Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Source of Covid-19 Outbreak: Discussions with China

Tuesday 15 June 2021 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 2 Partly answered 0 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Ministerial discussions with Chinese counterparts have addressed the response to the pandemic and global health reform.
  • The Foreign Secretary raised the topic with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi during a call last month.
  • The Health Secretary discussed covid-19 origins with his Chinese counterpart at the UK-China health dialogue in December 2020.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Antony Higginbotham
NHS Foreign Affairs
Context

There have been ongoing discussions about the source of the covid-19 outbreak and its implications for global health security. The questioner seeks details on discussions with China.

Question

Whether he has had discussions with his Chinese counterpart on the source of the covid-19 outbreak, given the importance of understanding its origins for global pandemic preparedness.

Answer from Nigel Adams

In their call last month, the Foreign Secretary raised the response to the pandemic and global health reform with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. The Health Secretary also discussed covid-19 with his Chinese counterpart at the UK-China health dialogue in December 2020. He underlined that a shared understanding of the virus's origins, grounded in robust science, is vital to global pandemic preparedness.

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Q2 Antony Higginbotham
Foreign Affairs
Context

The US President has requested a review of the origin of the pandemic. The questioner seeks assurance that the UK will collaborate fully and put pressure on China for transparency.

Question

With President Biden having asked US intelligence agencies to investigate the origins of the pandemic, could the Minister reassure me and the House that we will be playing our full part in those efforts, and that we will be putting pressure on the Chinese Government to make sure that they behave in a much more transparent way than they have done to date?

Answer from Nigel Adams

My hon. Friend is absolutely right to raise this. As he will know, phase 1 of the WHO-convened covid-19 origins study was always meant to be the beginning of the process, not the end. We are working with our international partners to support the timely, transparent, evidence-based and expert-led phase 2 study, including, as recommended by the experts report, in China. World Health Organisation director general Tedros has said that “all hypotheses remain open”, and further data and studies are required. As such, we expect all WHO member states to live up to their responsibilities and co-operate with phase 2.

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