Television doctor ‘honoured’ to take part in PM'S media briefing
A former Love Island star and mentalhealthcampaignerhas said he would be “honoured” to appear at a UK government coronavirus briefing.
Boris Johnson said it was "very valid" to have a specialist at a future press conference to provide information about the impact the pandemic was having on people's mental health.
The Prime Minister suggested that Dr Alex George, a contestant on the ITV matchmaking programme and who was recently made a government adviser on the issue, would be suitable.
"It's very important for people to realise that NHS mental health services are still there for you. You should still use them if you need them," Mr Johnson said.
Inresponsetoaquestionfrom amemberofthepublic,hecontinued: "I think you're making a very valid point and we will try and find the right person to say something about how to do this and how to encourage everybody to really look after our mental well-being.”
A former aide to Prime Minister Boris Johnson has told a judge that he did not ask for a company to be given a focus group and communications support services contract because bosses were his "friends".
Dominic Cummings said he would "never do such a thing".
He defended the award of the contract to Public First after a campaign group complained of "apparent bias" and took legal action.
The Good Law Project has begun a High Court fight with the Cabinet Office after complaining about the way the contract was awarded to a company with links to Dominic Cummings, following the start of the coronavirus crisis nearly a year ago.
Ministers are fighting the claim and Mr Cummings outlined the reasoning behind the contract award in a written witness statement, seen by Mrs Justice O'farrell.
A barrister representing the Good Law Project on Monday told Mrs Justice O'farrell that Public First was awarded the contract because Mr Cummings, then chief adviser to Mr Johnson, "wanted" Public First to have the contract.
Jason Coppel QC told the judge at a virtual High Court hearing that "no other provider was considered".
He said more than £500,000 had been spent and told that the judge that it was "not strictly necessary" to award the contract to Public First without competition.
Mr Cummings said Britain had been facing an emergency because of the coronavirus crisis, and "the award of the contract without delay" was "entirely justified".
"Obviously I did not request Public First be brought in because they were my friends," said Mr Cummings.
"I would never do such a thing."
Mr Cummings said he was Mr Johnson's main political adviser from July 2019 until November 2020.
"Because of Covid in 2020, this role involved issues of management and procurement far more than it did political advice," he said.
"A big part of my job was solving Whitehall problems - in particular trying to eliminate obstacles and to get the right people into the right roles and the right meetings."
Mr Cummings said he was friends with people involved with Public First, including director James Frayne.
But he said he had not met Mr Frayne since 2016.
"James Frayne and I worked on the euro campaign 20 years ago, other political issues, and set up the campaign to fight the proposed formation of a regional assembly in northeast England in 2004," he said.
"I have talked to them extensively about focus groups and public opinion over many years.
"I knew from my experience that Public First were very good at running focus groups and that its key staff had thought extensively about how people who usually ignore most news and political communication think and might be influenced.
"I knew that I could rely on them to make an extra effort, beyond what they were paid to do. I knew they would give us honest information unlike many companies in this sector. Very few companies in this field are competent."
Nigeria's Ngozi Okonjo-iweala has been appointed to head the World Trade Organisation (WTO), becoming the first woman and first African to take on the role.
The appointment comes amid disagreement over how the body decides cases involving billions in sales and thousands of jobs.
Ms Okonjo-iweala, 66, was named director-general of the WTO, which deals with the rules of trade between nations, by representatives of the 164 member countries.
She said that her first prioritywouldbeaddressingtheeconomic and health consequencesofthecovid-19pandemicand to"implementtheresponseswe need to get the global economy going again".
"Our organisation faces a great many challenges,” she said.