Dominic Raab the grouch is gone… now he’s a far springier stand-in: HENRY DEEDES sees the caretaker boss raise his game at briefing
Dominic Raab’s mood, to use a phrase we hear rather a lot from scientists these days, has upticked significantly since we last heard from him.
On Thursday, he was a down-at-mouth sort of character. Glum. Grouchy.
Yesterday, however, he entered the Downing Street briefing with a renewed sense of buoyancy.
His step was springy, his smile a little less forced than usual. The reasons for his mildly perkier demeanour were soon clear. The Easter break, he insinuated, had been a success.
The Government’s fears that people would see the four-day weekend as an excuse to flout the lockdown and flood into public spaces to enjoy the sunshine had not transpired.
Dominic Raab’s mood, to use a phrase we hear rather a lot from scientists these days, has upticked significantly since we last heard from him
Yesterday, however, he entered the Downing Street briefing with a renewed sense of buoyancy
Despite the balmy 25 degree heat in some parts, the overall majority of the country had followed guidelines and remained banged-up indoors. There was almost mild surprise in the acting PM’s voice, like the school music teacher whose end-of-term concert had not been quite the disaster he expected.
Thank you, he seemed almost desperate to say, for not being such idiots. ‘Your efforts are making all the difference,’ he said.
‘And please keep them up – we’ve come too far, we’ve lost too many loved ones and we’ve sacrificed too much to ease up now.’
Raab opened with an update on the PM. They’d last spoken on Saturday – a gentle reminder of just how easy Boris is having to take things at the moment. The Government, he said, remains united in its fight against coronavirus – a superfluous detail most us would expect should really go without saying.
Good news, for now, remains a rare commodity. A further 717 people have now died of coronavirus, taking the total death toll beyond the 11,000 threshold. Raab delivered the news with stark, bureaucratic detachment which has sadly become characteristic of these daily news briefings.
Despite the balmy 25 degree heat in some parts, the overall majority of the country had followed guidelines and remained banged-up indoors. Pictured is an empty Broadstairs beach
It was clear that despite entering week four of the lockdown we were still some way from even discussing any relaxations.
‘It’s still far too early,’ he insisted. For now we would just have to continue as we are. ‘Don’t take your eye off the ball,’ Raab remarked repeatedly.
He kept referring to the virus as though it were a living person who needed exterminating. Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty and the Government’s chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance joined Raab at the podium.
Très raffiné Sir Patrick somehow seems to have secured himself a session with the barber amid the lockdown. Perhaps it was Lady Vallance’s handiwork? It’s a tricky position Raab currently finds himself in. Effectively he is like a caretaker football manager.
He picks the side each Saturday and handles the post-match debriefs, but other than that his influence on events remains limited. He’s improving with each showing – that much is certain.
But he lacks that star quality which galvanises people in times of crisis.
Boris’s emotive Easter Sunday broadcast, his first since being released from hospital, only reminded us just how much he will be missed in the coming weeks.