,
Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary, responding to the Health
Secretary's statement to the House on further coronavirus
restrictions, said:
“Given what we now about rising prevalence of the virus, given we
know admissions to critical care are increasing
“We understand why he has had to take the difficult decisions on
Tier 2 for London and other areas including Erewash, Essex and
Barrow.
“I hope will agree these decisions are most effective when made
in tandem with local leaders.
“And let’s be clear, this public health intervention is not
backed up by with a financial package to mitigate its impact on
jobs and livelihoods.
“More people will fall into poverty and destitution.
“Families across Bury and Bolton, small businesses across Burnley
and Hyndburn and London have been failed by the Chancellor.
“A stronger package of financial support is needed for Tier 2 and
Tier 3 areas.
“The British people have made tremendous sacrifice already and
now we are heading into the bleakest of winters.
“Much of this could have been avoided if the misfiring £12
billion Test and Trace had been fixed over the summer.
“Today new figures show just 62 per cent of contacts reached.
That’s equivalent to 81,000 people not reached circulating in
society even though they’ve been exposed to the virus.
“Another record low.
“Yesterday we learnt consultants working on test and trace are
being paid over £6,000 a day to run this failing service. In a
single week the government is paying these senior consultants
more than they pay an experienced nurse in a year.
“Can the Secretary of State explain why such huge sums of money
are being paid to consultants to run a service that is only
getting worse?
“The Prime Minister said yesterday these new restrictions would
bring the R below 1.
“But while virus growth is accelerated in northern regions, the
embers are burning bright nationwide.
“Let me repeat to the House – and the Tory party is welcome to
clip me again for Twitter, it will save my staff the trouble.
“A full national lockdown stretching for weeks and weeks like we
went through in April, May and June– would be disastrous for
society.
“It is why we are urging him to adopt a short, time-limited 2-3
week circuit break.
“To take back control of the virus, to reboot, and to fix test
and trace.
“Protect the NHS.
“Save lives.
“SAGE recommended a circuit break.
“NHS providers say they are ‘urging politicians to listen to the
scientific advice and move as fast and as decisively.’
“The SPI-M subgroup of SAGE - say a circuit break of two weeks
will save almost 8,000 lives.
“And for all the ponderous blustering and carping from the Prime
Minister, he told the House with some haste - as if he didn’t
want his own backbenchers to realise - ‘I rule out nothing of
course.’
“So the Prime Minister has not ruled it out, which we welcome, so
what are the government’s criteria for a national circuit break?
“How many hospital admissions?
“How much non-Covid care delayed?
“Dare I say it how many more deaths?
“Action needs to be taken right now. Plans need to be put in
place today.
“Everyone accepts that the government were too slow in the
spring.
“How certain is he that his government is not making the exact
same mistake again with more catastrophic consequences?
“This is a moment in history.
“Look around.
“Can the Health Secretary explain why not a national circuit
break now?
“Because if we do this in a few weeks or months’ time more lives
and livelihoods will have been lost.
“So in the national interest I offer to work constructively with
him today, to deliver the circuit break that is now needed.”
