The Spectator magazine combines incisive political analysis with books and arts reviews of unrivaled authority. absolutely free. Go to spectator.com.uk forward slash voucher. Hello and welcome to Coffeehouse

Shots and Spectator's Daily Political Podcast. I'm Katie Balls and I'm joined by James Plythe and

Isabel Hardman? Is Christmas on? Has Christmas been cancelled? Can you even cancel Christmas? Well, it depends who you ask.

But over the past 24 hours, there have been various reports about the four nations approach and whether it can survive.

What are rising rates and warnings from scientists about the safety concerns of relaxing the rules over the festive period?

It's about at Prime Minister's questions,

Boris Johnson suggested there was a unified approach, but since, I think within minutes of him

saying that, it began to unravel slightly. So where are we at? Yeah, he was very pleased at PMQ's

about this unanimous agreement that they shouldn't end the relaxation of these rules over the Christmas period. But what has

since happened is that Scotland and Wales have announced their own guidance. So they're not changing

the rules, but they are changing their guidance. And in Scotland, it's that your three households

can still come together, but only for one day and no overnight stays.

In Wales, the household limit is going down to two, and the country will go back into lockdown on the 28th of December.

As I said, this is strict guidance from those governments, and we are expecting to get some kind of strict guidance from the Westminster government

with regards England as well this afternoon.

But it will really be to exercise extreme caution, as Boris Johnson said at Prime Minister's

questions, rather than, as he explained, criminalising what people have already planned to do with their Christmas.

But it doesn't really look like a unanimous approach, even if they have just agreed not to

criminalise Christmas. Well, hey. So James, in a way, a lot has changed in terms of the

different language, but not much has changed in terms of what you could be fined or find yourself

on the wrong side of the law for. Yes. terms of what you could be fined or find yourself on the

wrong side of the law for. Yes. Essentially, what you're guessing is a shift to messaging saying

...