House of Lords
Introduction: Lord Wolfson of Tredegar
Arrangement of Business
The Deputy Speaker (Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall) (Lab)
My Lords, the Hybrid Sitting of the House will now begin. Some Members are here in the Chamber, others are participating remotely, but all Members will be treated equally. I ask all Members to respect social distancing. If the capacity of the Chamber is exceeded, I shall immediately adjourn the House. Oral Questions will now commence. Please can I ask those asking supplementary questions to keep them to no longer than 30 seconds and confined to two points—and may I ask that Ministers’ answers are also brief? I call the noble Baroness, Lady D’Souza, to ask the first Oral Question.
Child Welfare
(3 years, 11 months ago)
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Baroness D’Souza
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to appoint a Cabinet-level Minister with responsibility for policies relating to the welfare of children.
Lord Ashton of Hyde (Con)
The noble Baroness is coming across, she just needs to ask permission to put her Question.
Baroness D’Souza (CB) [V]
Thank you. My Lords, there has been a welcome focus on children’s welfare in the past few months, be it child poverty, free school meals, obesity, domestic abuse, education and excluded children, among other—
Lord Ashton of Hyde (Con)
My Lords, the noble Baroness is putting her supplementary question. Perhaps she could ask permission to ask her Question standing on the Order Paper.
Baroness D’Souza (CB) [V]
I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Education and Department for International Trade (Baroness Berridge) (Con)
My Lords, families play a primary role in caring for and educating their children. The right honourable Secretary of State for Education has therefore been asked to drive forward policy in order to protect vulnerable children and give all children the best start in life. To work towards this, the Government have announced £2.5 million to research and develop best practice on how to integrate family services and support for vulnerable children.
Baroness D’Souza (CB) [V]
I thank the Minister for her Answer. As I said somewhat earlier, there has been a welcome focus on children’s welfare in the past few months, including children’s poverty, free school meals, obesity, domestic abuse, education and excluded children, among other issues. However, is it not now time for the Government to consider it appropriate to appoint a senior, Cabinet-level Minister with special responsibilities for children to consolidate, co-ordinate, streamline, implement and introduce new policies to meet these continuing needs?
Baroness Berridge (Con)
My Lords, the needs of children and families indeed cut across government departments. Therefore, the Government’s existing procedures are utilised when policy impacts on more than one department. For instance, there is now a ministerial group in relation to the needs of care leavers. Reviews have taken place, such as the Selous review of service families. So existing procedures are being used across government and the Secretary of State is driving forward new policy.
The Deputy Speaker (Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall) (Lab)
My Lords, I understand that the next speaker, the noble Lord, Lord Winston, is absent, so I call the next speaker, the noble Baroness, Lady Uddin.
Baroness Uddin (Non-Afl)
My Lords, as a practitioner in the field of family protection, I add my voice to the call by the noble Baroness, Lady D’Souza, for a Cabinet-level Minister. This is a seminal moment in children’s lives. They face countless burdens, including poverty, education, mental well-being, online harms, county lines, and an unprecedented level of violence and abuse. A Cabinet Minister with a diverse team to address these complexities would be in the forefront of decision-making. Does the Minister agree?
Baroness Berridge (Con)
My Lords, it is a privilege for the Secretary of State to be in charge of driving forward policy in this area. However, we should not focus solely on the level of responsibility, because often the first points of contact for vulnerable children are not only the local authority but voluntary services. So we have invested about £9 million with Barnardo’s, which takes the lead on See, Hear, Respond to try to reach children who have yet to be sighted by the statutory authorities.
Lord Balfe (Con)
My Lords, might I urge caution on the Minister? We have many departments that deal with children, particularly the DHSC, which has responsibility for social services aspects. We have a Children’s Commissioner and I am not sure that we would advance anything by adding a title to a Cabinet Minister’s role, when there are already Cabinet Ministers responsible for social services and education. So caution, please.
Baroness Berridge (Con)
My Lords, yes, there are a number of departments that have responsibility in this area. For instance, the DHSC has led on the childhood obesity strategy, while money raised by the sugar tax is actually spent out of the Department for Education on healthy eating and PE. We welcome the appointment of the new Children’s Commissioner, Rachel de Souza, who will take office soon.
Lord Storey (LD) [V]
My Lords, the suggestion by the noble Baroness, Lady D’Souza, is not without merit, but the Minister will be aware that we have a Children’s Commissioner in England who promotes the rights, views and interests of children in policies and decisions affecting their lives. Will the Minister consider ways of enhancing the role of the commissioner?
Baroness Berridge (Con)
My Lords, the advantage in having a Children’s Commissioner is that it is a statutory appointment and, as I say, there will be a new occupant. However, we are privileged in this country to have a very active civil society on behalf of children, making sure that their views are known, as well as through MPs. There are government-led programmes to reach the most vulnerable families, such as the successful Troubled Families programme, where we have spent over £1 billion and where we have seen significant reductions in the number of children coming into care from those families, and significant reductions in juvenile convictions.
Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Con) [V]
My Lords, I am a vice-president of the National Association of Child Contact Centres and I warmly welcome the focus on children’s welfare in the range of Bills currently before the House on online harms, domestic abuse and covert human intelligence, among others. My noble friend in her replies outlined an ad hoc basis of interrelationships between relevant departments. Is there some merit in setting up a permanent cross-party group that will consider the welfare of children at the earliest possible stages of drafting policies with regard to children’s welfare, and again at the stage of implementation? At the moment we have only an ad hoc basis, bringing departments together where relevant. There is some merit in having a permanent, formal cross-departmental relationship.
Baroness Berridge (Con)
My Lords, in relation to certain matters such as care leavers, there is a formal cross-ministerial group, but I assure noble Lords that the processes are not ad hoc. There are procedures across Whitehall to ensure that policy-making is coherent. The Government also now applies the family test to policy-making. We also must not forget as well that one of the key things we need to focus on is that schools are now closed for most pupils, and that is one of the best protective factors for our children and is why vulnerable children and those of critical workers are, I hope, currently in school.
Baroness Meacher (CB) [V]
My Lords, I support the concern of the noble Baroness, Lady D’Souza. Of all Bills with relevance to children, surely the Domestic Abuse Bill should have their interests high on its agenda, yet they are hardly mentioned. I think I found three mentions in the Bill. Does the Minister agree that a Cabinet-level Minister for children would have ensured that children’s interests are fully reflected in this incredibly important Bill?
Baroness Berridge (Con)
My Lords, the noble Baroness may be aware that the DWP has a specific initiative to reduce parental conflict. When the Domestic Abuse Bill is before the House, I am sure noble Lords will make the needs and interests of children clear. We have been focused on this, particularly with schools, which are the second-largest referrers to the police, to ensure that local authorities have enough capacity for referrals to be made.
Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Lab) [V]
My Lords, the Minister says that the Secretary of State for Education is responsible for driving forward policy on children, yet, on the DfE website, the welfare of children is not listed under his responsibilities, although providing support for children is included under the responsibilities of the DWP’s Secretary of State. Does this not demonstrate the need for a cross-departmental approach to protect children’s welfare? Given her other role as Minister for Equalities, the Minister surely understands the benefits of overarching departmental responsibility. Without a Cabinet member responsible for the welfare of children, what new cross-government procedures will be introduced during the current lockdown to ensure that vulnerable children are protected from levels of abuse similar to those reported by the NSPCC during the spring lockdown?
Baroness Berridge (Con)
My Lords, the NSPCC’s role is very important at the moment. That is why we have ensured funding so that its helpline can exist. Within the structure of the Department for Education, the right honourable Member Vicky Ford is responsible for vulnerable children and children’s social care in policy terms. It is clearly a priority within the department, but I will take away the noble Lord’s comments about how things on our website are prioritised.
Baroness Thornhill (LD) [V]
Minister, much has been said about cross-departmental working with some welcome remarks about civil society. In a post-pandemic recovery plan, is there any political will within the Government for part of the solution to be real devolution and decentralisation of responsibilities and powers to local governments?
Baroness Berridge (Con)
As I understand it, the primary responsibility in statute is with the local authority. It has responsibility for the safety and welfare of every child within its area. That is why, during the pandemic, there has been an increase of £4.6 billion and £1.55 billion going forward to keep those services. They are now part of the local safeguarding partnership that has been put in place with the police and public health locally.
The Deputy Speaker (Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall) (Lab)
My Lords, I regret that the time allowed for this Question has elapsed.
Leaseholders: Properties with Cladding
(3 years, 11 months ago)
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Baroness Neville-Rolfe
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress they have made towards supporting leaseholders who cannot (1) sell, or (2) mortgage, their properties as a result of issues with cladding.
The Minister of State, Home Office and Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (Lord Greenhalgh) (Con)
The Government have published supplementary guidance and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors will be working with lenders, valuers and the safety bodies to develop new advice for surveyors. This will enable surveyors to take a more proportionate approach where there are concerns about cladding. Furthermore, the Government have announced nearly £700,000 to train more assessors, speeding up the valuation process for home owners where an EWS1 form is required.
Baroness Neville-Rolfe (Con) [V]
I know the Minister is trying very hard, but this is a lamentable and serious situation, with numerous facets impinging on millions of people who have done nothing wrong. It has dragged on for too long. Does the Minister agree that we need energetically to find a way forward that prioritises the most important matters, does not let the best become the enemy of good, limits the scale of the problem by excluding dwellings that do not pose a serious risk from the new cladding rules, and delivers a fair financial outcome? Will he set up a task force, possibly under a leading public figure, to recommend an early package of measures to get us out of this impasse, as a whole?
Lord Greenhalgh (Con)
I thank my noble friend for raising this topic, which we both feel strongly about. I do not think the solution is a task force; it is about taking a position to implement something that makes good policy. The approach that the Government have taken so far is to restrict demand. In the guidance being published tomorrow, we will see all buildings below 11 metres, unless there is a rare example of one coated in Grenfell-style cladding, taken out of scope at one fell swoop. The focus will then be between 11 metres and 18 metres, where the threshold is deemed to be above 25% coated in flammable materials. That takes a vast majority of the 100,000 remaining buildings out of scope. Then you are left with 11,700 high-rises, which comes to 2,000 or so buildings. We have made huge strides by managing demand in this way, sending out the clarification to the advice note and addressing the supply issue to deal with the remediation required.
Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Non-Afl)
My Lords, millions of home owners in this situation bought their properties in good faith. Now their properties are deemed worthless; they cannot be bought, sold or remortgaged. The freeholders and insurance companies say that it is not their problem, and mortgage lenders, through the confusion created by the Government’s changing guidance and the EWS1 certification, have exacerbated the problem. So I welcome the clarification on the guidance that the noble Lord has just given. However, will he accept that this is a bigger problem and that the Government must deal with it? They must ensure that property developers and insurance companies accept their share of the responsibility.
Lord Greenhalgh (Con)
My Lords, I absolutely accept that a generation of people have built buildings that are not fit for purpose and, under any regime, should not have been built in this way. In recent years, developers have made profits of between 20% and 30%, so of course they should step forward and do the right thing. I absolutely share that view. The leaseholders who find themselves in this position are victims. I have said that at the Dispatch Box and am happy to commit to do everything we can to ensure that this does not fall heavily on leaseholders.
Lord Young of Cookham (Con)
As my noble friend Lady Neville-Rolfe rightly says, this problem has dragged on too long. We need a solution that avoids the costs and delays of the courts. Should the package of measures not include further support from the Government, as with PRC houses in the 1980s, and a major contribution from the developers, as was just implied by the noble Baroness, Lady Kennedy, which have a moral responsibility and should be subjected to a levy?
Lord Greenhalgh (Con)
My Lords, I think the solution will include a levy on the development community, but I also want to talk about construction products. Look at the margins made by those who sold some of the construction materials used on high-rises such as Grenfell Tower. They made astronomical profits. Profits have been made and the result was products that are not fit for purpose. We have seen total regulatory system failure and construction practices that require significant regulatory change. As Buildings Safety Minister, I am committed to that.
Lord Best (CB) [V]
My Lords, many leaseholders are shared owners who own perhaps only 25% of their homes, because they could not afford to buy more. However, they are liable for 100% of their flat’s share of the cost—maybe £40,000 or more—to rectify defects, such as cladding replacement. Would the Minister give special consideration to rescuing these shared owners, who are disproportionately affected, with many facing bankruptcy if they are not helped?
Lord Greenhalgh (Con)
I thank the noble Lord for his comments on shared ownership. This tenure can be particularly unfair, if you own a proportion of your property and rent the rest, but are hit with 100% with the liability, when the problem was not of your own making. I take these points on board and we will do everything we can to ensure that people in shared ownership, on the pathway to home ownership, are protected as best they can be.
Baroness Blower (Lab) [V]
My Lords, I thank the noble Lord for his answers to all the questions so far. Is there a specific issue for those who have exercised their right to buy in council blocks with this cladding, and are Her Majesty’s Government addressing it?
