Inside Politics: Sage warns of 7,000 Covid hospitalisations a day as Johnson sets out winter plan

“Beefs” are usually fought out by rappers on either side of the United States, or postcode areas in cities like London. But yesterday Nicki Minaj, the tough-talking Trinidadian-born New York-raised star, renowned for her “animated flow”, became embroiled in a transatlantic war of words with Professor Chris Whitty, the original gangster of chief medical officers, who criticised her over an apparently anti-vax tweet, the details of which are probably best spared at this hour of the morning. The “dis” sparked a surreal turn of events in which Minaj sent a personal message to Boris Johnson, jokingly saying how she went to school with Margaret Thatcher before heading off to Oxford. She clearly knows the Tory Party. The episode was a bit of light relief in what was an otherwise ominous day at a Covid press conference. Ministers have been warned that without new measures to damp down Covid-19 infections, hospital admissions could soon soar beyond the peak seen at the start of 2021 to as many as 7,000 a day.

Our political commentator Andrew Grice on what to look out for today:

In an opposition day debate, Labour will try to flush out Tory critics of the government’s decision to end the £20-a-week uplift in universal credit at the end of this month. The vote will be non-binding. The issue might also surface at prime minister’s questions, along with Labour’s pledge to hand workers a pay rise while the government gives them a tax rise. Climate change will feature in select committees, where the witnesses include Lord Deben, who chairs the climate change committee, and Rachel Maclean, the transport minister. Elsewhere Oliver Dowden, the culture secretary, will give a speech on broadcasting to the Royal Television Society.

Coming up:

-Health secretary Sajid Javid on BBC Radio 4 Today at 8.10am

-Shadow work and pensions secretary Jonathan Reynolds on Times Radio Breakfast at 8.30am

HOSPITAL WARNING: Ministers have been warned that without new measures to damp down Covid-19 infections, hospital admissions could soon soar beyond the peak seen at the start of 2021 to as many as 7,000 a day. The stark warning was laid out in minutes from an 8 September meeting of the government’s Scientific Advisory Group on Emergencies (Sage), released yesterday shortly before the PM’s Downing Street press conference.

EASY AS A, B, C?: Boris Johnson later set out his winter plan for tackling the disease, which went a little bit like this: we’ll keep doing what we’re doing for now and do a bit more of what we did before if things take a turn for the worse. Plan A: booster shots for the over 50s; jabs offered to 12 to 15-year-olds; flu vaccine drive; councils keep powers for local lockdown; public urged to socialise outdoors in coming months; wear face masks inside. Johnson said he was “confident” that the UK could get through the autumn and winter without the return of lockdown restrictions – though he set out a “plan B”, which could see masks mandates rather than encouraged, more working from home, vaccine passports for nightclubs and large events such as football matches. Professor Chris Whitty, England’s chief medical officer warned that “winter is coming” and that respiratory viruses such as flu and others would be “hugely advantaged”. “If you’ve not had your vaccination, now is a very good time to do so,” he said.

YOU’RE BARRED: China’s ambassador to the UK has been barred from parliament in retaliation for sanctions imposed against MPs who have spoken out about his government. Beijing sparked outrage in March when it punished critics, including former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith, who have attacked its cruel treatment of Uyghurs Muslims. Zheng Zeguang, the ambassador, was due at parliament on Wednesday – but Commons Speaker Lindsay Hoyle and his counterpart in the Lords, John McFall, have blocked him from attending a meeting. Sir Lindsay said it was not “appropriate for the ambassador for China to meet on the Commons estate and in our place of work when his country has imposed sanctions against some of our members”. “If those sanctions were lifted, then of course this would not be an issue,” the Speaker told MPs.

4 SALE: The government has hired US banking behemoth JP Morgan to advise on the future of Channel 4, as ministers consider putting the publicly-owned broadcaster up for sale. A 10-week public consultation into the potential privatisation of Channel 4, ordered by culture secretary Oliver Dowden in June, came to a close on Tuesday night. The Wall Street giant has been drafted in to provide corporate financial advice and analysis to ministers as they consider the responses, The Independent understands.

‘DO THE RIGHT THING’: Labour has called on Conservative MPs “to do the right thing” and back a vote calling for the government to scrap its plans to cut Universal Credit amid fears it could plunge millions of Britons into poverty. Ministers have come under sustained pressure to reverse the decision to end the £20-a-week uplift introduced to support families during the Covid-19 pandemic. During an opposition day debate on Wednesday, Labour will call on Tory MPs who oppose the welfare cut to vote with them in a non-binding motion. Shadow work and pensions secretary Jonathan Reynolds said: “Today, Labour is giving Conservative MPs the chance to do the right thing. They must choose between their blind loyalty to the prime minister and looking after their constituents.”

CRIME BILL ROW: A former lord chancellor has criticised the government’s Police Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill as “not proportionate”, claiming that the legislation is a “scatter gun that won’t do enough for criminal justice”. Lord Falconer of Thornton, Labour’s shadow attorney general, issued the warning during a second reading of the bill in the House of Lords on Tuesday afternoon as several peers raised concerns that it will curtail the right to protest. The bill introduces new powers for police forces in England and Wales to restrict protests, and will allow authorities to impose time limits on demonstrations and maximum noise levels.

“We have not faced a winter with the Delta variant. So it is possible that the combination of winter events plus the Delta variant, which is highly transmissible, could lead to a situation where, on basis of the data, ministers decide that they wanted to trigger all or some of the Plan B.”

Prof Whitty on the coming winter.

“Spare a thought for the middle aged MPs who had barely got used to Stormzy and now have to form opinions about Nicki Minaj.”

Daily Mirror Whitehall correspondent Mikey Smith on Prof Whitty/Nicki Minaj spat.