Opinion writer Jamie Davies puts pen to paper in what, to many, is the completely insurmountable job of summing up 2022 in current affairs.
Coming off the beatdown that was 2021, following UK politics feels a little like being the heroine at the end of a horror movie. You think it’s over, that the worst has passed and tomorrow will be a brighter day. Then the violin screeches! The killer’s motionless body leaps to its feet, and before you know it you’re running through the same haunted house as before, only bloodier and without a shred of hope.
From lockdowns, gross MP misconduct and post-Brexit tensions to randy health ministers, G7 summits and global climate conferences on our doorstep, 2021 had enough ups and downs to fill a sequel to We Didn’t Start the Fire. As for 2022? Well, ‘ups and downs’ isn’t quite the phrase I’d use, more ‘downs and downs’. Perhaps It’s the End of the World as We Know It would be a better inspiration track.
But hey ho. There’s nothing to lift the spirits like recapping each and every last thing that sunk them in the first place. Um, that sounded more convincing in my head. Let’s just dive in, shall we? January was a long time ago, and there’s a lot of ground to cover between there and here.
January
COVID Keeps Coming
The New Year is an ideal time to pull on those fresh Christmas socks, shed the baggage of the previous 12 months and take bold steps into a bright new world. I’m sure that would have been the case this year if only the sharp, tail-end of COVID wasn’t primed to pierce the optimistic New Year bubble and give the country a final sting of restrictions to remember it by.
Early January saw the UK’s daily COVID infection rate reach its all-time peak of around 230,000, a jaw-droppingly large figure with one shimmering silver lining. Although the infection rate was at an all-time high, the successful vaccination effort meant that far fewer were succumbing to the virus: around 250 per day with 200,000+ infections, compared to 1,000+ deaths and 50,000 infections 12 months prior. Of course, even one fatality is one too many, but to see such a tangible difference between pre and post-vaccine statistics was a vital morale boost to peoples’ faith that they were within grasp of a sense of normality. Post-COVID confidence was so high that, in late January, the government confirmed it was dropping legal requirements for face masks, work-from-home guidance and COVID vaccine certificates.
For the countless who lost friends and loved ones, though, or the almost 2 million Brits with long COVID, life would never fully return to normal, and it’s with that solemn understanding that the world took bolder-than-ever steps out of the pandemic. Not so that the dark chapter may be forgotten, but so that it can learn and work to prevent anything so devastating from taking hold again.
Tories Get Boozy
It would be lovely to call it a night on COVID here, but like a suspiciously cheap sushi dinner, the real fun begins when everything comes out afterwards. This is, if you hadn’t guessed, Partygate, the scandalous saga of almost 20 lockdown-breaching parties in and around Westminster during 2020 and 2021. When we were stuck at home, building LEGO spaceships and counting the stripes on our wallpaper, Conservatives were living it up with leaving dos, garden boozers, Christmas quizzes and even a bash on the night before Prince Phillip’s funeral. While the ordeal didn’t start in 2022 (The Mirror can take credit for setting off the chain reaction back in late 2021), the full scale of the controversy, as well as its consequences very much came courtesy of 2022.
January in particular saw the Met Police rolling up its sleeves to investigate increasing reports of parliamentary knees-ups, reports that PM Boris Johnson fiercely challenged. There was no party, he insisted when questioned about photos of a specific garden incident at Number 10. “Those people were at work talking about work”, he said. Okay, Boris, sure. And I’m sure those crumbs around your face weren’t from the cookie jar, either. What about those scuffs on your dress shoes? Been playing football on the playground again? No, of course not. Silly us for putting two and two together and arriving at four.
Soon after his childish attempt to obscure the truth, the truth prevailed. In a manner emblematic of his entire premiership, he would steer a swift U-turn and admit that the work meeting was in fact not a work meeting but a party, and he was indeed present for it. Honestly, Johnson’s housemaster back at Eton must have been some kind of cardboard cutout, or perhaps a decaying scarecrow with a tailcoat and tophat. I mean, any relatively bright child would have smelt that fib in their sleep; it says an awful lot that Johnson thought the entire British public would swallow it.
In the weeks following, yet more reports would surface about riotous MPs with a seemingly bottomless booze budget. The Telegraph made a splash when it reported a leaving party for Conservative comms director James Slack the night before Prince Phillip’s funeral. The image of the Queen mourning alone butted against reports of beer, takeaway pizzas and MPs hurling themselves down a childrens’ slide—check page 37 for a laugh—sparked a fresh wave of public outrage, and pressure was growing on Johnson and the Conservatives to own up to the consequences of their actions.