Lord Greenhalgh (Con)
My Lords, I am not aware of a specific issue with right to buy, as we saw in the 1980s. If my Twitter account is anything to go by, it is not related. This is about all leaseholders, particularly those in high-rises, as opposed to those who have just exercised the right to buy. It is in all settings, both public housing and private housing.
Lord German (LD)
My Lords, I rent a flat in a block of unsafe flats in London, and I am surrounded by leaseholders who suffer greatly as a result of the turmoil and fear of the consequences. Does the Minister agree that it is now time for a comprehensive financial solution to these matters, not one that tinkers around the edges? Will he tell the House what consideration he has given to the proposal he received last week from lawyers and financial advisers on behalf of leaseholders for a special purpose vehicle that would provide the £12 billion shortfall that the Government say they are unable to meet from public funds?
Lord Greenhalgh (Con)
My Lords, I am happy to report that I spent a considerable amount of time being briefed by Dean Buckner, who is at the heart of those proposals, the Leasehold Knowledge Partnership, and the APPG on Leasehold and Commonhold Reform. I can also say that Michael Wade has been asked by my right honourable friend to look into this matter. There was a huge amount of similarity in thinking on how to move forward. In fact, we learned a lot from the discussions. At the moment, I cannot say exactly what will be put forward. That matter is obviously above my pay grade, but we are getting there.
Lord Randall of Uxbridge (Con) [V]
My Lords, I draw attention to my property entries in the register. The Government have stated that they expect building owners to pay for the cost of remediation rather than passing it on to leaseholders. Despite that welcome aspiration, there is currently no compulsion for owners to cover these costs. Many are flatly refusing to take that responsibility. This has already resulted in bankruptcies and even suicides among leaseholders presented with enormous bills. What can the Government do to force building owners and the construction industry to do the right thing?
Lord Greenhalgh (Con)
My Lords, that is a very pertinent question and I thank my noble friend for raising it. There are ways to deal with that. Frankly, they have made large sums of money in the last few years and their profits are often publicly available. There is a soft power aspect: developers want to continue to build if they are in business, and they can afford £60,000 for a fire alarm and to pay for remediation costs. They do the right thing. We saw with the aluminium composite material programme that around half of building owners did the right thing and did not to have to resort to payment and subsidy by the taxpayer.
Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Lab Co-op)
My Lords, I refer the House to my relevant interests as set out in the register. Does the Minister agree that it is important for all building owners and managers to be open, honest and transparent with leaseholders about the fire safety defects and other risks in their buildings as part of dealing with the cladding and fire safety scandal and future problems? Will he agree to look at what specific legislative measures could be included in the building safety Bill, including serious criminal sanctions for those who fail to do so?
Lord Greenhalgh (Con)
My Lords, there will be a lot of legislative work in the next calendar year on the building safety Bill, and we still have the Fire Safety Bill to play ping-pong with. I will ensure that we consider the noble Lord’s proposals very closely indeed to ensure that we hold building owners to account. That is the whole idea of the building safety Bill: that there is an accountable person.
Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (CB) [V]
My Lords, many leaseholders are suffering extreme stress. They are locked down in flats that could go up in flames but which they cannot sell. What urgent support is being given to cover all additional costs, including total waking watch costs, and to recoup long-term drops in value in their investment? Can the Minister confirm that, if their flats are now worth zero and they have been bought under the Help to Buy scheme, all repayments should have been reset to zero and reimbursed, since the scheme allowed for a drop in interest rates if the value dropped?
Lord Greenhalgh (Con)
My Lords, I really do feel for the leaseholders. It is not 4.5 million leaseholders, because that would be every leaseholder in the country, but it is a significant number. It is a smaller number in high-rises. We have announced an interim measures package that includes a £30 million fund that will fund some 600 fire alarm systems, which is far cheaper than waking watch, where frankly the costs sometimes defy belief. We have looked into supporting them directly so that they can move to that alarm system, which is the most cost-effective way to provide interim protection.
The Deputy Speaker (Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall) (Lab)
My Lords, I am afraid that the time allowed for this Question has elapsed. We now come to the third Oral Question.
Gambling
(3 years, 11 months ago)
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The Lord Bishop of St Albans
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the cost to taxpayers of problem gambling.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (Baroness Barran) (Con)
My Lords, Public Health England has undertaken a review of evidence on the public health harms relating to gambling and their social and economic burden. Publication has been delayed by Covid but is expected in the first part of this year. We have also launched our review of the Gambling Act. We are calling for evidence on how best to reduce harms and how we will recoup the cost to society.
The Lord Bishop of St Albans [V]
When the Minister announced the gambling review, he mentioned the tax receipts provided by the industry, but there was absolutely no reference to the social costs, particularly those associated with health services. We know only that, as part of the Government’s NHS mental health plan, £6 million has been committed to gambling-related harm by 2023. How much do the NHS problem gambling clinics cost the NHS, including the 14 new clinics due to be opened by 2023-24? If the Minister is unable to give these figures, would she write to me?
Baroness Barran (Con)
To take the right reverend Prelate’s first point, I know he will acknowledge that it is very difficult to tease out the specific costs related to gambling harm, particularly on health and mental health. I will endeavour to dig out the updated figures from the mental health implementation plan for the 14 clinics, but I also note that this investment is in addition to the investment being made by GambleAware in specialist clinics in London and in the Northern Gambling Service.
Lord Forsyth of Drumlean (Con) [V]
My Lords, when I was a Minister in the Home Office in charge of gambling some 25 years ago, the rule was that operators were not allowed to stimulate demand. They were prevented from advertising or doing anything that encouraged people to gamble. Now, people are being bombarded on television and on the internet with offers of free bets and goodness knows what else. Is it any wonder, with many people in lockdown and subject to financial strictures, that we have an increasing problem with gambling? In considering the review, will my noble friend consider going back to that situation where demand cannot be stimulated, which means that people who want to gamble can do so but that we do not draw people into the net, which has had catastrophic consequences?
Baroness Barran (Con)
My noble friend makes important points. He will be aware that we are calling for evidence on the benefits and harms of advertising and sponsorship as part of the review. He will also be aware that there are already very strict rules around gambling advertising and promotions, particularly to those who have self-excluded and, importantly, to children.
Viscount Colville of Culross (CB)
The Royal Society for Public Health reported that not only loot boxes but skin betting created gambling problems for young gamers. Can the Minister assure the House that the Government’s call for evidence on loot boxes will also investigate skin betting and horizon scan for how the future monetisation of gaming can adversely affect young players?
Baroness Barran (Con)
Our number one priority in the Gambling Act review, which I appreciate is broader than the noble Viscount’s question, is the protection of children and their access to gambling. The call for evidence on loot boxes closed at the end of November. We received tens of thousands of responses, and we will publish our response to that early this year. I will need to confirm the position on skins and write to the noble Viscount.
Lord Sikka (Lab) [V]
My Lords, an effective review of gambling legislation requires consideration of social costs, which are undoubtedly substantial. Does the Minister agree that the review would need to include at least the costs of the effects on immediate family, relationship breakdowns, domestic violence, depression, attempted suicides, crime, cost to the criminal justice system, loss of employment, job searches, health treatment, bankruptcies and productivity?
Baroness Barran (Con)
I absolutely agree that we need to understand the social costs, but the more important issue is that we reduce the scale of problem gambling, because however well we measure the social costs, we will not capture the impact on human beings and their families.
Lord Foster of Bath (LD) [V]
My Lords, I refer to my interests as set out in the register. Despite all the publicity surrounding the promised increased voluntary contributions from gambling companies, in this financial year they are providing just £5 million extra to fund the treatment and prevention of problem gambling, yet leading charities and academics, the Advisory Board for Safer Gambling, your Lordships’ Committee on gambling, and even some gambling companies, are calling for a statutory rather than voluntary levy as a fair, robust and sustainable way forward. When will the Government accept this, and, recognising that change can be made without primary legislation, act?
Baroness Barran (Con)
As the noble Lord is aware, the review will look at all options for funding this area. The Government are open to alternative funding mechanisms, but it is only fair to acknowledge that the five major gambling companies have committed to an extra £100 million over four years.
Lord Stevenson of Balmacara (Lab) [V]
My Lords, gambling legislation is a strange mixture of voluntary codes and inadequate self-regulation of advertising, all supervised by a regulator recently accused of needing to “up its game”. Can the Minister confirm that the long-awaited review will consider imposing a duty of care on operators, as the Government are doing regarding online harms?
Baroness Barran (Con)
Unfortunately I cannot confirm that to the noble Lord today, but we are inviting evidence on the effectiveness of the regulatory regime and of what reduces problem gambling. The noble Lord shakes his head, but we do not want to pre-empt the outcome of the review. We would welcome him contributing the evidence he has, which we would consider carefully.
Lord Smith of Hindhead (Con)
My Lords, I declare my interests as set out in the register. The unregulated and at times unscrupulous ways in which some online and social media tipsters and affiliates operate may lead young and impressionable people to gamble in a potentially excessive way. As such, would the Minister agree that tipsters and affiliates should be licensed?
Baroness Barran (Con)
I thank my noble friend for his question. He is right, and although in practice some affiliates have been fined by the Gambling Commission, many act irresponsibly, and that will be within the scope of the review.
Lord Curry of Kirkharle (CB) [V]
My Lords, the Minister’s response on this topic has been encouraging, but does she accept that it is highly likely that gambling, particularly among children, has increased during lockdown? Can she request that the assumptions in the delayed report be revisited to ensure that it is an accurate assessment of the current problem?
Baroness Barran (Con)
The noble Lord is right to raise the issue of gambling during lockdown. The evidence of an increase is not as clear-cut as he suggests. We are concerned and have taken very prompt action, including requiring operators to intervene in online gambling sessions lasting more than an hour, and increasing affordability checks.
Lord Browne of Ladyton (Lab) [V]
My Lords, problem gambling disproportionately affects vulnerable groups, exacerbates social inequalities and imposes large economic costs on society. Back in 2017, the Gambling Commission described it as a public health concern. Does the Minister agree that if problem gambling is to be taken seriously as a public health issue, policy responsibility for prevention and treatment should primarily lie with the Department of Health and Social Care and not the DCMS, a department described by the Public Accounts Committee as both slow and weak on this subject?
Baroness Barran (Con)
We do not see ourselves as, and nor are the officials working in this area, slow or weak. As the noble Lord knows, the Department of Health and Social Care is responsible for the Government’s addiction strategy across all forms of addition. He will be aware of the comorbidity between different forms of addiction, and there are other aspects of gambling. We know that the vast majority of people who gamble do not experience harm, and that is the balance the department is trying to strike: to reduce the harm, and to allow those who gamble safely to do so.
The Deputy Speaker (Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall) (Lab)
My Lords, I am afraid that we have once again got to the end of time before we got to the end of the speakers’ list. We now come to the fourth Oral Question.
Covid-19: Restrictions
(3 years, 11 months ago)
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Lord Robathan
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the success of the restrictions introduced to address the Covid-19 pandemic in reducing the transmission of Covid-19 between 1 July and 31 December 2020.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health and Social Care (Lord Bethell) (Con)
My Lords, the science of virus transmission is very simple: tiny bugs spread by contact and by breath. Lockdowns work because they put space between people, but there are costs—horrible costs. That is why each day we publish gigabytes of data on infection rates, we analyse the patterns and we design lockdowns to have the maximum impact for the lowest economic and social cost.
Lord Robathan (Con)
My Lords, yes, but: in the last few months we have seen ever more stringent restrictions—tiers 3 and 4, the failed circuit breaker in Wales, a second lockdown which ended only just over a month ago, and now a third lockdown—yet cases keep rising. The Prime Minister said on “The Andrew Marr Show” on Sunday that the evidence is not clear. We all want to see policy based on empirical evidence, so please, can the Minister go back to the department and instigate a detailed examination of why these hugely damaging restrictions have not seen a reduction in infections, hospitalisations and deaths?
Lord Bethell (Con)
My Lords, I am extremely grateful to my noble friend for that sage advice. I can reassure him that lockdowns do work—in Leicester, Bolton, Luton, Liverpool—and I can give him very clear case studies of how specific measures have affected national, regional and local outbreak infection rates. The truth is that tier 3 was enough for the original variant, but it is not enough for the new variant, which is 70% more transmittable. That has hit our country hard, which is why we have to have this new, horrible lockdown.
Baroness Mallalieu (Lab) [V]
My Lords, the figures surely show that this pandemic is now endemic in our population. Clearly, lockdowns cannot permanently suppress the virus but might just temporarily prevent medical facilities being overwhelmed. What are the Government doing to ensure that vaccination is rolled out 24/7, including by Public Health England, and skilled medical staff on Covid duties are relieved from all non-specialist aspects of their work by the many skilled and suitable volunteers who are offering to help?
