Contributions
2,941 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDCovid-19: Government ResponseThe Government have gone about the Covid crisis with a great amount of transparency; a very large number of figures are published every single day. I am afraid that some of the…06 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Contact-tracing AppThe noble Baroness is entirely right to be concerned about the vulnerable and our approach. I completely share those concerns. It is a massive challenge, but that does not stop us…06 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Contact-tracing AppMy Lords, I am in touch with both the South Korean and Taiwanese Governments, and we are greatly inspired by the throughly professional way in which they have gone about epidemic…06 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Contact-tracing AppMy Lords, the app works by using the Bluetooth tags which are shared once you have declared symptoms or you have had a positive test. It does not rely on GPS tracking. If the…06 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Contact-tracing AppMy noble friend Lord O’Shaughnessy is entirely right. We all wish to move as quickly as possible back to normal, but I am afraid that travel will be one of the aspects of our…06 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Government ResponseThe right reverend Prelate is entirely right to focus on care homes. It is an awful aspect of this disease that it attacks the most vulnerable who live in enclosed environments…06 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Government ResponseI return to my comments to the noble Baroness, Lady Thornton. In the Lords at least, Ministers have been on the Front Bench answering questions on Covid every day since the Lords…06 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Government ResponseI completely acknowledge the situation and the testimony of the noble Lord. The response by British companies to the ventilator challenge was incredible and, at times,…06 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Contact-tracing AppMy Lords, the anonymised data-sharing is protected by the security protocols that have been agreed as part of the app’s governance. That governance is overseen by the ethics…06 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Contact-tracing AppMy noble friend Lady Blackwood is entirely right. The testing and the surveillance done by testing give us powerful insight into the demographic reach of the virus and information…06 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Government ResponseI welcome the noble Baroness’s questions on accountability. However, I remind her that not all Covid-related matters are covered by the department of health; Ministers have been…06 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Government ResponseMy Lords, with leave I shall repeat the Answer given to an Urgent Question asked in the other place yesterday. In the repeat, I will use the most up-to-date figures, which have…06 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Personal Protective EquipmentThe noble Lord makes an entirely reasonable and common-sense request. It is one that I have put to officials myself. The practicalities of PPE are that you have to be prepared to…23 Apr 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Personal Protective EquipmentThe noble Baroness makes a completely fair point. The background is that procurement in the NHS has been lean and efficient. It has been dedicated to choices for local…23 Apr 2020HANSARDCovid-19I am very grateful for my noble friend’s helpful update, but I remind him that these arrangements are conducted by local authorities. The question that he asks is best answered by…23 Apr 2020HANSARDCovid-19I would like to take my noble friend to Skipton House in London’s Elephant and Castle to see the very large room where there is a combination of the diplomatic skills of the FCO,…23 Apr 2020HANSARDCovid-19: Personal Protective EquipmentThe noble Lord asked for clarity; let me be clear. The NHS is the client. The department of health pays the bills. Other departments are doing their bit to help. We are very…23 Apr 2020HANSARDCovid-19The noble Earl, Lord Clancarty, is right that our present guidelines state that those arriving in Britain should isolate if they have symptoms and seek a test from a hospital if…23 Apr 2020HANSARDCovid-19The noble Lord, Lord Robathan, makes a fair point. I reassure him that we are investing in a massive 20,000-person surveillance by the ONS to get to the bottom of the mystery…23 Apr 2020HANSARDCovid-19The noble Lord raises an issue that I remember was raised during discussions on the emergency Coronavirus Bill. It is my understanding that a generous and open-hearted view is…23 Apr 2020