Former MP Frank Field says he is terminally ill and asks peers to relax law on assisted dying – UK politics updates

In the House of Lords, Conservative peer Lord Dobbs of Wylye has spoken in favour of changing the law on assisted dying, speaking about his family history of prostate cancer, which he has also been diagnosed with.

Lord Dobbs told the House of Lords that his father and eldest brother both died of prostate cancer, while his other brother has been told he “won’t survive it” and he himself was diagnosed earlier this year.

He said that he understood some people’s reservations but a law “which says myself and my loved ones must suffer in agony and without hope” is one of “utmost cruelty” and must be changed.

A two minute silence is being held in memory of Sir David Amess in Leigh-on-Sea in Essex, a week after the MP was killed while meeting constituents.

Back to the Commons, where MPs are debating fire and rehire again.

Shadow employment rights minister, Imran Hussain, calls the tactic “nothing more than a form of legalised blackmail where all the power is in the hands of bad bosses”.

“Let there be no doubt that fire and rehire is abhorrent, morally bankrupt, and a stain on our economy,” he says.

He says the tactic is being employed “not by small companies” but big nationals, including Tesco and Argos, adding “many of these companies have seen bumper sales during lockdown”.

Nine in 10 university students in England have received at least one Covid-19 vaccination, according to an Office for National Statistics (ONS) survey.

Just 7% of 980 students polled said they have not been vaccinated. Of these, more than half (58%) said they are “fairly or very” unlikely to get it.

Almost eight in 10 (78%) of students have received both doses, with 12% having only had one. The poll also found that more than half (53%) who have been vaccinated think Covid-19 poses a major or significant risk to them.

Health minister Maggie Throup is now making a statement on the health incentives scheme. She says:

Two-thirds of adults in England are overweight or obese, and obesity-related illnesses cost the NHS GBP6bn a year
Obesity is most prevalent in the most deprived areas, she says, adding that “levelling up” must mean giving people the “tools and support” they need “to make a positive change to their lives”.
Announcing the incentive scheme, Throup says obesity policy must “reward healthy behaviours”

In England from next year, the government will be piloting a scheme called “fit miles” which will include an app and GBP3m in rewards including vouchers. We’d reported on this in March:

Alex Norris, the shadow health and social care minister, says this policy is “tinkering around the edges” and the government is failing to address a central point – that “tackling obesity is about tackling poverty”. People in the poorest communities are twice as likely to be obese as those in the best off, Norris says.

Laura Farris, Conservative MP for Newbury, says it is unacceptable to use fire and rehire to force through changes when workers are vulnerable. She argues that MPs agree on that principle, but that there are divisions on how to tackle the problem.

She says that the bill poses risks for workers rights. “I think it exacerbates one of the deepest problems in industrial relations that has come about through this practice.” Farris says opposition to the bill should not be seen as Tory vs Labour, and that opinion within industry and business is mixed.

A minister face masks should not become a “sign of virtue”, a minister has said following the health secretary’s calls for MPs to set a good example by masking up to help avoid further restrictions being introduced.

Gillian Keegan, the minister of state for care, told Sky News masks were “less relevant” than vaccines and boosters as cases passed 50,000 on Thursday for the first time since July.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has said it was “previously incorrectly stated” that samples which may have resulted in a wrong Covid test result started being processed in a lab on 8 September, PA reports.

It said affected samples actually started being processed in the Immensa Health Clinic laboratory in Wolverhampton on 2 September, six days earlier. UKHSA said the estimate for the number of people potentially given wrong results has not been revised from the current figure of 43,000.

Here’s an explainer on how this happened:

In the Commons, Barry Gardiner is arguing that as well as being an issue of principle, fire and rehire is bad for business and the economy.

“The economic argument is critical here, we need to understand this is moral, but it is also a serious economic failure of this country,” he says. He gives the example of a loss suffered by British Gas Centrica:

He goes on to say 70% of the companies that engaged in the tactic in the last month are profit-making companies: “It’s not just an ethical problem … it’s also an economic problem that even the most hard-nosed Treasury officials should recognise”.

“My bill does not ban fire and rehire,” Gardiner underlines, saying that employers’ organisations and trade unions agree that it could have “perverse consequences and should not be attempted”. He says it’s essential that where companies are facing collapse, the law does not prevent what may be the only way of preserving those jobs and continuing the enterprise.

Barry Gardiner, Labour MP for Brent North, is speaking in Commons against fire and rehire as the Employment and Trade Union Rights (Dismissal and Re-engagement) Bill goes for second reading.

He gives examples of workers he has spoken across the country to who have been affected by fire and rehire policies, including a former bus driver in Manchester on three different kinds of medication to deal with the stress of losing his job.

Richard Fuller, Conservative MP Bedfordshire North East, says fire and rehire is not widespread and also occurs in the public sector.

Gardiner says “wherever this happens it’s wrong, it doesn’t matter if it’s the private or the public sector – it’s wrong and families are suffering”, adding that it’s important “not to play party politics and to act”.

A secondary school in Hampshire has shut for half term break two days early due to rising Covid cases.

Admiral Lord Nelson School in Portsmouth moved to remote learning for the last two days of term on Thursday after 161 students were isolating along with 17 staff absent, mostly because of Covid-19. A statement on the school’s website reads:

It said these measures “have not been as effective” as the school would have liked and cases have risen rapidly in the last three days, adding that they “do not believe it is safe to keep students in school with our reduced staffing that makes it increasingly difficult to maintain high standards of education and safety within our school”.

Good morning and welcome to today’s UK liveblog.

The UK’s daily Covid-19 cases rose above 50,000 on Thursday for the first time since July, as Boris Johnson resisted calls for the government to activate its backup plan. The last time cases were at this level was 17 July. Daily data also showed 115 people died within 28 days of a positive test.

The PM said he would not be switching to “plan B”, adding: “We are continuing with the plan we set out in July. We are watching the numbers very carefully every day.”

The rising cases come as a minister said that any decision on whether to shorten the gap between the second dose of the Covid vaccine and the booster jab will depend on the advice of the experts on the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI).

Ministers and officials are reportedly considering plans to reduce the minimum delay from six to five months amid concerns about the speed of the rollout of the booster jabs. Care minister Gillian Keegan told Sky News:

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