Lord Bethell (Con)
My Lords, the noble Baroness analyses the situation extremely well and has laid out exactly the Government’s plan for rolling out the vaccine. She is entirely right that we are using lockdowns to bridge the gap until herd immunity is achieved through the vaccine. We have mobilised an enormous amount of the NHS, and are very grateful to the volunteers who have stepped up and are making an enormous difference. We are trying to get as much of the vaccine as possible out of the factories and warehouses, with batch control, and into the country’s surgeries and hospitals to vaccinate millions of people before the spring.
Baroness Walmsley (LD) [V]
My Lords, a weak link in the measures to suppress the virus has been the small percentage of people not self-isolating when they should. This is often because they cannot afford to do so. Dozens of times my Lib Dem colleagues and I have asked the Government to provide adequate financial support for self-isolators. So I ask the Minister again: in order to suppress the virus, will the Government pay the wages of poor people who need to self-isolate?
Lord Bethell (Con)
My Lords, I pay tribute to the advocacy of the noble Baroness and her colleagues on this important point. I acknowledge the financial pressures on those of limited means who are required to isolate. We have put in provisions for statutory sick pay and the £500 Covid bonus to help to support those people, and there are local authority funds and provisions to provide additional support. The point that she makes is made well and we completely acknowledge the challenge.
Lord Herbert of South Downs (Con)
My Lords, does my noble friend share my incredulity that those who are opposed to lockdowns continue to make their arguments, in spite of the fact that cases are obviously rising very fast, in spite of the advent of the new variant, which is more infectious, and in spite of the current very serious pressure that our hospitals are seeing? Is it not the case that, in the end, their arguments boil down to the callous suggestion that somehow elderly people who have pre-existing conditions but might nevertheless expect to live for many more years are expendable, when they are clearly not?
Lord Bethell (Con)
My noble friend puts it well. I always welcome the challenge of noble Lords on any subject whatever, but I agree that underlying many of the objections to lockdown appears to be an assumption that some lives matter less than others. Whether you are asthmatic, diabetic, infirm or just old, I think that your life is worth just as much as everybody else’s. That is why I am extremely proud of the national effort to work together to protect those who are less advantaged and to protect our health service.
Baroness Campbell of Surbiton (CB) [V]
My Lords, thousands of people who are currently extremely vulnerable are now in greater danger from a lack of protection against the virus. Our care workers are more likely to come into contact with coronavirus, and requests for testing have escalated. Therefore, can the Minister please tell me when I and countless others who employ personal assistants can expect them to be vaccinated? Our workforce is not currently prioritised in the same way as care home workers and registered agency carers.
Lord Bethell (Con)
My Lords, I do not know the precise nature or status of the care that the noble Baroness has, but it is true that care workers are massively prioritised, and those with pre-existing conditions are also prioritised. We cannot prioritise everyone at once. Those over 80 are at the top of the queue, but those who work with the vulnerable, those shielding and those with pre-existing conditions are also towards the top of the list. We are working as hard as we can to get vaccines to those people as soon as possible.
Baroness Thornton (Lab)
My Lords, on this second day of national lockdown, it is important to look to the future and make every effort to keep our families and fellow citizens safe. Given how close London’s hospitals are to being overwhelmed—within days—what are the short-term plans to alleviate this very urgent and serious challenge? I gather that the ExCel Nightingale hospital will be used either for in-patients or as a mass vaccination centre, or both. How soon will that happen?
Lord Bethell (Con)
The noble Baroness quite rightly pays tribute to the work of the NHS. An enormous amount has been done on the marginal expansion of ICUs. My local hospital, University College Hospital, has increased the number of beds from 19 to 52 by expanding the scope of the wards and the oxygen supply. We have put a huge amount of work into A&E units, often building out the front of the units to create more space. Those marginal differences are being extremely effective, and that is our first line of defence. The Nightingale hospitals are there as back-up and, if they are needed, we will bring them into play.
Lord Lilley (Con)
My Lords, perhaps I may break with convention and the advice I was given when I first entered Parliament and ask a question to which I do not already know the answer. Every week, the Government submit figures to EuroMOMO for deaths from all causes. During the spring, the figures showed a huge level of excess deaths over the normal, but currently, and in recent weeks right up to the end of last year, they show almost no excess over the normal level of deaths in this country. That conflicts with all the evidence we are seeing from hospitals and elsewhere. Can my noble friend reconcile the figures and the facts?
Lord Bethell (Con)
The CMO has given some guidance on this matter. He has made the observation that deaths from other flus are down, partly because of the social-distancing that is part of the lockdown. He has also pointed out the very sad, but I am afraid inevitable, possibility that the large amount of infection that has grown up in the last few weeks will in time lead to further deaths. This is an uncomfortable piece of speculation but, as sure as night follows day, I am afraid that infections and hospitalisations will lead to further deaths. We are running at nearly 1,000 a day at the moment and that number is set to increase.
Baroness Falkner of Margravine (CB)
My Lords, I refer to my interests as set out in the register and point out that my remarks are personal. Compliance and transmission are interlinked, and transmission rates are hugely dependent on public compliance. So I echo the point made by the noble Lord, Lord Herbert, that, although senior libertarian individuals and leaders point to the fact that individuals can make their own assessments of risk, that is not the case. Does the Minister agree that complying with the rules is a public duty that we owe one another and not a matter of choice?
Lord Bethell (Con)
The noble Baroness makes the point well. My observation is that the British public are extremely supportive of both the lockdown and the measures involved. Of course, we all see highly visible exceptions in our travels and when we work, but by and large the British public have massively complied with the measures without any severe form of compulsion, and for that I pay an enormous amount of tribute. In the first lockdown, we had to behave as though the person we saw near us might have the disease; the suggestion now is that we should behave as though we have the disease. It is that discipline that we all need to apply.
The Deputy Speaker (Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall) (Lab)
My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has now elapsed.
Hong Kong: National Security Law
(3 years, 11 months ago)
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Lord Alton of Liverpool
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their response to the arrest of more than 50 people, including pro-democracy politicians and campaigners, under the national security law in Hong Kong.
Lord Alton of Liverpool (CB)
My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper, and in so doing declare that I am vice-chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Hong Kong and a patron of Hong Kong Watch.
The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon) (Con) [V]
My Lords, as my right honourable friend the Foreign Secretary made clear in his Statement on 6 January, the mass arrests of politicians and activists in Hong Kong are a grievous attack on Hong Kong’s rights and freedoms as protected under the joint declaration. These arrests demonstrate that the Hong Kong and Chinese authorities deliberately misled the world about the true purpose of the national security law, which is being used to crush dissent and opposing political views. The United Kingdom will not turn our backs on the people of Hong Kong and will continue to offer BNOs the right to live and work in the United Kingdom.
Lord Alton of Liverpool (CB)
My Lords, as we have seen in the last 24 hours, there are many ways in which the precious gift of democracy can be trashed. Under the cover of such darkness, does the Minister agree that mass arrests by 1,000 security officers and police and the intimidation and arrest of lawyers, legislators and activists are the methods of a police state and a crushing and grievous attack on democracy, human rights and the rule of law, and require immediate, robust Magnitsky sanctions against those responsible and those who are collaborators? As we watch the unfolding tragedy of democracy being replaced by dictatorship, will the Minister spell out how, beyond the BNO scheme, we intend to honour our treaty obligations to uphold a high degree of autonomy in Hong Kong, now clearly violated under the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties?
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con) [V]
The continued suppression of the right to protest and a real decrease in the rights to representation, through the actions against the legislative body and indeed the recent Acts and arrests, have been increasingly evident in Hong Kong. We will certainly look at Magnitsky sanctions in their broadest sense. I cannot speculate on the specifics, as the noble Lord will appreciate, but the UK has been clear that—whether in terms of a suspension of the extradition treaty or the imposition of an arms embargo—we are taking a comprehensive look to ensure that those who suppress the rights of the people of Hong Kong are dealt with in a manner reflective of the values that we stand for.
Baroness Kennedy of The Shaws (Lab) [V]
My Lords, I entirely support all that the noble Lord, Lord Alton, said about the concerning situation in Hong Kong. I am glad to hear of the Minister’s deep concerns about what has been taking place. On Monday I met Ted Hui, one of the lawmakers who has fled from Hong Kong, concerned about his safety if he remained. He has had his assets frozen by HSBC, as have his wife and parents, who fled with him into exile. Is the Minister aware of any private meetings that have taken place between his ministerial colleagues and HSBC since the bank announced its support for the national security law? Are we concerned that Beijing is co-opting banks and international companies that have strong positions here in Britain into supporting the security law and freezing the assets of people who have been arrested? What can be done with our allies—
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
My Lords, the noble Baroness is taking time in this limited opportunity for other noble Lords.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con) [V]
My Lords, we are acting in conjunction with our allies and have led international action in condemnation of the actions not just in Hong Kong but in mainland China. We regularly meet financial services organisations and remind them of their obligations to all their clients, but it would be inappropriate for me to comment on one specific case.
Baroness Northover (LD)
My Lords, we led in the EU on adopting human rights sanctions. Since the UK has refused the EU’s offer of a formal arrangement to address foreign affairs, when and if we introduce Magnitsky sanctions, how do we ensure that the EU follows suit?
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con) [V]
My Lords, we are working closely with all our allies, including the EU. The noble Baroness will have noticed the recent statement made by the EU, but also by key countries such as Germany, condemning the actions in Hong Kong. On the specifics of sanctions and our human rights policy more generally, as I have assured her before, we will continue to work very closely with all our allies, including the European Union, on the important priorities that we give to human rights, not just in Hong Kong but across the world.
The Deputy Speaker (Lord McNicol of West Kilbride) (Lab)
After the next speaker, the noble and learned Lord, Lord Garnier, I will call the noble Lord, Lord Collins.
Lord Garnier (Con) [V]
My Lords, as other noble Lords have said, democracy and respect for human rights in Hong Kong are being snuffed out in front of our very eyes. Does my noble friend the Minister agree that any further delay in deploying Magnitsky sanctions against those identifiable Chinese officials responsible for this will just be embarrassing?
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con) [V]
My Lords, we will look at all instruments available to us. On the issue of Magnitsky sanctions, as I said, I cannot speculate on the specifics but we keep the issue under review. To my mind, sanctions work effectively only when we work with our allies specifically.
Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)
Let us turn to the Minister’s last point. The United States has been able to introduce Magnitsky-style sanctions against Chinese Communist Party officials and Hong Kong executive members who are responsible for imposing these restrictions. Is the Minister aware of any obstacles or reasons why the Government have not acted, despite the calls across this House for the last six months for such sanctions to be introduced?
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con) [V]
My Lords, as the noble Lord will be aware, we look at the sanctions policy specifically to ensure that the evidence base and thresholds are met. As I said, while I cannot go into specifics, we will continue to keep the situation under review—and, yes, act in co-ordination with our allies, including the United States, whose actions we observe closely in this respect.
Lord Thomas of Gresford (LD) [V]
My Lords, Title XII in Part 3 of the UK’s new deal with the EU provides that if the UK has “denounced”—that is the word used—the European Convention on Human Rights, the whole of Part 3 and all the security provisions cease to have force. Will the Government make representations to the European Commission not to approve the EU-China trade deal now before it unless there is a similar provision requiring China to abide by the current Hong Kong bill of rights—specifically its Article 16, on freedom of expression, and Article 17, on freedom of assembly? Will the Government ensure a similar provision in any trade deal between the UK and China?
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con) [V]
My Lords, let me assure the noble Lord that human rights will be paramount in our discussions on a range of trade deals around the world. On the specific issues of our work with the EU and the decision it has taken on its trade deal, of course we make representations with European colleagues and will continue to do so while working closely with them in this respect.
Lord Walney (Non-Afl)
My Lords, does not this further egregious breach of the treaty between us show that China has wilfully broken the friendship that we have long nourished and is firmly set on a path to be not a friend but an adversary of this nation and all who wish to maintain a rules-based order in the decades ahead?
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con) [V]
My Lords, China continues to be an important international and strategic partner, but where there are abuses of human rights or other challenges, issues and concerns, we will raise them candidly, both bilaterally and through international fora. If we look at issues around the environment and climate change, for example, it is important that China also acts in this respect.
Lord Balfe (Con)
My Lords, it is about time that we got realistic about China. It is on a course of expansionism where it is threatening not only Hong Kong but Taiwan, and fortifying islands. Will the Minister not work hard to build a common front, which includes not only our traditional allies but the frontier states of the former Soviet republics and Russia itself? Unless we can get them on board, we will not effectively contain China.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con) [V]
My noble friend makes an important point. Let me assure him that my right honourable friend the Foreign Secretary and I are working hard, including in my capacity as Minister for Human Rights, to ensure that we broaden the alliance against the human rights situation that we see in Hong Kong and mainland China. We saw recently at the UN Third Committee an increase in the number of countries supporting the UK position, which I believe went from 28 to 39.
Baroness Cox (CB) [V]
My Lords, will the Minister tell us what initiatives Her Majesty’s Government are taking to lead efforts to build international co-operation and establish multilateral mechanisms for response, including the establishment of a UN special rapporteur to monitor and report on the human rights situation, as called for by many serving and former UN independent experts last year?