Off to the side, Sue Gray’s infamous inquiry into Partygate was ready to go public. So that it wouldn’t hinder their investigation, however, the Met Police held the full, final report back like some rottweiler trained on the scent of Waitrose wine and smoked salmon canapes. An interim version had already painted a damning impression of a culture in the Conservative Party that, at best, could be described as inappropriate. Was the final report to be the snarling, biting indictment of party wrongdoing that some political pundits were hoping it would be? That’s a revelation for a future month…
It was with all these scandalous reports and allegations orbiting Parliament that the cracks truly began showing in the integrity of Johnson’s premiership. In a telling omen of what was to come, Conservative MP Christian Wakeford sent shockwaves through the House by submitting a letter of no confidence in his party leader and then abandoning the Tories altogether, breaking free from Johnson and into the welcoming arms of Starmer’s Labour.
Russia Starts Rumbling
Amidst the growing furore of Partygate, a larger crisis building on the Russia-Ukraine border, one that would sideline the self-centred squabbling of party politics and undermine the post-World War Two facade of European stability. Russian president Vladimir Putin was amassing troops just outside Ukraine, and it seemed increasingly likely that he was seeking to finish what was started with the annexation of Crimea in 2014.
For the first time in decades, the prospect of war in Europe was on people’s minds. It echoed on the airwaves and around pubs, in classrooms and about town. Fears were high, and for the first time in decades, people were discussing conscription without the security that comes from geopolitical peace, at least for Europe. Showing early support, then Defence Secretary Ben Wallace announced that military forces were being sent to Ukraine for training and arms support. This was the beginning of a surprisingly warm, beneficial and positive wartime relationship between Ukraine and the UK.
February
Johnson Lashes Out
Parliamentary privilege may spare ministers from the repercussions of their words in the Commons, but that doesn’t mean their words are totally meaningless. Johnson learnt this the hard way in early February when he claimed Labour leader Keir Starmer was responsible for the failure to prosecute infamous paedophile and ex-showbiz personality Jimmy Savile.
For such a scandalous claim, you’d think Johnson would have some evidence to stand on, perhaps a specific incident in mind? Nah. It was a cheap shot that misrepresented reality. Despite being Director of Public Prosecutions for the CPS at the time, prior investigations found that he would never have heard about, let alone had influence over, the Jimmy Savile case. Whatever Johnson was saying, it wasn’t grounded in the realm of legitimate criticism.
Rightly, the claims didn’t leave a permanent dent in Starmers reputation. They did rebound back in Johnson’s face, though, even after a half-hearted retraction. In protest against Johnson’s outrageous claims and his refusal to apologise, four staff members in No. 10 resigned within a matter of hours. Johnson was reckless, and his behaviour was starting to have a real impact on the party.
Government Starts Crumbling
Meanwhile, tensions were growing across the Irish Sea over the Northern Ireland Protocol, a deal that seeks to maintain the relatively peaceful status quo between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland despite Brexit driving a further rift between the two. Paul Givan, then First Minister of Northern Ireland, resigned in protest of the trade complications the protocol introduced. This didn’t just complicate ongoing negotiations between Britain and the EU, but it also severely weakened Stormont, leaving it unable to officially meet and carry out its vital duties. Don’t spend all your concern on Northern Ireland, though. It won’t be the only paralysed, directionless parliament this year…
Whilst we’re on the topic of resignation, Met Police commissioner Cressida Dick gave it a stab, too, in February amidst tensions with Sadiq Khan. The London Mayor felt she was failing to properly reform her police force in the wake of a string of misogny, racisim and general impropriety both internally and against members of the public. Strangely, and like a lot that happened this year, the resignation came as a U-turn, following her firm commitment to the role just hours before. Later reports would allege that Khan pressured Dick into resignation, but at the time, the decision just seemed downright bizarre.
Russia Invades
Over in Russia, which was quickly becoming the world’s focus, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss (watch that name) met with Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to try cooling matters. It didn’t work, and people and governments alike were getting increasingly worried. Johnson in particular, someone who famously admired and modelled himself after wartime PM Winston Churchill, to the point where we literally wrote a book on the man, emphasised the gravity of the situation and the need to take decisive action.
It follows, then, that when Russia did invade Ukraine on the 24th of February, the British government leapt at the chance to show support for Kiev. Russian banks, businesses and individuals were all hit with sanctions, in an attempt to subdue Russia by starving it financially. As for the entanglement of Russia and the British Government, and the personal relationship between Johnson and son of Russian oligarch Evgeny Lébedev? Let’s just say there are a few dusty secrets underneath some powerful mattresses in government. But, hey, Johnson got to play his hero Churchill for a few months, so it’s all good, right?
