Subtle dig at Dominic Cummings as Starmer poses with 'eye test' beer
The Labour leader takes a subtle dig at the PM's chief adviser after his excuse for being caught travelling during lockdown.
Monday 6 July 2020 16:41, UK
Dominic Cummings was subject to a subtle jibe by Sir Keir Starmer when the Labour leader visited a brewery after pubs in England reopened over the weekend.
The prime minister's chief adviser had his claim he drove from Durham to a beauty spot 30 minutes away to test his eyesight during the coronavirus lockdown spoofed by a can of BrewDog beer.
Sir Keir posed with the drink - titled "Barnard Castle eye test" - on a visit to meet staff going back to work as lockdown measures are eased.
He called for the furlough scheme supporting 7.5 million workers to be extended for those in sectors like tourism and hospitality, some of whom face a much longer wait before they can resume their jobs.
Currently, businesses can access government grants to cover 80% of a staff member's monthly salary - up to a maximum of £2,500.
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But the wage subsidies provided by the government will fall to 60% from August, with firms required to top up the remaining 20%.
Sir Keir welcomed the news of more than £1bn for the arts and culture sector, given theatres and other performance venues also look set to be unable to reopen fully for months.
Downing Street has called it the "biggest ever investment in UK culture".
Responding to the funding pledge, Sir Keir said it was welcome but "a bit late" - given reports some theatres have already gone under.
He also urged Boris Johnson to "rethink" giving the green light to Chinese tech giant Huawei to play a limited role in the UK's 5G network - defying security concerns, particularly from the US.
A security source told Sky News on Sunday that reports the government will U-turn and end the use of Huawei technology in Britain's network by as early as the end of the year were "broadly accurate".