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con) [V]
My Lords, my right honourable friend the Foreign Secretary has been at the forefront of strengthening international alliances and action in this respect. I have already alluded to the progress we have made. The noble Baroness is right to raise the important issue of other representation within the context of human rights. I note in particular that the human rights commissioner recently put out a statement on the arrests. We continue to implore China to allow access for the human rights commissioner to China, to ensure that human rights can be respected and the world can see what is being done currently on many minorities within China.
Baroness Warwick of Undercliffe (Lab)
My Lords, given the Minister’s response to the noble Lord, Lord Alton, will the Government consider lodging a case against China in the International Court of Justice on the grounds that its actions in Hong Kong constitute a violation of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties?
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con) [V]
As the noble Baroness may know, an issue at the International Court of Justice requires both parties to consent. It would not, to my mind, be an option that we should pursue because it is highly unlikely that China would consent to such actions.
Lord Marlesford (Con) [V]
My Lords, I declare an interest in Hong Kong that goes back to 1961, when I first went to work there. Does my noble friend agree that one lesson that applies to China and the USA is that, in any civilised nation state, the exercise of authority needs both the support and consent of the people? Does he also agree that China must be well aware that it was fortunate to inherit from Britain the world’s third most important financial centre, and that to flourish, such a tender plant needs sensitive treatment?
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con) [V]
I agree with my noble friend on his final point. As someone who worked in financial services for 20 years before joining the Government, I totally agree that Hong Kong has long been a centre for financial services. It is therefore appropriate that, in Hong Kong, the Chinese authorities look to create the conditions and environment that allow firms to flourish and that centre to progress. I equally share his views that we must ensure freedoms and protections. He cited his long experience since 1961; he has had more time in business than I have had on God’s earth. Nevertheless, I totally share his view and opinions in this respect.
Lord Carrington (CB) [V]
My Lords, while supporting every move by the Government to condemn the actions of the Hong Kong Government and to build up international pressure on the Government of China, I would like to receive reassurance that the Government recognise their responsibility for the interests and well-being of all the people of Hong Kong, and that any action they take does not directly or indirectly affect the ongoing business and livelihoods of its people and companies.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con) [V]
My Lords, I agree with the noble Lord that it is important that we consider our actions in the light of the situation in Hong Kong and, equally, the implications of our continuing relationship. However, it is right that, while we recognise China and Hong Kong as important financial centres and trade partners—and, as I have indicated already, an important international partner on issues such as climate change—it is also right that we call out human rights abuses wherever we see them, whether in mainland China, particularly in Xinjiang against the Uighurs, or as we currently see in the continuing suppression of democracy, human rights, freedom and the right to protest. It is right that we do so and we have a special obligation, particular to BNOs. I am proud of the fact that the Government are taking specific steps in this respect.
The Deputy Speaker (Lord McNicol of West Kilbride) (Lab)
My Lords, all supplementary questions have been asked.
Business of the House
Lord Ashton of Hyde
That Standing Order 72 (Affirmative Instruments) be dispensed with to allow the motions to approve the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (Self-Isolation and Linked Households) (England) Regulations 2020, laid before the House on 11 December 2020, the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (All Tiers) (England) (Amendment) (No. 4) Regulations 2020, laid before the House on 30 December 2020, and the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (No. 3) and (All Tiers) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2021, laid before the House on 5 January, to be moved today, notwithstanding that no report from the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments on the instruments has been laid before the House; and that the debate on the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (Self-Isolation and Linked Households) (England) Regulations 2020, the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (All Tiers) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2020, the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (All Tiers) (England) (Amendment) (No. 4) Regulations 2020 and the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (No. 3) and (All Tiers) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2021 set down for today shall be limited to three hours and not one and a half hours.
Lord Ashton of Hyde (Con)
My Lords, on behalf of my noble friend the Leader of the House, I beg to move the first Motion standing in her name on the Order Paper.
Business of the House
Lord Ashton of Hyde
That the debate on the motion in the name of Lord True set down for Friday 8 January shall be limited to 5 hours and not 3 hours.
Lord Ashton of Hyde (Con)
My Lords, on behalf of my noble friend the Leader of the House, I beg to move the second Motion standing in her name on the Order Paper.
Covid-19 Update
(3 years, 11 months ago)
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Baroness Smith of Basildon (Lab) [V]
My Lords, I think it is appropriate to begin with a comment on the shocking and extraordinary events that unfolded on our TV screens last night. Today we are discussing the impact of a global virus on the UK and the drastic and difficult measures needed to tackle it. At the same time, the United States is having to contend with an additional virus of lies, misinformation and conspiracy theories that have infected the very heart of its democracy. Last night was perhaps predictable, given the toxic atmosphere that has characterised President Trump’s term of office and the clear attempt by him and his close allies, including some involved in UK politics, to poison democracy.
It is right to condemn the violence of last night, but to do so without also condemning the cause of such violence is an empty gesture. Given that the Conservative Government gave the extraordinary honour of a state visit to President Trump and given his close relationship with the Prime Minister, Mr Johnson is in a strong position to lead that condemnation. To do otherwise would be a failure to defend democracy.
I hope that the noble Baroness the Lord Privy Seal, being the only Cabinet Minister speaking in Parliament today, as the House of Commons is not sitting, will also condemn the actions, comments and tweets of President Trump. She should be clear that we stand alongside those Senators and House Representatives, Democrats and Republicans, who have defended and preserved the rule of law.
Tackling the Covid virus here at home needs that same resolve and determination of purpose. It is disappointing that our current way of working means that Ministers no longer read Statement repeats, particularly on matters of such grave importance. When events are so fast moving, and the government response changes so often, it would be helpful.
With the Covid virus mutating and infections, hospitalisations and deaths rising at an alarming rate, we must all abide by the new lockdown rules and play our part in trying to minimise the impact on our fellow citizens. As far as I am concerned, that is not for debate. I am appalled by those who have tried to downplay the impact. Since Monday we have seen 2,278 Covid-related deaths in the UK and over 180,000 new cases recorded. The position is now worse than in April and we all know that winter is a more dangerous time for viruses to spread.
Our National Health Service risks being completely overwhelmed by this new variant, which is at least 50% more infectious than the original. An increased number of infections means not just greater prevalence of the virus, but also the possibility of further variants. The last Statement from the Prime Minister on Covid, when he announced the so-called winter plan, was just six weeks ago, although, with all that has happened and the policy changes we have seen, it feels much longer.
We understand that policies change in response to events. However, too often policies are changed at the last minute, then again and even again, when others with greater expertise and knowledge have been issuing warnings for weeks. Many of us heard with incredulity the Home Secretary claim:
“The Government has consistently, throughout this year, been ahead of the curve in terms of proactive measures with regards to coronavirus.”
This is an extraordinary claim when the Prime Minister’s actions have often lagged behind the advice of the Government’s own scientific advisory body, SAGE. Yes, we support the proposed measures, but the Government have to understand that it is in the national interest to raise concerns and make suggestions. We will press for further economic measures for individuals, businesses and jobs. This is vital for their survival now and the post-Covid recovery.
I know that the noble Baroness the Leader of the House understands that public confidence and support are essential. Lockdown restrictions might buy time by reducing the number of infections, but they are not a cure. The only game in town is now the vaccine. The new vaccines bring great optimism, but also challenges. The rollout needs to be swift, efficient and successful. This will be a huge logistical exercise so the Government must fully exploit all the experience and expertise available. We must all give our support.
The Statement announces that there will be updates online. Can the noble Baroness confirm that this information will provide details for the whole of the UK? Will she ensure there is an opportunity to ask questions of Ministers in the House? She will understand the need to ensure there are not local or regional disparities that leave some areas more vulnerable than others. In the Statement, the Prime Minister said that
“pharmacies are already working with GPs to deliver the vaccine”
but she may have seen the reports that major pharmacy companies with expertise in vaccinations have said that their efforts to support the scheme have been rebuffed. Can the noble Baroness the Lord Privy Seal comment on that?
On schools, teachers, parents and pupils are in despair at the Government’s incompetence. The constant chopping and changing of policy is mind-blowing. A start to rebuilding some confidence would be an apology to the London Borough of Greenwich and other authorities threatened with legal action by the Department for Education before Christmas for daring to act ahead of the Government’s decision to do the same. The focus now has to be on protecting pupils’ education.
On home schooling, could the noble Baroness update us on three issues? First, what progress has been made to relieve the financial burden of many families facing increased data charges? Secondly, how many pupils still do not have access to an adequate digital device and what further action is being taken to ensure that all pupils have access to the tech equipment they need? Thirdly, what are the Government doing to ensure that all school leadership teams are supported in their attempts to increase the online learning offer to home-schooled pupils? These are vital to stem the clear gap in provision between independent and state sector schools.
There is some progress in the Statement about financial support. However, as the Chamber of Commerce and others have warned, it does not yet go far enough. I have previously raised the issue of the self-employed, including our world-renowned creative arts sector. What are the plans to support our arts, music and performance industries? Alongside performers, an army of support staff, writers and many others add real colour to our daily lives, and we will all need a bit more of a splash of that when the pandemic has passed. I also make my now regular plea for the hospitality sector. It is among the hardest hit in this hokey-cokey year of lockdowns. Can the noble Baroness the Leader of the House outline any Government plans for pubs, bars and restaurants to ensure that they can function properly once restrictions start to be lifted again?
Given the further lockdown, it is harder for many to remain in or seek regular employment. When will the Government make further announcements on support for those in the private rental sector facing the possible threat of eviction? Will the Government now halt their pernicious plans to cut universal credit by £20 a week in April? It has been estimated that failing to do so could put 300,000 more children into poverty—a legacy no Government should want.
The noble Baroness the Lord Privy Seal will be aware that Health Service Journal reported an official briefing by NHS England yesterday which suggests that
“London’s hospitals are less than two weeks from being overwhelmed.”
Can she tell your Lordships’ House whether NHS England expects the same impact on hospitals elsewhere in the UK? What national response is planned?
Even when concerned or exasperated by delays in action or failures in the available economic support, we have supported the Government’s efforts to tackle this awful disease and find a way out of the pandemic. It is challenging and we will continue to give that support. That also includes asking questions and raising issues of concern in the national interest, so that we can play our part in seeking to eradicate this virus and prepare the UK for the post-Covid recovery.
Lord Newby (LD)
My Lords, I begin by associating myself with the comments of the noble Baroness, Lady Smith, in respect of recent events in America. This is probably the most sombre Statement we have heard on Covid. Despite all the restrictions of the past nine months, the incidence of the disease and the numbers of hospital admissions and deaths are at record highs. These terrible figures make today’s measures inevitable and we support them.
The difference between the first time we went into lockdown and today is, of course, the arrival of the vaccines. This is what can give the country some hope. The key challenge now posed to the Government, the NHS and the whole country is how to get as many people vaccinated as speedily as possible. The government targets are extremely ambitions. While such ambition is commendable, the failure to achieve so many past targets, particularly in relation to test and trace, make us somewhat cautious about simply accepting them. If they are to be achieved, every possible resource must be brought into play. In this respect, there are legitimate questions to be asked of the Government.
First, we clearly need more qualified health professionals to administer the vaccines than those currently employed by the NHS. Many retired doctors and nurses are desperately keen to get involved, but they are finding that the bureaucracy required before they can get started is ludicrously burdensome and disproportionately prescriptive. Both the Prime Minister and the Health Secretary have said in recent days that they would look into this, so what is the Government’s target for producing a new, streamlined application process for such retired medics? The Government will not meet their targets without them, so they had better get a move on.
Secondly, I echo the noble Baroness, Lady Smith, and ask why more pharmacists are not planned to be involved. They have an extremely good track record in administering flu jabs. What reason is there for not involving in the Covid vaccination programme any pharmacy that takes part in the national flu vaccination programme?
Thirdly, particularly at the larger vaccination centres, there appears to be a need for volunteers to support the medics in managing the flow of those being vaccinated, helping, among other things, to sort out their transport requirements. Last year, some 750,000 people volunteered to help the NHS to deal with the disease. Is this volunteer pool being activated to help facilitate the vaccination process?
If we need every possible resource to be brought to bear, we also need to ensure that everybody who needs a vaccination actually gets one. In recent weeks, the noble Lord, Lord Bethell, has explained that, unless you are enrolled with a GP, you will not be covered by the programme at all. That is simply not good enough. Particularly in the inner cities, there are vulnerable groups, such as the homeless, who are unlikely to be registered with a GP, and unless the Government act those groups will fall through the cracks. Will the Government undertake to work with relevant homeless, refugee and other charities that are in touch with these registered groups to make sure that they do get registered and vaccinated in due time?
