Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Covid-19: Departmental Response

Tuesday 13 July 2021 · 3 questions

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

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Ministerial swift actions were taken to reduce virus spread and keep people safe since the start of the pandemic.
  • Response to Dr Mike Ryan's comments on lifting all covid measures: Restrictions have led to considerable pressure on the NHS, including non-covid issues like mental health problems and undiagnosed cancer cases.
  • Government decisions on mask-wearing are informed by scientific advice, data, and considerations, moving from regulation to guidance while still advising their use in certain situations.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Steven Bonnar
NHS
Context

The MP inquired about the effectiveness of government measures and vaccine programme impact on cases and hospitalisations.

Question

What recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of his Department's response to the covid-19 outbreak. Since the start of the pandemic, there have been swift actions to reduce virus spread and keep people safe as the vaccine programme progresses, linking case reduction with improved outcomes.

Answer from Sajid Javid

Since the start of the pandemic, we have acted swiftly to reduce the spread of the virus and to keep the public safe. As our vaccine programme progresses, links between cases and hospitalisations weaken, and that means that we are confident we can move forward with step 4.

Not addressed: N/A

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Q2 Steven Bonnar
NHS
Context

The MP inquired about the Health Secretary's response to World Health Organization's criticism of removing all covid measures.

Question

What is his response to Dr Mike Ryan of the WHO, who described proposals to remove all covid measures as “epidemiological stupidity”? The research suggests that lifting restrictions could result in 100,000 daily cases and 3,000 hospital admissions, putting health services under pressure.

Answer from Sajid Javid

The hon. Gentleman talks about pressure on the NHS but he will know that restrictions have also led to considerable pressure, especially with non-covid issues like mental health problems and undiagnosed cancer cases.

Not addressed: Response was about broader impact of restrictions rather than addressing Dr Mike Ryan's comments directly.

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Q3 Justin Madders Lab Ellesmere Port and Bromborough
NHS
Context

The MP questioned why the Government is moving away from mandatory mask-wearing advice given by scientists last year.

Question

Why are they moving away from mask-wearing guidance now when it was clear and followed scientific advice in 2020? Professor Graham Medley, the chief modeller for SAGE, advised that unmandated masks probably won't do any good. The Government moved from guidance to mandate in May-July 2020.

Answer from Sajid Javid

The Government's decisions are informed by scientific advice, data, and considerations. We move from regulation to guidance on masks but still advise their use in certain situations based on common sense.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Explanation of moving away from mandate without addressing previous adherence clearly.

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