So how effective were the sanctions? Not effective enough. Unfortunately for most of Europe, Russia is one of the largest exporters of gas in the world, with Germany as one of its main importers. As much as those financial sanctions dealt a blow, the ex-Soviet state was able to fight back by withholding the fuel that large swathes of Europe relied (and continue to rely) on. Not helping matters was the fact that Chinese consumption of gas quickly ramped up to pick up the slack left by Europe weaning itself off, helping to bankroll Russia’s continued assault of its neighbour.
Thanks to the messy interconnectedness of geopolitics, this all fed directly back to the everyday experience of life in Britain. With Europe massively reducing its consumption of natural gas, there developed the threat of a significant shortfall. Britain may not have been a major importer itself, but with the global supply reduced, everyone was preparing to feel the bite of pricey gas and a cold winter. For the average Brit, that meant the threat of sky-high energy bills. Spring may have been approaching, meaning people were using minimal amounts of gas, but this issue was a political time bomb that, if handled incorrectly, could leave Britain in shambles. I’d let you know whether Westminster defused said time bomb, but you just need to look up from your screen and you’ll be able to answer that for yourself.
March
Russia Unrelenting Barristers Join the Picket Line
A short-lived cross-border scuffle the Russian invasion was not. By March, Ukrainians were hailed the world over as worthy of the utmost respect and admiration for their resilience in the face of a behemoth like Russia. They simply were not giving in, and as Putin’s tactics grew more aggressive, Britain’s (amongst countless other countries) response expanded to meet it. Not in direct military support, it should be said, but in weapons, munitions, equipment and military training. That’s on top of the financial and trade sanctions imposed the month prior.
Liz Truss announced more of those sanctions in March, most notably to Chelsea F.C. owner and oligarch Roman Abramovich (who subsequently relinquished control of the club). In addition, the country also opened its arms to Ukrainian refugees, tweaking Visa rules to allow entry for as many as 200,000 Ukrainian refugees. However, even today the true number has yet to reach that figure, with many refugees settling in Poland, Germany and the Czech Republic instead. Many reported preferring to stay close to home rather than accept offers of travelling to Britain, which I think is a very nice way of saying “we do not want to live in your country”. Can’t blame them for avoiding Britain. I mean, have you read this article? (And just wait until the topic of refugees and immigrants join the conversation.)
Partygate Fines
Circling back to Partygate, as the news so loved doing at the time, March saw the Met Police announce it was handing out 20 fixed penalty notices (fines, to you and me). The exact recipients were at first a mystery, but instantly the nation was abuzz with speculation over whether Johnson was among them. Calls for his resignation were rising to the surface on both sides of the House, and should it come out that he had received a fine, the anger would only intensify.
It wasn’t just about the parties, though: Johnson was seen as a symbol of the sleaze and cronyism that had come to characterise the Conservatives in recent years. These parties were egregious, but they wouldn’t have been accompanied by such an almighty wave of public and press fury if it wasn’t for the pre-existing parliamentary culture that had enabled them. The public felt it was being led by a government of Eton schoolboys, and those schoolboys, of whom Johnson was the schoolboyiest, cared no more for them than an earthworm in their trifle.
If all of that outrageous Conservative conniving has got you worked up, perhaps it’s worth bringing the emotions down with a quick look at the economy. It’s probably not a spoiler to say that things got expensive this year, and numbers in our bank accounts didn’t rise to match. Inflation was threatening to grow out of control, with disrupted supply chains, growing fuel scarcity and reduced trade stemming from Brexit making simply staying alive an increasingly costly endeavour.
Trying to counter this, the Bank of England raised interest rates to 0.75% this month. That might not sound too bad, but at the start of the year it was 0.25%. That’s a threefold increase in the cost of borrowing, and when you consider that mortgages are a form of borrowing, that meant a lot of homeowners owing their bank greater sums than they ever expected to. High interest rates also mean saving is more lucrative, but…well, I certainly didn’t have much to stash away in my back pocket this year. Did you?
This is all to say that the state of the country’s finances weren’t stellar in March, and it wasn’t looking to improve any time soon. People were facing bills they couldn’t pay, homes they couldn’t afford and fridges they couldn’t hope to fill. While Conservative governments traditionally lean towards the hands-off approach to peoples’ business and the topic of welfare, the prospect of leaving folks facing a winter without government support was nearly unthinkable. Plus, if the pandemic proved anything, it’s that some situations are dire enough to override party ideology.
Words By Jamie Davies