I fully accept that the Government need to be rigorous about the priority order in which they undertake the vaccinations. However, do they accept that there is a strong case for vaccinating teachers and other school staff at a relatively early stage, possibly placing them in category 7—that is, when all the over-65s and the most vulnerable have been vaccinated? This will facilitate the resumption of the education system and give those who work in our schools the protection that they deserve.
Even if the vaccination programme goes to plan, the economic costs of Covid will be dire for many individuals and businesses. The Government have taken many welcome steps to support those affected, but there are two areas where I believe further action is needed. First, we know that many individuals who should be self-isolating fail to do so because they cannot afford the loss of income that this would involve. The Government established a scheme involving a payment of £500 for those on low income, administered by local authorities, but this is not working properly. Not enough funds have been made available—we suggest that full salary support should be offered in any event—not enough of those affected even know about the scheme, and many of those who need support are not covered by it. Could the Government undertake an urgent and fundamental review of the scheme, because at present its failure seriously undermines the whole test, track and trace system.
Secondly, it is now clear that for many businesses, particularly in retail, hospitality, the arts and accommodation, the impact of Covid will last far longer than anybody ever feared. For those who cannot trade at all, even the current government support will simply be inadequate because they cannot escape their overheads, so many fundamentally sound businesses will go under unless the support packages are improved and lengthened. Will the Government now commit to an enhanced support package arranged to last until the summer? Will they modify the job support scheme to include those who were previously excluded?
The Government have consistently responded slowly, overpromised and underdelivered. Trust and faith in government requires the Government to level with people, not just on the current threat but on the realistic, unvarnished possibilities of dealing with it. Only on that basis will we all be able to work together, as we wish to do, to see off this terrible scourge.
The Lord Privy Seal (Baroness Evans of Bowes Park) (Con)
I thank the noble Baroness and the noble Lord for their comments and questions. I wish the noble Baroness a very happy birthday. I hope she enjoys a gin or two later, as I am sure she will. I also fully endorse the comments of my right honourable friends the Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary about the shocking events in the United States last night.
The noble Baroness asked about data. From Monday we will publish daily data on the vaccination programme, going through the levels of detail that she asked about. Both the noble Lord and the noble Baroness asked about the economic response, quite rightly, and they will be aware that we have put in place one of the world’s most comprehensive responses to the pandemic, spending over £280 billion so far on economic support. Of course, this week, we also announced additional support worth £4.6 billion for businesses affected by the new restrictions.
All businesses in England legally required to close as a result of this lockdown will receive one-off grants of up to £9,000, which will benefit over 600,000 businesses. As more businesses are forced to close by the restrictions, more will also receive the monthly grants, worth up to £3,000, which, taken together, means that businesses could receive up to £18,000 over the next three months if they have been forced to close due to restrictions. That is in no way to diminish the terrible time many businesses are having, but it is further support, and I believe it shows that we will continue to keep the package under review and react to circumstances as and when we can. Of course, I remind the noble Baroness and the noble Lord that we have protected 12 million jobs so far through the furlough and self-employment schemes, both of which have been extended to April.
On the vaccine programme, by the end of the week, we expect there to be 1,000 vaccination centres across the country, with another seven major centres following next week. Both the noble Lord and the noble Baroness asked about community pharmacies, and as more supplies become available and they can administer significant numbers of doses of the vaccine, they will certainly play a role in the programme. We have undertaken months of extensive preparations and significant investment, including £230 million for our manufacturing infrastructure, so that we can ensure that this ambitious programme, as the noble Lord rightly said, is rolled out.
He mentioned the bureaucracy for those wanting to help with the vaccination programme, and he may have heard my right honourable friend the Prime Minister yesterday, when he was asked about this, saying that we will be tackling this as an immediate priority. Of course, we will work with charities and groups across civil society to help deliver our ambitious plan. Once again, the British people have shown their willingness to engage and help to deliver the programmes that we need, by volunteering and other things. We are incredibly grateful to everyone who is doing that on our behalf, and we thank them in advance.
The noble Baroness asked about education. We have bought over 1 million laptops and tablets for disadvantaged young people throughout this pandemic. Over 560,000 have already been delivered, with an extra 100,000 this week alone, and by the end of the week we hope to have delivered 750,000 devices to the most disadvantaged families. We are working with all the UK’s leading mobile network operators to provide free data for educational sites and to deliver 4G routers to families who need to access the internet. Of course, we will continue to work closely with teachers to support them through this difficult time, and we are very grateful for all the work that they undertook over the Christmas holidays in order to provide Covid-secure environments for young people. We know how disappointing it is that, unfortunately, the variant has meant that we have had to take the very difficult decision to close schools in the short term.
The noble Baroness asked about culture. She may well be aware that theatres, although with no audiences, are still able to open for training, rehearsals and filming. Of course, we have created the £1.7 billion Culture Recovery Fund, and, so far, over £500 million of grants have been awarded to the sector. The noble Baroness also asked about support for renters. The measures are currently being reviewed and we will provide an update shortly.
There are a variety of ways in which the NHS can increase its capacity—for instance, through opening further surge beds in existing hospitals, mutual aid, using independent sector capacity and, of course, opening extra capacity in the Nightingale hospitals. I assure her that, around the country, options will be explored and taken up where they are both relevant and necessary across the country.
The noble Lord asked about the test and trace support payments—the £500 for those on low incomes to self-isolate. We have provided £50 million to local authorities delivering this scheme and have made sure that those advised to self-isolate by the NHS app can also access the payment. We have also made available £15 million for discretionary funding for those facing hardship when self-isolating but who are not eligible for the payment. The noble Lord will also be aware that we have made statutory sick pay available from day one.
The Deputy Speaker (Lord McNicol of West Kilbride) (Lab)
My Lords, we now come to the 30 minutes allocated for Back-Bench questions. I ask that questions and answers be brief, so that we can call a maximum number of speakers.
Lord O'Shaughnessy (Con) [V]
My Lords, as the PM’s Statement yesterday made clear, this lockdown is sadly necessary to avoid medical catastrophe, but he was also clear that it comes with significant costs, not least to schoolchildren, who face a year of disrupted education—I declare my interest as a founder of two schools and a parent of three school-aged children. Does my noble friend agree that the closure of schools if necessary is nevertheless highly regrettable? Does she commit to reopening schools as soon as is humanly possible and before any other institutions in society reopen once the vaccination programme is rolled out? Does she agree with the noble Lord, Lord Newby, with Robert Halfon, the chair of the Select Committee, and with others that teachers and TAs should be vaccinated as an urgent priority to make that happen?
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
I thank my noble friend for his questions. He is absolutely right. We entirely agree that schools and colleges are the best place for children and young people to be, not just for education but for their health and well-being, which is why we tried so hard to keep them open. Unfortunately, as my noble friend said, we just could not do it. It was not that schools themselves were unsafe for either children or pupils; it is that, with the new variant, we need to use every lever at our disposal to reduce community transmission and contact. It was for that reason that schools were closed; it was not because teachers have not done fantastic work. My brother and sister-in-law, who are both teachers, spent Christmas trying to make their schools Covid secure, but we still had to close them. We will certainly keep this position under review; we will certainly try to bring back schools as soon as we can. Of course, regular testing will be at the centre of our plans. All that hard work will not be in vain; it will just be used slightly further away than we may have hoped.
Lord Harries of Pentregarth (CB) [V]
As the Leader of the House knows, it is not yet clear whether a person who has been vaccinated is still able to transmit the virus; it is quite possible in theory for them to have no symptoms themselves and yet to pass it on. I understand that a group of scientists is working on this issue. Is the Leader of the House able to indicate when those scientists might be able to report? Clearly, this is vital information which we need to have sooner rather than later.
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
I can assure the noble and right reverend Lord that PHE will be employing existing surveillance systems and enhanced follow-up of cases to monitor how effective the vaccine is in protecting against a range of outcomes, including infections, symptomatic disease, hospitalisations, mortality and onward transmission. I can assure him that that work is in progress, but I cannot give him a timescale. He will understand that we will need time to gather sufficient data to get a clear picture, but he is right that it will be critical.
Lord Boateng (Lab) [V]
My Lords, the black and Asian community is particularly at risk from the virus. The vaccine is our best hope. Yet that community is targeted by anti-vaccine campaigners. Will the Government work with faith leaders and work with and support the voluntary community health sector within those communities to promote strong and culturally appropriate public health messages? Will they work too with social media platforms to counter this insidious and deadly anti-vaccine propaganda?
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
Yes, I can give the noble Lord that assurance. Work is already ongoing, but he is absolutely right: it is critical.
Baroness Brinton (LD) [V]
My Lords, this morning, the Health Service Journal has said that our already overburdened hospitals are trying to release Covid patients into care homes but that a major problem is stopping this. The National Care Forum reports that insurance for designated Covid settings is now almost impossible to get and that, without indemnity cover, they cannot take Covid patients. NHS Providers is begging the Treasury to help, as hospital beds must be freed up, but the Treasury is refusing. Can the Lord Privy Seal take this up with the Treasury as a matter of extreme urgency and help resolve this problem, not of care homes’ making, which is blocking beds in hospitals at a time of national crisis? Please will she keep me informed of progress?
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
I am very happy to raise those issues with both the Department of Health and the Treasury. I am sure that my noble friend Lord Bethell in particular will be able to keep the noble Baroness updated on discussions.
Lord Blencathra (Con)
My Lords, I congratulate the Government on being way ahead of the curve in vaccinating more people in this country than the whole of Europe combined—and thank God we did not sign up to the EU procurement racket. Does my noble friend agree that a jab in the arm is not rocket science and does not need experts to do it? Tens of thousands of people self-inject daily, and all we had was a two-minute teach-in from a nurse and that worked. Can we call on every able-bodied volunteer, not just retired medics and professionals and the military, cut out the NHS’s idiotic 21 forms to fill in, and run those vaccination centres 24/7? The public want to pile in to help. Let us encourage them to do it and put no obstacles in their way.
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
My noble friend is absolutely right: I am pleased to say that more than 1.3 million people across the UK have already received the first dose of the vaccine—as he said, it is more people than the rest of Europe combined. This is a united endeavour across all four nations. We will move every sinew to ensure that we can roll out the vaccine programme as quickly as we can, but, of course, it must also be done safely.
Baroness Hollins (CB) [V]
My Lords, all GPs are required to register their patients with learning disabilities—that is just 200,000 people nationally. All are entitled to a flu jab, along with the over-65s. Given their 20-year shorter life expectancy in ordinary times and a Covid mortality rate for under-35s that is 30 times higher than for their chronological age group, will the Lord Privy Seal ask the Government to offer early vaccination to this whole group of registered patients with learning disability and not just to those with Down’s syndrome or severe learning disabilities?
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
As the noble Baroness will know, we are following the advice of the independent experts on the JCVI on which groups of people to prioritise for vaccines. The committee has advised that the immediate priority should be to prevent deaths and to protect health and care staff, with old age deemed the single biggest factor determining mortality.
Lord Faulkner of Worcester (Lab)
My Lords, in his Statement yesterday, the Prime Minister said
“we must do everything possible to stop the spread of the disease”.
Of course, we all agree with that, but one thing missing from the Statement was any reference to the importance of wearing face coverings in places where it is mandatory—I am thinking particularly of public transport, shops and other areas where it makes a real difference to the spread of the disease. Last Wednesday, in the debate on the Covid SIs, I asked the Lord Privy Seal’s noble colleague what the Government intended to do about the attacks on public-spirited individuals who attempt to encourage non-wearers of masks to comply with the law and what advice they could offer to members of the public who believe that the law should be obeyed but are deterred by the threat of physical violence from confronting the law-breakers. He was not able to give me an answer; he said that it was not in his brief, but I wonder whether the noble Baroness is able to do so today.
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
I am afraid I shall have to go back to my noble friend and ask him to get back to the noble Lord, because I do not have the answer. Obviously he will know that there are fines available, including enforcement fines, so there are mechanisms in place—but I will return to my noble friend and ask him to respond.
Lord McNally (LD) [V]
My Lords, it is not only American democracy that is under threat from conspiracy theories and fake news, as the noble Lord, Lord Boateng, indicated, so it is important that the Government keep their nerve and keep to a consistency of policy in taking us forward. We have some very hard pounding ahead of us, and it is important to make people aware of how difficult the way ahead is. To that extent I found myself in agreement with the noble Lord, Lord Blencathra, that we have to avoid the tick-box approach to using the vast number of volunteers and retired medics who are willing to come forward and help us in this crisis. I hope that the Government will stay consistent, but also be flexible in bringing forward those volunteers to help.
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
I hope I addressed the noble Lord’s point when I responded to similar comments from the noble Lord, Lord Newby, and also, of course, from my noble friend. The Prime Minister said yesterday quite clearly that we wanted to cut through the bureaucracy as an immediate priority.
