The Leader | Evening Standard daily

The Queen has thanked people around the world for their “support and kindness” following the death of Prince Philip as she marked her first birthday without her “strength and stay”. In a statement the monarch, who turned 95, said that the Royal Family were in a period of “great sadness” but that she had “received many messages of good wishes, which I very much appreciate”. The Evening Standard’s Lifestyle editor Suzannah Ramsdale joins the podcast to talk about how her Majesty spent the day with her family, Prince Harry’s involvement before heading back to the States, and plans for a four day bank holiday next year.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Children are returning to school following the Easter break, following a long stretch of being taught at home. For some families, those lockdown kitchen classrooms became quite chaotic, and there are concerns the upheaval left a student generation behind in their education. Now the government’s put a price tag of £1.7 billion on helping their academic recovery. But a report by the Education Policy Institute think tank says up to £15 billion is needed. The EPI believes that without significant policy interventions and funding, there could be severe consequences for young people’s mental health, future earnings and life chances. The Evening Standard’s Education Editor Anna Davis examines the report's findings and Covid’s academic impact.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Are you among the legions of employees who have spent this pandemic year wedged in a spare bedroom or camped out with your laptop at the kitchen table? The Office for National Statistics kicks off this week with research showing that nearly half of London’s employees have been working from home since Covid struck - that’s far more people avoiding the daily commute than anywhere else in the United Kingdom. But has this cultural shift meant working habits are changed for good, or will it all be back to normal by Christmas? The Standard’s Consumer Business Editor Jonathan Prynn analyses the ONS data to decipher what it means for the future of commuting and the knock-on financial impact for London’s retail sector. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Prince Philip’s biographer, Philip Eade, joins the show to discuss the Duke of Edinburgh’s funeral at Windsor Castle. He tells us the stripped back event is “exactly the sort of funeral he would have chosen for himself,” with a guest list strictly limited to just 30 people and much of the ceremony cut down. The funeral’s taking place at St George’s Chapel in the grounds of Windsor Castle, with guests being told to socially distance and wear face masks, including the Queen. But Philip Eade tells us the smaller, more intimate gathering of close family and friends may suit her Majesty more, as she mourns the loss of her husband of 73 years.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Health editor Ross Lydall explains the results of an exclusive poll for the Evening Standard showing London would support controversial Covid passports if they meant being able to go out again. Some 67 per cent say they would personally take them up, boosting hopes that Covid certificates are the key to filling the West End, nightclubs and Wembley Stadium this summer. In a survey of 1,100 people in the capital for the Standard, pollsters Opinium found only 21 per cent would refuse to carry them, meaning support of more than three to one. We also hear from mayor Sadiq Khan, who reveals his worries about coronavirus mutations as surge testing continues in four boroughs following the discovery of the South African variant.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Evening Standard’s health editor Ross Lydall explains what the South African variant of coronavirus is and how the capital’s battling to contain it. Residents in a “targeted area” within SE16 in Southwark are being urged to get a test after a case of the mutation was detected there. Additional testing sites, some of them mobile, are also being rolled out in Wandsworth and Lambeth where dozens of cases of the SA variant virus have been identified. London Mayor Sadiq Khan, a Wandsworth resident, is one of those who have been tested as has his Tory election rival Shaun Bailey who got a Covid vaccine in the area this week.    See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

With over-50s and priority groups all offered the first dose of a coronavirus vaccine, the government is now rolling out the jab to other groups. Our deputy political editor Nicholas Cecil tells us who’s going to be next, and also tells us how the debut of the Moderna vaccine will pick up the slack left by the AstraZeneca injection which is no longer being recommended for the under 30s. Meanwhile, the Prime Minister is warning vaccines are not the reason the country’s coronavirus infection and death rates are down. Boris Johnson says it’s mainly down to the national lockdown rules, which began to be eased on Monday.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Recorded in the beer gardens of Walthamstow’s Orford Road, this special edition of the Leader looks at the impact of lifting some lockdown restrictions on the hospitality industry. Chief food critic Jimi Famuwera joins the show to talk about the relief being felt by restaurateurs and bar owners across the city, but warns there is a huge unpaid rent crisis looming. He also gives some recommendations on places to go alfresco dining, as do Evening Standard writers Susanna Butter, David Ellis and Ellie Davis. Bookings at alfresco spaces such as roof terraces and gardens were said to be “off the scale” despite the day starting with snow showers and temperatures not forecast to rise above 9C.