The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Sajid Javid)
With permission, I would like to update the House on covid-19.
Before I begin, I wish the shadow Secretary of State, the right
hon. Member for Leicester South (Jonathan Ashworth), well as he
recovers from covid-19. Over the past 48 hours, a small number of
cases of a new variant have been detected on our international
genomic database. I want to reassure the House that there are no
detected cases of this...Request free
trial
The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care ()
With permission, I would like to update the House on covid-19.
Before I begin, I wish the shadow Secretary of State, the right
hon. Member for Leicester South (), well as he recovers
from covid-19.
Over the past 48 hours, a small number of cases of a new variant
have been detected on our international genomic database. I want
to reassure the House that there are no detected cases of this
variant in the UK at this time, but this new variant is of huge
international concern. The World Health Organisation has called a
special meeting this morning, and that meeting is taking place
right now. I want to update the House on what we know so far, why
we are concerned and the action that we are taking, although I
must stress that this is a fast-moving situation and there
remains a high degree of uncertainty.
The sequence of this variant, currently called B.1.1.529, was
first uploaded by Hong Kong from a case of someone travelling
from South Africa. The UK was the first country to identify the
potential threat of this new variant and to alert international
partners. Further cases have been identified in South Africa and
Botswana, and it is highly likely that it has now spread to other
countries. Yesterday, the South African Government held a press
conference where they provided an update on what they know so
far. I want to put on the record my thanks to South Africa not
only for its rigorous scientific response but for the openness
and transparency with which it has acted, much as we did here in
the United Kingdom when we first detected what is now known as
the alpha variant.
We are concerned that this new variant may pose substantial risk
to public health. The variant has an unusually large number of
mutations. Yesterday, the UK Health Security Agency classified
B.1.1.529 as a new variant under investigation, and the variant
technical group has designated it as a variant under
investigation with very high priority. It is the only variant
with this designation, making it higher priority than beta. It
shares many of the features of the alpha, beta and delta
variants. Early indications show that this variant may be more
transmissible than the delta variant, and current vaccines may be
less effective against it. It may also impact the effectiveness
of one of our major treatments, Ronapreve.
We are also worried about the rise in cases in countries in
southern Africa, especially as these populations should have
significant natural immunity. In South Africa in particular,
there has been exponential growth, with cases increasing fourfold
over the last two weeks. In Gauteng province, which includes
Johannesburg and Pretoria, some 80% of cases, when tested with a
PCR test, have shown something known as the S-gene drop-out,
which we associate with this variant. While we do not yet know
definitively whether the exponential growth in South Africa is
directly associated with this new variant, this PCR test analysis
does indicate that there could be many more cases of this new
variant than just those that have been sequenced so far.
Even as we continue to learn more about this new variant, one of
the lessons of this pandemic has been that we must move quickly
and at the earliest possible moment. The UK remains in a strong
position. We have made tremendous gains as a result of the
decisions that we took over the summer and the initial success of
our booster programme, but we are heading into winter and our
booster programme is still ongoing so we must act with caution.
We are therefore taking the following steps. Yesterday, I
announced that from midday today, we are placing six countries in
southern Africa on the travel red list. These countries are:
South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Eswatini, Namibia and
Zimbabwe.
Anyone who is not a UK or Irish resident who has been in one of
these countries in the past 10 days will be denied entry into
England. UK and Irish residents arriving from these countries
from 4 am on Sunday will enter hotel quarantine. Anyone arriving
before those dates should take PCR tests on day 2 and day 8, even
if they are vaccinated, and isolate at home along with the rest
of their household. If you have arrived from any of these
countries in the past 10 days, NHS Test and Trace will be
contacting you and asking you to take PCR tests, but please, do
not wait to be contacted; you should take PCR tests right away.
We have been working closely with the devolved Administrations on
this, and they will be aligning their response. In recent hours,
Israel has also taken similar precautions.
I wish to stress that we are working quickly and with a high
degree of uncertainty. We are continuing to make assessments,
including about those countries with strong travel links to South
Africa, and we are working with our international partners,
including South Africa and the European Union, to ensure an
aligned response. This variant is a reminder for us all that this
pandemic is far from over. We must continue to act with caution
and do all we can to keep this virus at bay, including, once you
are eligible, getting your booster shot. We have already given
more than 16 million booster shots. The booster jab was already
important before we knew about this variant, but now it could not
be more important. Please, if you are eligible, get your booster
shot. Do not delay.