The Lord Bishop of Rochester
My Lords, if any may have doubted the seriousness of the current situation, they had only to watch last night’s BBC report from University College Hospital, or to note that we are once again seeing multiple deaths in care home settings. Along with the Prime Minister’s Statement, it was announced that places of worship in England may remain open. I know that that has been welcomed by some faith communities, although others have already gone largely online. However, all such communities continue to engage with energy in acts of pastoral and community service. In the light of this, would the Leader of the House care to suggest what she and her colleagues would most wish to ask of our faith communities? What further might we offer? I believe that the noble Lord, Lord Boateng, may already have provided part of an answer.
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
I thank the right reverend Prelate—and, of course, all the people from all the different faith communities who are working so hard to help with the difficult situation we find ourselves in. He is absolutely right: the noble Lord, Lord Boateng, raised some very important points, and we all need to come together to encourage people to take up the vaccine, and to deal with some of the myths and worries that people have. Trusted local community leaders such as faith leaders can really help to do that. We want to try to get everyone involved, so that we can get to the light at the end of the tunnel and, we hope, beat this thing once and for all.
Lord Haselhurst (Con) [V]
My Lords, may I ask my noble friend what assurances have been received from AstraZeneca that vaccine supply will be able to keep pace with the Government’s commendably ambitious deployment plans? And what contribution is expected of other vaccine sources?
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
I am sure we would all like to pay tribute to everyone who has worked so amazingly quickly to help to develop both the Oxford vaccine and the Pfizer vaccine. I can assure my noble friend that AstraZeneca is accelerating its delivery schedule. Obviously, we are working extremely closely with the companies in order to deliver what the noble Lord called our ambitious programme. We of course have access to 100 million doses of the vaccine on behalf of the whole of the UK, the Crown dependencies and the overseas territories.
The Earl of Clancarty (CB)
My Lords, about 40% of those working in the arts, which continue to buckle under the strain of the pandemic, remain ineligible for financial support. Will the Government allow the guidance for the culture recovery fund to be changed so that freelancers can benefit, if there is still time—or will they provide directly the necessary support that they and the rest of the 3 million workers who have fallen through the gaps in support since March desperately need?
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
As the noble Earl rightly says, we have created the £1.57 billion culture recovery fund, of which £500 million in grants has already been awarded to more than 3,000 museums, music venues, independent cinemas, circuses, heritage sites and theatres in England. I know that there is ongoing dialogue between the Secretary of State and the sector to which he refers, and I am sure that all is being done to try to see what else can be done.
Baroness Armstrong of Hill Top (Lab) [V]
My Lords, as we now know that, in facing this virus, no one is safe unless everyone is safe, are the Government going to repeat and expand the successful Everybody In programme from the first lockdown, to ensure that every rough sleeper is in safe accommodation, with adequate washing and toilet facilities, so that they are safe and the community is safe?
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
The noble Baroness refers to an extremely important issue. Through this dreadful time, we can all agree that the programme to help get rough sleepers into accommodation has been one of the positive things that has come out of it. I can assure her that our £15 million Protect programme, which is running alongside the Everyone In campaign, is providing targeted funding for councils in areas with high numbers of rough sleepers, prioritising the clinically vulnerable and those with a history of rough sleeping. That is on top of the £10 million cold winter fund, which is helping all councils support rough sleepers into self-contained accommodation. By September 2020 we had housed 29,000 vulnerable people as part of the successful Everyone In programme.
Baroness Stuart of Edgbaston (Non-Afl) [V]
My Lords, the Minister quite rightly said that we now have access to Oxford AstraZeneca vaccines, which will be distributed across the United Kingdom and the Crown dependencies. Can she also undertake to publish data on a regular basis on how many vaccines per 100,000 of population are being made available in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland?
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
I can say to the noble Baroness that currently we are allocating the vaccine doses based on the business as usual Barnett formula. As I have said, we will begin to publish daily data next week. I suspect that the data she is talking about will be part of that, but I will make sure that her request goes to the Department of Health, because I am sure that is data that everyone would be interested in.
Baroness Pidding (Con) [V]
My Lords, the rollout of vaccines is a massive achievement, and gives us much-needed light at the end of the tunnel. However, I read today that clinicians in South Africa suggest that administering a single dose of the vaccines leaves patients at great risk from the new coronavirus variants. Can the Leader of the House give an assurance that urgent research is being undertaken in this country to ensure the efficacy of the Pfizer vaccine, now that the second dose has been moved from the original recommended three-week gap to 12 weeks?
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
I can certainly assure my noble friend that, obviously, this will be kept under review—but the UK CMOs agree with the JCVI that the evidence shows that one dose of either vaccine can protect people against the effects of the virus, reducing severe disease, hospitalisations and deaths. For both vaccines, data provided to the MHRA demonstrates that, while she is right to say that efficacy is optimised when a second dose is administered, both offer considerable protection after a single dose in the short term. I would also reassure her that everyone will still receive their second dose within 12 weeks of their first. The second dose completes the course and is important for longer-term protection—but the data provided to the MHRA gives us comfort that giving one dose with that gap remains an important thing to do.
Baroness Bull (CB)
My Lords, as the need for tighter restrictions is, sadly, all too evident, can the Minister explain the rationale for issuing regulations that fall short of the guidance? The government website offers a sphinx-like riddle by way of explanation: the law is what you must do—that bit is clear—and the guidance might be a mixture of what you must do and what you should do. How does this confused messaging help citizens who are trying to do the right thing, and how does it help our police, who are being asked to enforce restrictions that are not, in truth, mandated by law?
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
We are continuing to work with the National Police Chiefs’ Council and the College of Policing on updated guidance. I think that with the new strain, and the figures we are seeing on a daily basis, people are well aware of the situation we are in. The British people have been fantastic in all the work they have done and the efforts they have made to get us this far. With the vaccine rollout there is light at the end of the tunnel, and we repeat the message “Stay at home, wash your hands, keep your space and protect the NHS”.
Baroness Donaghy (Lab) [V]
I hope that the noble Baroness will support the campaign launched today by the Daily Mirror, the TUC and the Labour Party called Let’s Vaccinate Britain. To go back to what the noble Lord, Lord Blencathra, said—and I might not agree with everything he said—it is an effort that we should all be making on a 24-hour basis. Furthermore, what are the Government doing about the 9% of children who do not have technology at home so they can take advantage of remote learning?
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
As I said in a previous answer, we have bought more than 1 million laptops and tablets for disadvantaged people, which are being distributed. By the end of the week we will have delivered 750,000 devices. We are also working with all the UK’s leading mobile network operators to provide free data for educational sites and have been delivering 4G routers to families who need access to the internet. Of course, the BBC has also announced that it will deliver 14 weeks of educational programmes and lessons to every household, which is also very welcome.
Lord Hayward (Con)
I remind my noble friend and this House that major elections involving millions of people have actually successfully taken place in Georgia this week, and by-elections have taken place in Scotland. Given the rollout of the vaccine, could my noble friend please reconfirm that elections will take place here on 6 May? As with other aspects of government, will that be reviewed in mid-February and stuck to? At the same time, could the request be made to all parties that they desist from delivering literature until the end of March?
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
As my noble friend will know, primary legislation provides that local elections take place in May. The Cabinet Office is working with election administrators and public health bodies to make sure that everyone can cast their vote safety and securely. I am sure that the whole House would like to thank those authorities for the work they are undertaking to make sure that elections can go ahead in a Covid-secure way.
Viscount Waverley (CB)
My Lords, do the Government anticipate approving a programme of digitalisation of all vaccination records when passporting of such becomes a necessary fact of life? Will that include those from abroad, and in a way that counters fraud, which I am informed occasionally happens with PCR test results? In so saying, will the Government consider an immediate mandatory pre-boarding PCR test within 72 hours of travel to avoid the need for self-isolation on arrival, while somehow making provision for in-transit passengers?
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
We will be, and we are, looking at additional measures for international travel. Pre-departure testing is an option that we are considering for an extra layer of protection, which would be in addition to our mandatory 10-day self-isolation period for countries not on the travel corridor or the test and release scheme. Work is going on in the DfT and an announcement on decisions around that will be made in the coming days.
Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Lab) [V]
My Lords, could the noble Baroness come back to the issue of community pharmacists? They have huge experience of flu vaccination, are used to opening all hours and are very accessible, yet the Government and NHS seem very reluctant to use them in the vaccination programme. Is that being reviewed?
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
As I said, as supply becomes more available, community pharmacies will be involved in the programme as we roll things out, so conversations are certainly ongoing.
Lord Caine (Con)
My Lords, I welcome the additional financial support for businesses and communities announced by the Government this week. I highlight in particular the extra £729 million that will go to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Does my noble friend agree with me that that further underlines the value of our union and the fact that, during and beyond this pandemic, we are stronger, safer and better off together?
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
I entirely agree with my noble friend. He is absolutely right about the £729 million that we have provided to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Of course, as we have already discussed, the vaccination programme is a UK-wide effort, and we will all be working together for a common aim within our union.
Lord Wigley (PC) [V]
My Lords, the Government have given commitments regarding rolling out the vaccination programme in England. Is the noble Baroness aware that the Government of Wales have been unable to give such a firm timescale because of uncertainty about time scheduling and the quantity of vaccine available to them, which is provided by the NHS in England? Can she ensure urgent transparency concerning an adequate supply of this vaccine for the Welsh Government?
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
I think all the devolved Administrations are working closely with central government. As I mentioned in response to a previous question, we are allocating vaccine doses based on the business-as-usual Barnett formula, and more than 1.3 million people across the UK have already received the first dose of the vaccine. Of course, we will continue to work closely together because we want to ensure that the programme is rolled out across all four nations so we can all benefit from it.
Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (GP) [V]
My Lords, the noble Baroness may well be aware that in Brighton and Hove the council made the decision to close nurseries under its control, except to vulnerable children and those of key workers. Councillor Hannah Clare of Brighton and Hove Council has written to the Education Department to say that it believes that the same data and science that led to school closures applies also to the early years sector. I note that the Early Years Alliance says that many nurseries are closing voluntarily to protect the staff, the families and their communities. Will the noble Baroness tell us how the science differs between primary schools and nurseries, and whether the Government will provide financial support to nurseries making this decision in the interests of their communities?
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
What I can say to the noble Baroness is that within schools, vulnerable children and those of key workers can still attend, and we intend that early years settings remain open.
Baroness Whitaker (Lab)
The rollout of the vaccines means that many people will shortly have had two jabs, which in the case of the Pfizer vaccine, at least, confers over 90% immunity against catching Covid-19 and also against transmitting it. Are such people still forbidden from seeing their children and grandchildren or from using public transport?
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park (Con)
As I mentioned in a previous answer, those who have been vaccinated still need to follow the rules, as the challenge we currently face is that we do not yet know how the vaccine impacts on transmissibility. As I mentioned, PHE is assessing the effectiveness of the vaccine in protecting against a range of outcomes, and the issues that the noble Baroness raises will be among those considered. We do not yet have the data to say to people anything other than what I have just said, which is, I am afraid, that if you have been vaccinated you need to stick by the rules.
Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (Self-Isolation and Linked Households) (England) Regulations 2020
(3 years, 11 months ago)
Lords ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Lord Bethell
That the Regulations laid before the House on 11 December 2020 be approved.
Relevant document: 40th Report from the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee. Instrument not yet reported by the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health and Social Care (Lord Bethell) (Con)
My Lords, today we have more than a million people in Britain infected with Covid. A third are asymptomatic, and most are highly infectious. That is just too many. That is why on Monday the Prime Minister announced a new national lockdown. The measures are tough but necessarily so. They reflect not only the current case rate but the extent of the pressures faced by our health and care system.
We have over 30,000 people with Covid in hospital beds, with over 2,500 people on mechanical ventilation, and based on the infection rates of the last month and the inevitable clinical chain reaction those numbers are set to rise. Yesterday, sadly, the UK reported a further 1,041 people who had died after testing positive in the 28 days previous and, with yesterday recording our highest daily increase since mass testing began, unfortunately it is inevitable that more deaths are on their way. That is why the Government took swift and decisive action this week, introducing a national lockdown and closing schools. We take this action with deep regret—for society and for the economy—but it is necessary to respond to the grave situation that we face.
The SIs we are debating today cover the tiering system introduced following the November national lockdown. Those regulations have been amended five times to extend the geographical reach and to fine-tune the terms, and we are also debating this week’s national lockdown. Overall, these SIs tell the story of our containment of the original strain of the virus, with a tiering system that eventually proved to work. They also cover the subsequent identification of and reaction to a more transmissible strain of the virus that was far more aggressive than anything that had been seen anywhere in the world before.
The New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group spelled it out clearly: the new variant demonstrates a 70% increase in transmissibility. This means that successful measures that were previously in place such as tier 3 are no longer enough to reduce the transmission of cases. The new variant makes up around 60% of cases in some parts of England, and that is rising. Since the beginning of December, cases reported per day in the UK have steadily increased, with on average 15,000 reported in the week of the 6 December, 34,000 in the week of 20 December, and a shocking 57,000 in the week to 3 January. This will inevitably lead to more hospital admissions and increased pressure on secondary care over the coming weeks. This is why a national intervention, introduced swiftly, is so necessary, and why the tier 4 measures have been strengthened by the closure of schools.
