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2,941 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDCovid-19: Variant B.1.617.2I have read reports about the fungus the noble Baroness describes, and they are absolutely chilling and a source of grave concern. I am not aware of that being a threat to British…26 May 2021HANSARDCOVID-19 Variant: Travel Guidance for Local AuthoritiesNo, the noble Baroness will be relieved to know that we are not relying on telepathy. Instead we have regional partnership teams, which include Public Health England regional…26 May 2021HANSARDCovid-19Let me assure the noble Baroness that there has absolutely not been a change of policy at all. There are clear channels of communication from DPHs and local authorities to the…26 May 2021HANSARDCovid-19I am extremely grateful for my noble friend’s remarks. The inquiry will, as he says, provide an important moment to look at the lessons that we can learn from the response to the…26 May 2021HANSARDCOVID-19 Variant: Travel Guidance for Local AuthoritiesMy Lords, we are always looking to see how we can communicate more effectively with local authorities. We will have discussions with local authority colleagues this week to make…26 May 2021HANSARDCOVID-19 Variant: Travel Guidance for Local AuthoritiesMy Lords, the characterisation presented by the noble Baroness is unfair. We are trusting people to be responsible and to act with caution and common sense, as they have done…26 May 2021HANSARDCovid-19My Lords, I must admit that I am not aware of a large number of people having to repeat their 10-day isolation, so let me look into that and I should be glad to write to the noble…26 May 2021HANSARDCovid-19My Lords, the noble Baroness asks two very pertinent questions which slightly answer themselves, in a way—but let me try to update the House on our plans in that area. She is…26 May 2021HANSARDCOVID-19 Variant: Travel Guidance for Local AuthoritiesMy Lords, I would ask them to use their common sense. I am a parliamentarian; I am not telling them or legislating for them on that particular decision. They can see the rising…26 May 2021HANSARDCovid-19: Variant B.1.617.2That has not been the feedback from the public in the round. There are significant issues around the supply of vaccine, and we very much take an approach of getting the vaccine…26 May 2021HANSARDCovid-19: Variant B.1.617.2The noble Lord is entirely right, and I am grateful that he has looked at the dashboard as carefully as he clearly has done and drunk deeply from the rich array of data that we…26 May 2021HANSARDCovid-19: Variant B.1.617.2I am afraid I do not have a specific update for the noble Lord. It is an area that we will be extremely interested in looking at, but there are regulatory processes to be gone…26 May 2021HANSARDCOVID-19 Variant: Travel Guidance for Local AuthoritiesWe have not banned smoking; lots of smoking is going on among the British public. This is where the public have a role to play. They have agency, they are able to make their own…26 May 2021HANSARDHeathrow Airport: Border Control Passenger SafetyMy Lords, I completely and utterly acknowledge the concerns expressed by the noble Lord and by communities who live proximately to regional airports. As we look to the opening up…25 May 2021HANSARDHeathrow Airport: Border Control Passenger SafetyMy Lords, I also saw the images circulating last week of queues at Heathrow Airport, and I agree with the noble Baroness that we do not want to see a repeat of those kinds of…25 May 2021HANSARDHeathrow Airport: Border Control Passenger SafetyThe noble Lord is entirely right: this is exactly what we have sought to do—namely, to front-end a huge amount of the administrative burden into the passenger landing form through…25 May 2021HANSARDHeathrow Airport: Border Control Passenger SafetyI do not have the statistic that the noble Baroness asked for, but I would be glad to write to her with it. The surge testing and vaccination in areas of VOC outbreak are now in…25 May 2021HANSARDHeathrow Airport: Border Control Passenger SafetyMy Lords, I pay tribute to the officials, Heathrow and the carriers for the provisions that they have put in place for those who have exceptional needs for travel. It is a truth…25 May 2021HANSARDHeathrow Airport: Border Control Passenger SafetyMy Lords, the noble Lord is right: this is a 21st-century problem that we may well be living with for the rest of our lives. It is absolutely right that we look at the best and…25 May 2021HANSARDHeathrow Airport: Border Control Passenger SafetyMy Lords, Heathrow Airport has extensive measures to ensure the safety and well-being of passengers and we have been working closely with it, Border Force and others to facilitate…25 May 2021