We have made great progress against this virus—progress that we
are determined to hold on to. This Government will continue to do
whatever is necessary to keep us safe, and we all have our part
to play. I commend this statement to the House.
(Nottingham North)
(Lab/Co-op)
I thank the Secretary of State for advance sight of his statement
and for his kind words about the shadow Secretary of State, my
right hon. Friend the Member for Leicester South (), which we all share on
this side of the House.
We have been critical of the Government in the past for taking
too long to protect our borders from new variants, particularly
when delta was left to run free, so we are glad to see swift
action today. Adding these countries to the red list is the right
call and we support it. Can the Secretary of State explain why
these specific countries have been added, and not the wider group
where cases of this variant have been detected? Is the addition
of further countries under active consideration over the coming
days? Perhaps in the meantime, we might at least require PCR
tests on arrival, rather than lateral flow tests, for countries
not on the red list that have cases.
As the Secretary of State says, we have made great strides in
getting people vaccinated in this country, but we have always
warned that no one will be safe until everyone is safe. It is
regrettable that when we offered plans to the Government earlier
around the global expansion of vaccination, they were not taken
up. Today’s news reflects a failure of the global community to
distribute the vaccine, with just 5.5% of people in low-income
countries being vaccinated. Can the Secretary of State tell us
about the work he will be doing with his counterparts in affected
countries to ensure they have the vaccines and infrastructure to
deliver them? Can he give us an assurance that our cuts to aid
that we made in this country will not affect that? Does he share
our regret that we had to destroy 600,000 expired doses of the
vaccine in August? What are we doing to ensure that our
stockpiles get to other countries that need them?
I turn to testing. Earlier this month capacity went down
significantly, with members of the public reporting that their
local centres had closed. Will the Secretary of State reassure us
that testing will still be an integral part of our approach? Will
he take this opportunity to refute the rumours that Test and
Trace will be scaled down further?
This is also a reminder that we need to go further and faster
with vaccination at home. Children’s vaccination rates remain
low. The progress on the booster is of course welcome, but we
know that to get there by Christmas we need to go even quicker.
There are huge pockets of the country where significant numbers
of people remain unvaccinated—40% of people in Nottingham, 38% in
Wandsworth and 30% in Bolton, for example. The message the
Secretary of State had for those people today was very
important.
This is a reminder that covid has not gone away. Will the
Secretary of State make commitments to fix sick pay, which is
still necessary 19 months on? Will he go further to ensure that
public buildings, schools and businesses have the support they
need? Surely, we must now revisit cost-free measures, such as
mask-wearing in public spaces.
To conclude, this is a sobering reminder of the challenges the
pandemic brings. We must meet this moment as we have throughout
the last 19 months: by pulling together and looking out for each
other, and in that British spirit of doing what must be done.
I am pleased to respond to the shadow Minister. His first
question was on the six countries we have decided to put on the
red list from midday today. We are going primarily by where the
new variant has been detected at this point. It has been
confirmed in two countries in southern Africa: South Africa and
Botswana. We included the four other countries in southern Africa
I mentioned earlier as a precaution. The shadow Minister will not
be surprised to know that we are keeping this under review and
that there are very live discussions going on around whether and
when we should add further countries. We will not hesitate to act
if we need to do so.
On vaccine donations to developing countries, the shadow Minister
is absolutely right about the importance of that. He will know
that the UK has, for a country of its size, done far more than
any other country in the world, with over 30 million donations
already. We are absolutely committed to our 100 million target
and will continue to work bilaterally with countries, but also
through the COVAX alliance, to get out more vaccines to the
developing world.
Testing remains a hugely important part of our response to the
pandemic. It is playing an incredibly important role and that
will continue for as long as is necessary.
Lastly, vaccinations are of course the primary form of defence in
our country. In one sense, we are fortunate with such a high
level of vaccination. Over 80% of people over the age of 12 have
been double vaccinated and 88% at least are single vaccinated—one
of the highest rates in the world—but we need to go further and
even faster. It is great news that our booster programme, at over
16 million jabs across the UK, is the most successful in
Europe—now, I believe, over 26% of the population over the age of
12—but we want more and more people to come forward as soon as
they are eligible. I cannot stress the importance of that enough.
Today, as the hon. Gentleman said at the end of his remarks, is a
sober reminder that we are still fighting this pandemic and we
can all play a part.