We are also taking on additional measures to support industry given the further national restrictions. We have announced additional support to the most affected businesses worth £4.6 billion across the UK. This support will help businesses get through this difficult period until spring. We will take further decisions about our economic response to coronavirus and how best to support the economy, businesses and jobs at the Budget on 3 March.
We have aimed to balance the economic impact of greater restrictions on business with measures to protect public health. Implementing a national lockdown with the vaccine rollout will allow the nation to return to some sense of normality and for the economy to bounce back. We have mitigated the short-term impact through financial support schemes to reflect these changes, and will carry on supporting the British public through these tough times.
However, we are not back to the bleak days in March: hope is on the horizon. The rollout of the Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines is making excellent progress. We have now vaccinated over 1.1 million people in England and over 1.3 million across the UK. The rollout in care homes started on 16 December, meaning that our most vulnerable as well as vital care staff can be protected.
While the vaccines project is an international collaboration, we should take a moment to recognise the contribution of the British life sciences sector and to reflect that an easy-to-administer, affordable and mass-produced vaccine offers Britain a way out of this disease and will make a huge impact on the global response.
The end is in sight but, until that time, we must all take responsibility for reducing the transmission of the virus, protecting the NHS and saving lives by complying with these restrictions. I know that these measures require a huge sacrifice. They are designed to minimise our social contact, coming at the cost of seeing our friends and family, participating in the hobbies we love and preventing us taking those holidays we desperately look forward to, and the economic cost is high. But this is a price worth paying to help our key workers, who have dedicated themselves for the benefit of others. We owe it to them and to protect the economy from a collapse in confidence and from rolling lockdowns.
The other SI that we are debating today relates to the self-isolation periods for households and is another example of how we have applied what we have learned. We are doing everything we can to identify and isolate the infectious. Between 25 December and 31 December, 346,901 people across the UK tested positive and were told to isolate, and a further 493,573 people were identified as recent close contacts, of which 92.3% were reached and told to self-isolate. This is a massive national effort.
On 14 December, we amended these regulations to make changes to the self-isolation period for households, non-household contacts and international arrivals, reducing it from 14 days to 10. This is based on evidence showing that the likelihood of being infectious as a contact after 10 days is low. To bring our policy in line with other nations in the UK, the 10-day self-isolation countdown begins on the day after exposure, onset of symptoms, or a positive test result.
Before I finish, I will address the question of parliamentary scrutiny. I want to be clear that no one in the Government makes use of these emergency procedures lightly, nor do they do so without the conviction that they are absolutely essential. Unfortunately, as I have set out and as we have seen across recent weeks, urgent action has been required. I know that some of your Lordships may be disappointed that the amendments were made before there was a debate. However, I emphatically reassure them that we remain committed to parliamentary scrutiny. I commend these regulations to the House.
Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Lab) [V]
My Lords, I am very grateful to the Minister and declare my interests as a member of the GMC. As we enter lockdown, the NHS finds itself in a critical position, with the four Chief Medical Officers warning that it is at risk of being overwhelmed in parts of the country. This week, NHS Providers has given a sobering analysis of some of the pressures. Indeed, since Christmas Day, the NHS has had 5,000 more Covid in-patients, equivalent to filling 10 hospitals. It also has fewer beds in use than this time last year because of the need for tight infection control to protect patients and staff.
Areas with a high Covid load are suffering from a double whammy of high numbers of Covid patients and high levels of staff absence. Trusts are utilising every last ounce of capacity available and are seeking to maximise the number of patients being safely discharged into community beds and being looked after at home. However, there is understandable concern about the impact of this on already tired and exhausted staff who are now being asked to delay leave, work extra shifts and transfer to new roles, for instance to help in critical care.
I would like to hear from the Minister what plans are under way to try to relieve at least some of the immediate pressure. I have asked him before about the nearly 30,000 additional doctors who were brought on to the GMC’s supplementary list; I know there is an issue around the bureaucracy involved, but is there also an issue of philosophy? Is the NHS, per se, reluctant to use this incredible facility that could be made available? Can he assure me that, as we come out of this critical situation, thought is being given to what support needs to be given to the thousands of staff who will inevitably be scarred and deeply affected by what they have gone through?
Lord Scriven (LD) [V]
We have a national emergency. The number of people catching the virus is rocketing; the NHS is struggling to provide urgent care to all those who require it; and there is the tragedy of early death for so many families. Everyone must do all they can to keep people safe. As difficult as these regulations will be for so many, these Benches support them. We do so with suggestions the Government should listen to and will hopefully take forward. I offer improvements for self-isolation; others will make other suggestions.
We are now vaccinating, but virologists say it is highly likely that we will have to live with the virus for years to come. Fully funded localised test, trace and isolate systems will therefore be important. Changing the number of days for which a person has to self-isolate is totally useless if less than 20% do so. We must deal with the cause of this, which for many is the lack of financial security and support. The present financial support is not enough; SSP works out at £2.59 per hour, and even if a person claims the £500 grant, that still works out as below the rate of the national living wage. What percentage of eligible people apply for and receive the £500 one-off grant for self-isolation?
To improve the numbers of people who self-isolate, the Liberal Democrats request that the Government pay lower-paid people their normal income for the period of isolation, along with a bonus for completing the required days to thank them for doing the right thing. This must be supported by fully funded Covid community teams that are in regular contact with people isolating to offer full practical and well-being support. These two things would give people the security and support to self-isolate. It is a blind spot of the Government and needs to be addressed. They should start to plan and prepare for when we come out of lockdown and not be caught off guard again. With the right government actions and support, it becomes easier for my actions to save your life and for your actions to save mine. That is why self-isolation payments and support must be addressed urgently.
Lord Patel (CB) [V]
My Lords, I wish to make two points.
Many, including in this House, question the need for and see no benefits in policies related to lockdown. Some believe that the rising rates of infection mean that restrictions to reduce people’s contacts and movement are ineffective in controlling the transmission of the virus. Many factors affect the transmission of the virus, contact between people being the key factor. In the case of the variant that more readily attaches to the ACE2 cells of the host, reducing contact between people is even more important. What matrix do the Government use to assess the effectiveness or otherwise of measures such as lockdown, apart from the decrease in the number of new infections, to inform the public better?
Secondly, on the vaccination strategy, the Government’s ambition is to vaccinate the JCVI’s top four priority groups by mid-February. I commend that, even if the target is not met. The concern voiced in popular and science media is about the proposal to extend the second dose of the vaccine by up to three months, especially for the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine. Does the Minister agree that the JCVI should publish the scientific data on which this decision is based, for both approved vaccines, to reassure scientists and the public that the dosage regime does not compromise the effectiveness of the vaccines, which I believe to be the case? If he does not have time to answer me today, could he write to me and put a copy in the Library?
The Lord Bishop of Rochester
My Lords, my awareness of the situation we are in was heightened last night by an email from the care home in which my mother lives informing me that eight residents and six members of staff have tested positive, in a place where they have been remarkably successful at controlling the virus hitherto. It is this new variant; nobody suggests that there are easy answers and we can all feel the Prime Minister’s inner and outer struggles every time he stands to speak.
In these circumstances, these regulations, unwelcome as they may be in some respects, must be agreed and given force. In the equivalent debate in the other place, some were asking for various clear undertakings as to what might happen in particular circumstances in future. All that we have seen hitherto tells us that, while we can and should plan for a range of scenarios, such attempts at certainty are just not realistic. Even with vaccines and the prospect of their effective rollout, we, as a technologically advanced society, are having to live with the reality of our own vulnerability: imperfect knowledge and an inability fully to control our circumstances—things with which people in other places and cultures are more familiar.
In that respect, our societal pride and self-confidence have perhaps been somewhat challenged. It is little wonder that we see a rise in mental health issues, anxiety, doubts about people’s futures and bereavement, in loss of both life and life opportunities. These are not matters that can easily be addressed by, for example, a financial package from the Chancellor. How and by whom does the Minister think these issues in our society might best be addressed?
Lord Lansley (Con) [V]
My Lords, we are repeatedly told that we are in a race against time. It is in fact a race against the virus; presently, the virus, tragically, is winning. This must change. These restrictions may be regrettable but they are necessary and must be persisted with. Will the Government make it clear that a relaxation of restrictions can happen only when the alert level is brought down to three, and not fully relaxed until it is down to two? Even if the most at-risk population is immunised, this will not be 100% effective, and we should maintain social distancing while we drive cases down to the point where test, track and trace can suppress outbreaks.
I want to ask about two issues. First, on the NHS Covid-19 app, we have 20 million-plus downloads and 750,000 QR codes, but how many positive tests are being registered on the app? It should be some 25,000 a day, and we should expect more than 100,000 alerts to be sent out each day. Without them, contact tracing and isolation will miss most of the contacts in public places. Can our app, like those of some other countries, have the option to provide a mobile phone contact number to allow track and trace to follow up those testing positive?
Secondly, we must now maximise the capacity for vaccination, using the military medical support units and community pharmacy. We should not have arrived at the point yesterday where the pharmacy sector was saying that it did not know whether it would be used. Thousands of trained vaccinators are an essential resource. Can my noble friend confirm that they will be integral to our vaccination programme?
Lord Reid of Cardowan (Lab) [V]
My Lords, I will make only two points.
First, if our fellow citizens are being asked to undergo testing and tolerate restrictions, self-isolation, lockdown and so on—I support these measures—how on earth do the Government explain why so many visitors to this country have been able to fly into our airports without testing, self-isolation and lockdown? How do they explain that to people?
Secondly, what consideration is being given to the effect of the restrictive regulations on the terminally ill? Each year, some 225,000 people undergo palliative care in the United Kingdom. Some have only weeks or months to live. To them, every day is like gold dust, yet currently those undergoing such treatment outside hospices are behind some 7 million other people in the queue for vaccinations. Do not the restrictions being placed on that group cry out for a commensurate prioritisation in vaccination?
Baroness Tyler of Enfield (LD) [V]
My Lords, as we debate these regulations—after the event, as ever—we are in the throes of a national emergency the like of which I have not witnessed in my lifetime. We must learn lessons from the handling of the pandemic so far. The overriding need is to act fast, early and with consistency of message. We need to treat the population like grown-ups who prefer to hear it straight, even if the news is bad.
With the new, more aggressive strain of the virus, we are in a race against time, as my honourable friend Munira Wilson said yesterday, and we need a military-style response. Above all, we must introduce a 24/7 vaccination programme, bringing the vaccine to every high street in the country, including on Sundays. We must make maximum use of volunteers for all the nonclinical tasks involved and remove unnecessary barriers to recruitment. Critically, we must make full use of the roughly 11,400 local pharmacies that already administer millions of flu jabs every year. They have the capacity to vaccinate about 1.3 million people each week, which will save the lives, particularly, I suggest, of people who are not registered with a GP. What assurances can the Minister give that this will now happen?
The next few weeks will put huge strain on the mental health of millions, particularly the vulnerable, the marginalised and young people. What assurances can the Minister give that mental health services will be fully resourced and will stay open to respond to the ever-growing mental health need?
Finally, with the number of Covid patients in UK hospitals topping 30,000, and having witnessed the harrowing scenes in last night’s news coverage of the intensive care unit at University College London Hospital, will the Minister say what specific steps the Government are taking to support the mental health needs of front-line health and social care workers who are suffering from exhaustion, burnout and flagging morale? You can only stretch a piece of elastic so far, and many are close to breaking point.
Lord Caine (Con)
My Lords, given the grim statistics that the Prime Minister outlined in his address on Monday, I fully accept the need for this third lockdown, but I am also clear that it cannot last indefinitely and that we must do everything we can to avoid treading this path again. I share the concerns of many, including my right honourable friend the Prime Minister, over the impact of a third lockdown: on the economy, particularly in retail, hospitality and small businesses; on the education and life chances of our young people; and on the physical and mental well-being of the public, especially those we are asking to shield—something of which I, sadly, have direct personal experience from the first lockdown.
We must therefore find a way out of here, and that must of course be through mass vaccination. I applaud the Government’s efforts in delivering the vaccine so far and in ensuring that more people have been vaccinated here than in the rest of Europe put together, and I strongly support the ambition to have everyone in the top four priority groups vaccinated by mid-February. To achieve that, as other noble Lords have stressed, we need to use every resource at our disposal. That includes the extensive deployment of our Armed Forces, a stripping away of any unnecessary bureaucracy, and ever-more vaccination centres.
In short, we need to act as if we are on a total war footing by running this vaccination programme as a round-the-clock and precise military operation, with the production of the vaccine akin the production of munitions. Ministers and other noble Lords have rightly said that we are in a race against time between the vaccine and the virus. It is not a race that we can afford to lose.
