A few backbenchers kicked off but as much for show as anything else – almost as if everyone was too tired to fight
Maybe it was because none of the votes were really ever in doubt. Or maybe it was because the lockdown sceptics’ real beef has never been with the health secretary. It’s been with the prime minister whom they blame for making up Covid policy on the hoof to distract from his parties at No 10 and other indiscretions. If he can break the rules, then so can they. Either way, the debate to approve the government’s new statutory instruments on face masks, Covid passes and mandatory vaccinations for health and care workers rarely matched the hype.
It had been billed as a showdown between libertarian Tory backbenchers and a prime minister they regarded as increasingly statist and authoritarian. Not to mention unstable and a liability. But when push came to shove it was all rather amiable. Underwhelming even. A few MPs kicked off but as much for show as anything else. Gesture politics at its most gentle. It was almost as though everyone was too tired to be bothered. As if no one was quite sure how spooked they should be by the Omicron variant and was just looking forward to some time off over Christmas to take stock.