(North Somerset) (Con)
The viral mutation process of genetic drift depends on the number
of times a virus gets to replicate, so the wider the spread
geographically and the longer it goes on, the more viral
replications will occur and the more chances there will be for
mutations—so there is a need to redouble our efforts to vaccinate
populations right across the globe. My right hon. Friend
mentioned the potential increased transmissibility of the virus,
but there is another important element, which is the severity of
the illness produced by a variant. What do we know about that so
far and the potential, therefore, for an impact on the health
service?
As always, the analysis provided by my right hon. Friend is
absolutely correct. On the severity of the new variant, I am
afraid we do not know enough yet. From what we can tell from what
we might call a desktop analysis, the number of mutations that
have been identified—double those for the Delta variant—does
indicate that there is a possibility that it might have a
different impact on an individual, should they get infected. But
as I said earlier, there is a lot we do not know about it and we
are working with our international partners to find out more.
(York Central)
(Lab/Co-op)
I thank the Secretary of State for his statement and for
emphasising the importance of vaccination. However, his statement
makes it clear that we are seeing new variants and the risks
still remain. Therefore, taking further public health measures is
really important. I ask him again to give clear leadership on
ensuring that face coverings, social distancing and high levels
of hygiene are instituted, as well as better ventilation. Those
measures make a difference, as we have seen throughout the past
two years.
The hon. Lady makes a good point about the need to follow
guidance and the rules currently in place. The plan A policies
that we put in place remain the policies we need at this time,
but she will not be surprised to know that we keep them under
review and, if we need to go further, we will.
(Broxbourne) (Con)
The shadow Minister mentioned the number of people who are
unvaccinated. Please, Secretary of State, can we bring a
nasal vaccine to market? Stage 2 trials are proving really
positive, with high rates of efficacy. We have to throw the
kitchen sink at this. I cannot understand why we are not making
nasal vaccines, which would increase the uptake of vaccines in
this country and across Europe, available.
My hon. Friend is right to point to the continued importance of
the vaccination programme. There are some 5 million people in the
UK who have not received a single shot of any type of vaccine. He
is right to talk about the importance of the delivery methods of
a vaccine and, as he has mentioned, there are trials of nasal
vaccines. However, I am sure he will understand that until such
vaccines are approved by our independent regulator, we will not
be able to pursue them.
Mr (Wolverhampton South East) (Lab)
I thank the Secretary of State, the NHS and everyone responsible
for the booster programme that is helping to protect us as we
enter the winter months, but is not one of the lessons of the
news he has announced today that, if we do not tackle the
enormous vaccine inequality around the world, we will continue to
be exposed to new variants of this type? In Africa, for example,
just 6.6% of the population have been vaccinated. Of course, it
is every Government’s first duty to protect its own
people—everyone understands that—but does he agree that the
United Kingdom and other rich countries in the world must do more
to ensure that surplus doses that we do not need are distributed
to countries that do need them, rather than not being used and
ultimately, in some cases, destroyed?
I very much agree with every word the right hon. Gentleman says,
especially about surplus vaccines. That is exactly what we have
done: whenever we have identified vaccines we may not need, we
have offered them either bilaterally or through the COVID-19
Vaccines Global Access, or COVAX, programme. We will continue to
play our role but, importantly, we will also continue to urge our
international partners to do all they can as well.
(Berwickshire, Roxburgh and
Selkirk) (Con)
I commend the Government for the speed with which they have taken
this decision and I welcome the Scottish Government’s following
suit, because in the past there has been concern about the lack
of consistency across the UK. Does the Health Secretary agree
that this is a useful reminder that the pandemic is still with us
and we all have a responsibility to get vaccinated, which
includes getting the booster?
First, I can tell my hon. Friend that there has been excellent
co-ordination across the UK on this matter. As I mentioned
earlier, Scotland and all parts of the UK will be aligning with
what I have announced. The booster programme, as I say, could not
be more important. The very latest figures are that 28.5% of the
UK population over the age of 12 has been boosted, far and away
more than any other country in Europe and, I think, second only
to the United States, but that is still not enough. We need
everyone to come forward, and if there are people out there
listening and wondering what they can do, the single most
important thing they can do, if they are eligible for a booster,
is to go and get it. Go out this weekend and make it your booster
weekend.
Dame (Hackney South and Shoreditch) (Lab/Co-op)
I recognise that the Secretary of State has come to the House at
the earliest opportunity, and I appreciate his swift action. I
hope that it is an indication of the way in which he will engage
with us all on this vital issue. Has he received any information
from South Africa and the other nations of southern Africa that
he mentioned about the impact of the variant on children, and are
there any plans to offer second doses to children here in the
UK?
