade agreement, and we cannot agree to EU’s demands that we stick to the status quo on their access to British fishing waters. So there must be movement, and the clock is ticking. The transition period ends on December the 31st that was a manifesto pledge or which this government was elected, and it was the instruction from the electorate in the 2016 referendum to leave the single market and the Customs Union and to cross the opportunities of full economic and political independence.

Four years on from the referendum result, no one can argue that this is the rushed or a precipitated step. It is delivering at last on democracy. Of course, we will manage the adjustment required at the end of the transition period in a flexible and pragmatic way to minimise any challenges and to maximise all opportunities, but the call from opposition politicians to extend the transition period is not in the National interest.

Stay under the EU’s control after this December would mean paying money into EU budgets that we could spend on our NHS. Accepting new laws over which would have no say, laws shaped in the interests of others, and being stopped from taking the actions that we need to supercharge our economic recovery. That would clearly not be in our national interest. And of course there is no intrinsic reason why deal cannot be concluded in good time as Roberto Azevêdo the director general of the World Trade Organisation confirmed the weekend a deal between the UK and the EU can be reached in a timely way if the political will is there. The UK’s political will is there. Our position is reasonable based on precedent and we still have the time to bring a deal home. That is why the Prime Minister has led the drive to accelerate these talks to reach agreement and to ensure that next January we leave the regulatory reach of the EU and embrace the new opportunities our independence will bring. And I commend the statement to the house.”

Boris Johnson is very optimistic about reopening non-essential shops in England on Monday.

PM said, “I am very optimistic about the opening up that’s gonna happen tomorrow, I’ve been talking to the staff here in juice bars, shoe shops, M&S everywhere, and they’re very excited. They’ve done a huge amount of work and they’re not sure quite what they’re gonna get tomorrow, will they get the you know a huge wave of customers, would it be a trickle and we don’t know. But I think people should shop and shop with confidence but they should of course observe the rules on social distancing and do it safely as well.”