Evening Standard Comment: Follow the rules and mask up on the Tube

Face coverings on public transport and in shops are now once again a legal requirement, part of a package of measures to reduce the spread of Covid-19 as we await real-world data on the threat posed by the Omicron variant.

The Standard has consistently supported the use of masks on the Tube and buses throughout the pandemic and we opposed their relegation to a condition of travel on TfL services after July 19. This meant that the rule lacked legal enforcement and led to a reduction in compliance.

Whether Omicron turns out to be as bad as some fear or not, mask-wearing is a sensible precaution for any variant by significantly reducing the risk of transmission.

We urge all Londoners to follow the rules and be respectful of those in shops and the Underground charged with enforcing them.

Sir Keir Starmer has bolstered his shadow Cabinet as he seeks to build on the Prime Minister’s unforced errors over the past few weeks.

Yvette Cooper will be a heavyweight voice shadowing Priti Patel at the Home Office, while Lisa Nandy will no doubt get her teeth into Michael Gove and the Government’s confused levelling-up agenda.

In some ways, the challenge for the Labour leader remains unchanged: to set out a compelling vision of what a Starmer Britain would be. The reshuffle has given us some ideas.

Deputy leader Angela Rayner appears to have been outflanked, voices of the party’s soft-Left have been demoted and Corbyn allies such as Cat Smith have gone entirely.

This is a positive reshuffle and Labour now looks and feels like a proper Opposition for the first time in a long time. Boris Johnson should be worried.