That is a very good question. This has moved so fast that so far
we have had no indications about the potential impact of the new
variant on children in particular. As soon as we have any
information, we will want to share it.
The child vaccination programme in the UK is going well
throughout the country, and has built up a significant momentum.
As for whether second doses would be recommended, we will await
the expert advice of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and
Immunisation.
(Stourbridge) (Con)
I welcome the swiftness of the Government’s response to the new
variant that is under investigation. Can my right hon. Friend
confirm that, as the situation develops, the Government will
continue to move at the earliest possible opportunity?
Yes, I can certainly make that commitment to my hon. Friend. She
may know from the information that the Government have already
shared that we identified the significance of this variant only
two or three days ago, and we did not hesitate to take action,
because, as we have always said, we will protect our borders when
it comes to this pandemic.
(Nottingham South)
(Lab)
As the Secretary of State has reiterated, getting vaccinated is
vital, and I am looking forward to my booster jab tomorrow.
However, as he knows, some groups and some communities are more
hesitant and more fearful about being vaccinated. I am conscious
that vaccination rates in the city of Nottingham are below those
in the wider county, and also that our local health services are
already under huge pressure. What is the Secretary of State doing
to drive up vaccination rates in areas where there has been low
take-up, and will he now offer places such as Nottingham
additional support as we head into winter?
I want to ensure that all the support that is needed for our
vaccination programme is there, across England. The hon. Lady
rightly asked what we were doing to reach out to those who, for
whatever reason, have so far been a bit hesitant. We have been
working actively for months with many community leaders. We have
added many more venues and ways in which to receive the vaccine,
so access has been improved. Significant work is also being done
on communications and ensuring that the right messages are there,
and that people, including clinicians, are available to answer
questions. However, the hon. Lady was right to point to the
importance of this issue, and I am pleased to hear that she will
be getting boosted this weekend.
(Christchurch) (Con)
Ivermectin has shown promising results as a potential treatment
for covid-19 in places including South Africa. More than five
months ago it was added to the Oxford University trial,
which is called PRINCIPLE. When will the results of that trial be
available, and what are the Government doing to expedite the
process? Ivermectin may not be a magic bullet, but on the other
hand, it may be.
My hon. Friend has made an important point. One reason for the
difference between dealing with this pandemic today and dealing
with it even a year ago is that we already have more treatments,
and my hon. Friend has just mentioned another potential new
treatment. I am afraid that I cannot give him any exact date for
when we think the trials will be over, but I am pleased that they
are taking place. He is right to point to the potential of that
treatment, but I can reassure him that whether the UK’s
engagement is with ivermectin or with other potential new
treatments, it could not be more engaged.
(Newport West) (Lab)
I thank the Secretary of State for coming to the House today to
make his statement with such urgency.
A number of high-profile sporting events were due to take place
in South Africa this weekend, including the united rugby
championship, in which the Cardiff and Scarlets rugby teams were
due to play. What assistance has been given to get them home
ahead of the midday deadline today? May I also ask what
discussions the Secretary of State has had with the devolved
Administrations to ensure a co-ordinated, orderly introduction of
the new travel restrictions?
I understand that this is difficult news, whether for the sports
teams or the thousands of British tourists and others who
currently find themselves in South Africa, Botswana or any of
these countries, but I hope that many will understand. Indeed, I
have had messages today from people who are in South Africa,
saying that this has made their life a bit more difficult when it
comes to getting back home, but they fully understand and support
the action that has been taken.
The hon. Member asked what could be done to try to get the team
back before the deadline. The answer is nothing; we will not do
anything to help them get back before the deadline, because for
anyone who is in South Africa, the best thing to do is to come
back after 4 am on Sunday and go into hotel quarantine.
(Rugby) (Con)
I commend the Secretary of State for the extremely prompt action
that he is taking to protect our citizens. Although these are
early days—he has spoken about the uncertainty and said that we
do not know enough about the new variant—does he have any
assessment of the length of time for which the measures that he
has announced might be necessary?
That is a good question, but such is the uncertainty around the
variant and the rate at which it seems to be spreading that I am
afraid that it is not possible to put a timeline on this
action.