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Evening Standard’s royal editor, Robert Jobson, joins the podcast to talk about the life and legacy of Prince Philip, who has died at the age of 99. Robert discusses the Duke of Edinburgh’s role in modernising the monarchy, and his importance to the Queen during their long marriage. Buckingham Palace says Prince Philip “passed away peacefully” at Windsor Castle, where he had been staying with the Queen since being discharged from hospital on March 16. He had spent a month in hospital earlier this year and underwent surgery for a pre-existing heart condition last month.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Our deputy political editor Nicholas Cecil is on the show after the Evening Standard spoke to a leading expert on vaccinations, following concerns the Oxford/AstraZeneca jab could cause blood clots in very rare cases. Professor Adam Finn says that even if someone was hit by the condition following the jab, “there is effective treatment” and people should take the injection if they’re offered it.  The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency says that as a “precautionary measure” anyone who has certain symptoms four days or more after receiving the AstraZeneca vaccination is advised to seek prompt medical advice. They are a new onset of persistent headache, blurred vision, confusion or seizures, shortness of breath, chest pain, leg swelling, persistent abdominal pain, unusual skin bruising or pinpoint round spots beyond the injection site.  Nicholas also tells us how the latest Covid-19 infection figures show London is continuing to keep the bug at bay.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Evening Standard’s Jonathan Prynn joins the podcast as restaurant groups report an enormous demand for al fresco tables. One, the Incipio Group, says it’s taken more than 300,000 bookings for post-April 12, and some of its venues are close to having their weekends sold out until September. Jonathan says the strong response has given the company confidence to press ahead with plans for a further round of restuarant launches this year. Meanwhile, one of central London’s biggest landlords is pledging to provide 800 outdoor seats for more diners and drinkers in the streets of Mayfair and Belgravia from next Monday in another major boost to the capital’s embattled hospitality sector. The Duke of Westminster’s family property company Grosvenor said North Audley Street in Mayfair would be transformed into an “outdoor dining room” while 150 seats will also be laid on at Motcomb Street in Belgravia .  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Arts correspondent Robert Dex joins us to look at a government plan that could allow theatres to re-open without social distancing as early as this summer. Ministers are looking at how rapid tests and proof of vaccination could allow big shows to reopen in the West End, with auditoriums filled rather than nearly empty. It follows updated advice from scientists who believe we’ll all have to socially distance for several months after lockdown restrictions are eased because of concerns over covid mutations. But Robert tells us many theatre producers are wary of introducing covid passports, fearing it might mistakenly send the signal that a night in the West End is more dangerous than going to the shops.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Evening Standard’s deputy political editor Nicholas Cecil joins us to explain why researchers are to begin coronavirus vaccine trials with children. It follows news that youngsters as young as five could be given the AstraZeneca jab in trials that could be key to keeping schools open after the summer. Professor Adam Finn, head of the Bristol Children’s Vaccine Centre, says giving the inoculations to millions of children may be necessary to keep the virus at bay. Meanwhile, Nicholas also tells us how official figures have revealed the vaccine roll-out in London and across England has “flipped” to delivering more second doses than first shots.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Are we heading for another Roaring Twenties? After a year in lockdown, it appears the UK has saved quite a lot of money and now the Evening Standard’s Jonathan Prynn says we’re being encouraged to spend it.  Official figures reveal an unprecedented scale of cash piles have been put aside by households while “non-essential” shops, restaurants and bars remained closed for months and foreign holidays had to be put on hold. The latest data from the Office for National Statistics shows that the savings ratio — the proportion of disposable income put aside for a rainy day — rose from 14.3 per cent to 16.1 per cent in the last three months of 2020. For the year as a whole, the savings ratio — which peaked in the first lockdown last spring — rose from 6.8 per cent in 2019 to a record 16.3 per cent. But will this new nation of savers want to give up its cash for the sake of the country’s economy?  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Evening Standard’s deputy political editor Nicholas Cecil joins the show to explain the new Novovax vaccine, that could be released in the UK in April. He says ministers have ordered 60 million doses, after trials found it to be 86 per cent effective against the Kent variant of Covid-19 and 96 per cent against the Wuhan strain. It comes as lockdown restrictions are lifted across the country, coinciding with a min-heatwave which has encouraged people to get outside and join their friends and family. Nicholas says that’s got some doctors concerned about people’s behaviour, with a warning not to drink and let your guard down.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.