Contributions
3,496 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseYes, absolutely. To deliver the vaccine, if the science comes off—and we hope as much as we possibly can that it will—we will have the plans in place to ensure that it can safely…18 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseThe R rate has not doubled in Yorkshire or indeed anywhere else in the country. By contrast, as I said at the start of my statement, the good news is that things are progressing:…18 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseYes, I would be very happy to meet my hon. Friend, possibly via Zoom—other videoconferencing services are available—to discuss what Makers 4 the NHS and other voluntary…18 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseWe absolutely did a throw a protective ring around social care, not least with the £3.2 billion-worth of funding we put in right at the start, topped up with £600 million-worth of…18 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseIt is not quite fair to say that Wales has not been served on PPE or testing. I have worked very closely with the Welsh Labour Government, and although the number of tests…18 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseYes, that is absolutely right. Two months ago, the people of Blackpool were told that it would be difficult to get through this without the NHS being overwhelmed across the…18 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseAs I have said, in care homes we put in place infection control procedures as much as was possible at the start of this crisis, and there was not an increase in the number of…18 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseThat is one of the many balances we will have to strike in the months and years to come as we recover from covid-19. There are, immediately, three things we are doing on that. The…18 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseWe have put in place extensive protections for people who are shielded, and those protections will of course continue to apply until 30 June. Shielding is not something that we do…18 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseIt is not through the covid app, but we have a process for people inputting whether they think they have had the virus. As and when we manage to land an agreement on antibody…18 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseThat is an incredibly important question, and one of the purposes of the £600 million extra that we are putting into the social care system and that will go direct to the…18 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseI think the whole country celebrated when there was the announcement last week that antibody testing that fits the bill and does the job had been approved by our Porton Down labs.…18 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseI have looked at this proposal and it is clear that primary legislation is not needed, because the Data Protection Act will do the job.18 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseMy right hon. Friend rightly points out that we have urgent dental hubs, so anyone who needs urgent dentistry can get a dentist’s appointment through their GP. Many people have…18 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseWith 21,000 contact tracers now employed, we think that that is capacity for the current level of new cases that have been demonstrated by the Office for National Statistics…18 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseI will keep it concise, Mr Speaker—your instruction. The hon. Gentleman is right to ask detailed questions about care homes, because making sure that we have that ring of…18 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseWe have been working very closely with the SNP Scottish Government on testing, so I am slightly surprised at some of the questions from the SNP spokeswoman. Of course the tests…18 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseYes, I will.18 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseYes. It is true that the early evidence shows that obesity is a major factor in covid-19’s impact on an individual. One early study by Dr Ben Goldacre implied that serious obesity…18 May 2020HANSARDCovid-19 ResponseYes. I am from mining stock myself—in Nottinghamshire rather than south Wales—so I entirely understand the impact mining has on breathing and respiratory disease, and of course I…18 May 2020