“People need clarity”: Ashworth grills Hancock on Covid measures

Jonathan Ashworth has questioned Matt Hancock on the Covid measures, the local lockdown strategy and testing, declaring that “people need clarity” over the rules being introduced by the government to combat the virus.

Discussing the response to Covid in parliament this morning, the Shadow Health Secretary challenged the effectiveness of the approach described by Boris Johnson as a ‘whack-a-mole strategy’, asking: “Why are the moles not getting whacked?”

Hancock argued in response that “some parts of the country have come through a local lockdown”. He referred to Leicester, though admitted that not all coronavirus restrictions have yet been removed in the city.

Ashworth today reiterated his call from last week for a review of the 10pm hospitality curfew and asked how the minister would stop crowds of people gathering in city centres, as seen last weekend, over the coming days.

The Shadow Health Secretary also asked Hancock whether the government had ruled out the idea of implementing a national ‘circuit break‘ measure over the school half term to suppress the spread of Covid. The minister gave no answer.

Ashworth highlighted: “A test still take 30 to 31 hours to be turned around for in-person tests; 75 hours for home test kits; and 88 hours – more than three and a half days – for test results in satellite test centres predominantly used by care homes.”

The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care responded by describing a “record capacity” for Covid testing, and said that “the speed of the turnaround of test results in care homes is speeding up”.

Labour’s health spokesperson raised reports that Deloitte, hired to help run the NHS test-and-trace programme, is currently involved in selling separate contact-tracing services directly to local health officials in the UK.

Hancock defended the contractor and argued: “Deloitte have done an incredible job in helping us to put together the contact tracing… And of course they should offer their services to local councils as well.”

Keir Starmer called on Wednesday for an “urgent review into whether these local lockdowns are working in the way intended”, as he highlighted that of the 48 areas that have seen additional restrictions, only one has seen those measures removed.

Below is the full text of Jonathan Ashworth’s contribution to parliament today.

We have a long winter ahead. We know that sustained contact, especially in crowded poorly ventilated spaces, is a driver of infection. Pubs and bars are an obvious risk – I heard what he said about the 10pm rule but our concerns relate to everyone leaving the pub at the same time, so what action is he taking this weekend so we don’t see a repeat this weekend of people piling out into city centres and packed out public transport, or sometimes piling into a supermarket to buy more drink? What action is he taking so we don’t see a repeat this weekend of people piling out into city centres and packed out public transport? If we see a repeat of those problems will he impose further restrictions nationwide?

We understand the need for local restrictions including in Merseyside, as announced. But restrictions extract a heavy social and economic toll. Areas need tailored financial support otherwise existing inequalities – which themselves have a health impact and allow the virus to thrive – will be exacerbated. People need clarity. Areas like Leicester, parts of Greater Manchester, Bradford and West Yorkshire have had restrictions imposed on them for months now. Millions of people in these local lockdowns across the North and Midlands need reassurance that an end is in sight. Many want to know if they will be able to visit their loved ones in the coming school half term for example.

Has he now ruled out a so called ‘circuit break’ across half term? Some of the heaviest increases in infection are in areas with restrictions, so why are interventions not working? Why are the moles not getting whacked? Yesterday the Prime Minister suggested that the success of Luton in leaving restrictions was because of people pulling together. But people across Bolton, Bury and Rossendale are also pulling together, so what additional help will they receive to drive the virus down?

Ministers lost precious ground in fighting this virus by not having an effective test, trace and isolate regime in place by the end of summer. Testing and tracing is key to control the virus. Increasing evidence shows the importance of backward contact tracing in controlling outbreaks. Is backward contact tracing routinely happening in areas of restriction and will he publish data on backward contacts reached? We support the call from the health select committee for routine testing of all NHS staff – will he now finally set a date for introducing it?

Problems with testing remain. On 8th September he told the select committee that the problems with testing would be resolved ‘in the coming weeks’. This was more than three weeks ago. Yet a test still takes: 30 to 31 hours to be turned around for in person tests; 75 hours for home test kits; and 88 hours – more than three and a half days – for test results in satellite test centres predominantly used by care homes. So he hasn’t resolved the problem, when will he?

Today we’ve learned that Deloitte, who are contracted by the government to help run test and trace, are now trying to sell contact tracing services to local councils. So the government’s own contractor, one of the very firms responsible for the failing system in the first place, now sees a business opportunity in selling information and services to local authorities – that they should be receiving anyway – in the middle of a biggest public health crisis for 100 years. Isn’t this an utter scandal? How can this be allowed? Doesn’t it show once again that local directors of public health should be in charge of contact tracing?

Finally this week GPs warned of ‘significant problems’ with flu vaccine supplies and Boots and Lloyds pharmacies also stopped offering flu jab appointments due to issues with supply – do we have enough flu vaccines available for all who need one?