(Harrow West) (Lab/Co-op)
If we are to help reduce the chance of further variants emerging
that will threaten the health of our citizens, we clearly need to
accelerate vaccination programmes in other countries,
particularly in the Commonwealth. Why are Ministers therefore so
determined to use the World Trade Organisation ministerial
meeting next week to block progress towards achieving—as South
Africa and India want—a temporary waiver of intellectual property
rules to help developing countries to develop their own vaccine
manufacturing capacity?
The answer is that a temporary waiver of intellectual property
for such purposes would be a huge step backwards. It would not
help developing countries and it certainly would not help if we
needed new vaccines, not just for covid-19 but for a future
pandemic; the industry and businesses might step back and not
bother developing if they believed that the intellectual property
would always be waived in such circumstances. What is important,
as I think the hon. Gentleman would agree, is that the companies
developing these life-saving vaccines have an appropriate pricing
and access policy for each country, so that vaccines are priced
appropriately and accessibly for developing countries, and rich
countries such as the UK, the US and others continue to do all
they can through international vaccine donation programmes.
(Kettering) (Con)
I commend the Secretary of State on the swift actions he has
taken in relation to the new variant. He is completely right that
the booster programme is more important now than ever, but
residents in Rothwell, Desborough, Burton Latimer, Barton
Seagrave and Kettering are telling me of the difficulty that they
are experiencing in getting a booster in the Kettering
constituency. They are being asked to go to Corby or Northampton,
which is difficult for many people. Can we have a boost to the
booster programme in Kettering, with immediately local walk-in
booster centres?
My hon. Friend is right to talk about ease of access to the
booster programme. Of course we want to make it as easy as
possible, and we are adding numerous sites day by day. I will
absolutely see what we can do with regard to Kettering. The
Vaccines Minister, the Under-Secretary of State for Health and
Social Care, my hon. Friend the Member for Erewash (), has heard what my hon.
Friend has said. I suggest that they have a quick meet after
this, as I am sure that she is eager to open up more access
points in Kettering.
(Bristol East) (Lab)
I echo the hon. Member for Kettering (Mr Hollobone). I have my
booster on 18 December, which a few days ago was the first date
being offered near me in Bristol. There is now a growing divide
between people who will have had three jabs and people who will
not have been jabbed at all. There are some hardcore vaccine
refuseniks, but there are also quite a lot of people who think
that they are now immune because they have had a mild dose of
covid. However, we know that they could well be at risk,
particularly with new variants coming on board. What more can we
do to persuade those people who have not been jabbed at all that
it is time to get jabbed?
The hon lady is absolutely right: there are still too many people
out there who are, let us say, vaccine-hesitant—they are not
complete refuseniks but just want more information and perhaps
have read the wrong type of information. More needs to be done,
continuously, to reach out to them. Where there are people in
particular communities, we are working with community leaders.
There has been a real change in our comms programme and we are
trying to reach out to people in different ways—for example, we
are making much more use of social media, as well as our general
comms. If the hon. Lady has some new ideas that she thinks we can
try, we are listening.
(Carshalton and Wallington)
(Con)
I, too, welcome the speed with which the Government have acted.
Many Carshalton and Wallington residents had previously contacted
me to express concerns about people rushing to fly to the UK
before a country was added to the red list. Will my right hon.
Friend confirm that flights from the six countries will be banned
until the quarantine is introduced on Sunday and that the same
policy will apply to any new countries that are added to the red
list?
The decision to ban the flights—it is obviously a temporary
ban—was taken to allow us the time to stand up the red-list
managed quarantine system. Once that system starts and we are
comfortable that it is functioning as we would like, we will
review the decision on those flights. We will consider banning
flights from any other country if it is necessary for reasons
similar to those taken in respect of this decision.
(Buckingham) (Con)
My right hon. Friend is absolutely right to take the new variants
as seriously as he does. Given the critical importance of the
need to avoid damage to children’s education and development and
the economic havoc that more lockdowns would bring, if the news
from our world-class scientists who are analysing the
effectiveness of our existing vaccines against the new variants
is positive, what assessment has my right hon. Friend made of the
ability to stretch the booster programme to bring it down through
the age categories as we head into winter, thereby getting
boosters into more arms sooner than the six-month gap?
Regardless of the news about this variant, the booster programme
remains crucial. In fact, as I said earlier, it is even more
important because of this news. My hon. Friend asked about
whether the programme can be extended to lower age categories; as
he knows, boosters were extended to the 40-to-49 age group on
Monday, and the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation
is already considering whether the programme can be extended
further. I await its advice.
|
