The Londoner: Mervyn King: Ending furlough early is wrong

The former governor of the Bank of England, Mervyn King, says the Government must extend the furlough scheme until whenever GDP is back to “within five per cent of where it was when lockdown started”.

“The risk at present is that we may end that scheme too early,” he told a Tortoise Think-In last night.

King was governor of the bank between 2003 and 2013, most visibly during the UK’s last major economic crisis, sparked by the 2007-08 financial crash.

Though he praised the furlough scheme, he was critical of the decision to end it in October, saying “to decide today which firms are going to fail or flourish because they’re suffering from a government-mandated shutdown is completely the wrong thing to do”.

Various sectors of the economy should be supported until they are “back to normal revenue generating procedures”, then, King argued, “after that point the market will decide which sectors and firms will flourish and which should be allowed to wither on the vine. But we’re certainly not in that position now.”

If anyone knows what they’re talking about...

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Cornwall council may want tourists to stay away this summer, but will their hard line hold in the face of glamorous celebrity? Desperate Housewives star Teri Hatcher reveals: “I just looked at a house there online,” telling the Off Menu podcast she’s “been threatening to buy a house” in Cornwall for years. She adds: “I’ve been surfing there.” You heard it here first.

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Dame Emma Thompson says coronavirus means we must face the fact that “we can no longer make the economy the first of our priorities”. The actor adds to IndieWire: “The economy being the most important thing is an invented idea. What on earth is the stock exchange? It’s for money. None of it exists. What on earth is that?” Invented, but quite useful.

SW1A

BEN BRADLEY MP compares himself to a character from 1984 after he was criticised for demanding safeguards to prevent parents spending free school meal vouchers on alcohol. “Preparations for Hate Week coming on strong,” the Tory adds. Not Saying Silly Things Week to follow?

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DOUGLAS ROSS responds after a journalist noted that a young guest was with the MP during a remote meeting, tweeting: “For absolute clarity, particularly for my wife who had just left for work at this point ... it’s not one of my children, but my child.” One and only.

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Confirming that a magnificent model Parliament spotted in his home this week is Lego, Clive Betts MP tells us: “It’s certainly a talking point.” No wonder — look at the size of it.

Elton and David take Pride in their Beckham T-shirts

ELTON JOHN and husband David Furnish held up Victoria Beckham T-shirts as they celebrated Pride Month and supported a charity for homeless LGBTQ+ youth. Game of Thrones (remember that?) star Nathalie Emmanuel shared an old snap for co-star Jacob Anderson’s birthday. Tom Daley showed off some cuddly toys, and radio presenter Yasmin Evans shared her to-do list, writing: “Tell everyone that Black Lives Matter.”