Baroness Watkins of Tavistock (CB)
My Lords, I am pleased to contribute to this debate and I hope that it will result in further clarification of the Government’s approach to managing the pandemic over the next two months. There is much concern about the plethora of statutory instruments that have been passed with the aim of containing the virus, and about what appear to be sudden, unexpected changes in geographical tier allocation and guidance restricting the way in which people lead their lives. Are decisions made entirely on the R rate locally, or is it this and other issues, including the estimated risk factors in a local population and the availability of hospital beds for treatment? Research shows that if you want people to comply, you need a straightforward message. Greater transparency about the reasons for changing allocations would, I believe, result in greater adherence to the restrictions.
Nearly every UK citizen wants to do their best to reduce the spread of the virus, but many fail to understand why, for example, they were encouraged to send their children to school on Monday but are now asked to keep them home, seemingly until half term. Can the Minister explain when there will be a review of the current restrictions and whether there will be further attempts to work with the devolved Administrations to get a more joined-up approach across the four countries?
I congratulate the Government on rapidly altering the training requirements for retired healthcare workers wanting to return to assist in vaccination, and I am pleased to report from a Microsoft Teams meeting with the CNO, Ruth May, and Mark Radford from the HEE this morning that there are sufficient permanent and recent volunteers to administer the vaccines for the foreseeable future. However, there remains a need for extra staff to work in clinical areas. Can the Minister confirm that that is the case and tell us what further interventions will be taken to increase the health and social care workforce this year, including intakes in September?
Lord Winston (Lab) [V]
My Lords, I had the privilege of sitting on the Select Committee that looked at the virus. The committee was brilliantly chaired by the noble Lord, Lord Patel, who has already spoken. One thing we heard was that this virus occurred from a mutation and that mutations were likely to be possible in future. The fact is that the more people who are infected in a population, the greater the likelihood of mutation that may be deleterious to human health, and the more treatment that is given to people, the more likely there is to be a mutation, as the virus fights against that treatment.
Of course, people who come from outside your environment—for example, from outside the country—are more likely to bring such mutations in with them. One of the clear issues, which was not properly answered by the noble Baroness, Lady Evans of Bowes Park, earlier today, when she answered the noble Viscount, Lord Waverley, I think, is what we are doing about international travel, a point already raised very ably by my noble friend Lord Reid. It seems to me, looking at the figures for people coming through London airports, that hundreds of thousands of people are coming through on a weekly basis and we are not properly tracking or tracing them. Some of them are being asked if they might like voluntarily to be tested, and of course they have to pay for it. That is clearly nonsense. There should be much stricter controls on people coming into this country, as is happening in other countries. I ask the noble Lord, Lord Bethell, exactly what we are going to do now, because at present the Government do not seem to have a firm policy to do something to make sure that we are not bringing more viruses, which may be mutating in some cases, into this country.
Lord Naseby (Con) [V]
My Lords, I am in isolation due to a contact of mine testing positive. I want to ask six questions. First, are all the Nightingale hospitals now being actively used? Secondly, have Her Majesty’s Government solved the problem with the 25,000 former nurses and doctors who have volunteered their services? Thirdly, as a politician, I am mystified how we can organise a general election involving more than 33 million people voting in five weeks, yet we are having difficulty organising in seven weeks sufficient jabs for 14 million people.
Fourthly, in a pandemic, is there any question of anyone at PHE, the MHRA or anybody else involved in the distribution of this vital jab not working on Sundays? Having done overnight work when I was in commerce, I suggest that people should work overnight if necessary.
Fifthly, will all GP practices be starting this Monday, 11 January, as mine is? Can we be reassured that all will have supplies in time for Monday morning? That is, they will need supplies tomorrow, on Friday.
Lastly, I take a particular interest in care homes, which have done a wonderful job, often on their own. They are now saying that care home staff should be treated the same as NHS staff and allowed to take LFD tests at home, rather than fixing them into their working week. I am most grateful to my noble friend on the Front Bench for the huge effort he has put into this whole programme.
Baroness Bowles of Berkhamsted (LD) [V]
My Lords, last year, we discovered that pandemic planning was inadequate. It was based too much on flu, failed dramatically on PPE and test-and-trace logistics, and dithered for too long before lockdown. If there are any lessons to learn, they are to think the unthinkable, implement at speed and get a grip on logistics. Delay costs lives and, in the end, costs more. That must be programmed in to cut the dither.
Now, vaccine rollout and logistics are slower than hoped, and we are seeing traffic jams and distressed elderly in long queues. With the handling advantages of the Oxford vaccine, it must be a seven-day operation, local and around the clock, where feasible. But why have we only just discovered the excessive red tape around approving vaccinators? We knew the size of the task and that the vaccine was coming, even if not exactly when. Why have local pharmacies not already been lined up and assessed for space and in-and-out arrangements? Each lesser-performing day costs lives, costs the NHS and costs the economy.
The Government have put forward some bold financial support packages, but there are still holes, such as excluding the self-employed and inadequate payments to those who cannot afford to self-isolate. Financial stress induces the rule-breaking that spreads the virus, all the more so after high-profile breaking by people not facing financial hardship. The public health aspect of isolating justifies more support than sick pay, which does not cover everyone. The £500 grant is insufficient and not that well known. These regulations, if anything, came later than they should have. That is a lesson that we will face again, with Covid, we are told, likely to stay around despite vaccination.
Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown (DUP) [V]
My Lords, I too appreciate the seriousness of the situation and how difficult it is for people across the United Kingdom, as we face the pressures of another lockdown. I also appreciate the difficulties faced by the Government in making decisions that have such serious implications for the curtailment of the liberties that people across the United Kingdom have enjoyed. Those who do not have a difficult decision to make can criticise the Government more easily. However, surely the safety and well-being of our citizens are uppermost in our minds. Therefore, it is imperative that we all pull together to ensure that we conquer this Covid virus.
I ask the Minister to confirm that all GPs and community pharmacists will be used to roll out our vaccine. Can we have a 24/7 programme for vaccination, because time is of the essence?
It is one thing to make lockdown restrictions, but we must bear in mind the implications. I therefore ask the Minister what consideration has been given and plans made to prepare for an avalanche of serious mental health problems, which will follow this Covid-19 crisis. With so many being forced into isolation, not only because of personal sickness but because of government restrictions and the depths of despair and loneliness being felt by many across the community, will we not see a serious increase in alcohol and other addictions manifesting, which will need appropriate and professional treatment? Can the Government therefore assure us that appropriate provision is being made to handle the situation?
In my humble opinion, winning the battle against Covid will not end the crisis that we face, but uncover numerous other challenges for society. Government must lead, but it is important that each of us within society does everything in our power to achieve success.
Lord Moynihan (Con)
My Lords, as we enter the epic phase of vaccine versus virus, the exemptions in these regulations for elite sportsmen and sportswomen are welcome. The related debate over the timing of their vaccination and that of their entourages has now become a key issue. The president of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach, is to be praised for saying that athletes should not jump the queue in front of those in greater need of vaccination. I agree with him. No one wants to see the world of elite sport given advantage over the most vulnerable in society, namely those most likely to require hospitalisation if they were to contract Covid.
Canadian Richard Pound, who is closely associated with the World Anti-Doping Agency, called overnight for the immediate prioritisation of Canadian athletes in the first wave of vaccinations in his country. He was wrong; “not yet” would have been a more considered view.
Moving through the tiers of those most in need of vaccination, I urge the Government to recognise the pressures that our athletes, both Olympic and Paralympic, are under to qualify for selection for the Games. Selection criteria vary by sport. Some need to qualify soon; others, in the summer. Sport by sport, I urge the Government to work with the Olympic governing bodies to determine the latest possible time it would help Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls to be vaccinated. I believe that they will find that the end of February is broadly the consensual point, but it is vital that this comes after the most vulnerable in society.
In so doing, I hope that the world of international sport also considers the global and not just national socioeconomic inequalities associated with Covid-19. First-world countries will benefit from the vaccine first, with supplies to developing countries lagging significantly behind, some potentially after the Games. While the whole sporting world hopes that the Olympic and Paralympic Games will take place this summer, all involved need to work to ensure that selection processes are fair, that opportunities are taken to optimise performance preparation and that the interest of the world’s athletes is critical, but not more important than the most vulnerable in society.
Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (CB) [V]
Today, Health Service Journal published:
“Hospitals, particularly in London and the surrounding areas, are seeing very high and rapidly growing numbers of covid-19 admissions, and are running out of options to free up beds.”
Discharge of patients to care homes has become increasingly difficult, despite beds in many care homes lying empty, as care providers fear repeating the disaster of the spring in the sector, and they are not insured to become Covid-designated homes. Will the Government provide rapid short-term indemnity, such as is provided for the NHS?
Ysbyty’r Seren in Bridgend is the busiest field hospital, operating since mid-October as a step-down unit. Today it has 72 patients. Wales has been about two weeks ahead in this second wave and important virological evidence is emerging. Is experience being sought from Wales for the Nightingale hospitals and is data from all aspects of the pandemic, including genomic testing, being rapidly shared?
Lockdowns have seen a drop in other respiratory infections, such as respiratory syncytial virus, yet sceptics are doing untold damage, endangering the lives of many, including clinical staff who are now exhausted, burnt out, seriously ill with Covid or having to isolate. As the Minister said, the new variant is highly infectious, yet many workplaces, such as factories, food processing plants and schools have remained open without any ventilation system guidance. Will the Government urgently learn from Germany and instigate ventilation guidance, support and certification of ventilation systems, establishing a rapid national standard for machines that lower viral count in the ambient air?
Baroness Massey of Darwen (Lab) [V]
My Lords, I will focus on school education in lockdown. Education has had a poor deal during this crisis. Education is vital for children and young people to thrive and prosper, yet those involved have suffered U-turns—sometimes almost instant—a lack of equipment, and mixed messages about exams and assessments. This has left them confused and distressed.
I ask the Government to put in place a long-term strategy for education, with transparent options if things need to change. They should work with local authorities, unions, parents and children to develop and share a strategy now.
This strategy should include the following. All those working in schools should be vaccinated and treated as a priority. They should have reliable supplies of protective equipment and a safe environment, as they are very special. Testing for all in schools must be established. A broad and balanced curriculum must be maintained and guaranteed as far as possible. Children need not only academic education but structure, routine, socialising, activities such as art, sport and exercise, and the chance to discuss how best to cope in challenging times. Exam assessment systems need to be firm and clear. Families must be guaranteed computer equipment for each child when working at home. Services such as mental health services must be geared up to cope with present and future demand. Where is such a strategy?
Parents also face a crisis. The Government need to listen to parents, who may have the challenge of coping with work, running a household and supporting children who are not at school. Those who cannot work due to childcare commitments must be guaranteed flexible job retention. Confusion and anxiety about the basic needs of children and parents must be addressed urgently by the Government; otherwise, we risk long-term problems in mental health and inequalities, with services that cannot cope.
The Deputy Speaker (Lord Faulkner of Worcester) (Lab)
The noble Lord, Lord Robathan, has withdrawn, so I call the noble Lord, Lord McNally.
Lord McNally (LD) [V]
My Lords, when the noble Lord, Lord Bethell, opened the debate, he was slightly apologetic about parliamentary scrutiny. I do not think that there can be any doubt now that, as long as the Government show courage, transparency and consistency of message, he will get massive support in his work in the fight against this virus.
I will use this short time to put my pressure behind the use of community chemists. We have had a number of vague statements by Ministers that have certainly lacked any “Action This Day”, given that the Royal Pharmaceutical Society and others have made the offer of their facilities. We have already seen and heard anecdotal evidence of how difficult it is for particularly the very elderly to be handled safely by large, often out-of-town centres. Can I have the Minister’s assurance that local pharmacies, particularly those with existing experience of dispensing flu jabs, will be brought into service immediately?
I continue to be worried because the Lord Privy Seal, in answering questions earlier, mentioned that pharmacies might be used where they had capacity to give “significant” doses of vaccine. What does “significant” mean? Another answer was that conversations would be ongoing. The message from all the Benches today, from the noble Lords, Lord Hunt and Lord Lansley, my noble friend Lady Bowles and others, is that it is really “Action This Day” on community pharmacies. It would be absolutely outrageous if that facility was not urgently used.
Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton (Con)
My Lords, hindsight is a wonderful thing and used wisely I am sure that, with a careful, detailed, objective review, there is much that we will learn from the Government’s handling of this crisis that will better prepare us for future pandemics. My concern, though, is that the knowledge that hindsight brings seems to be currently used only for attacks on a Government trying to deal with a pandemic in unprecedented times. I have no doubt that the Government have made their mistakes, but I do not believe that a different set of Ministers would have dealt with the situation radically differently.
The Government’s strategy of trying to keep the balance between protecting the NHS and minimising the impact on the economy and the nation’s physical and mental health is a challenge beyond all others. There are two areas where I hope we will learn specific lessons and have an agreed framework for the future. Both relate to the fact that any graduated or full lockdown will work only with the support, understanding and, crucially, consent of the population.
The first must be to get an agreed and consistent approach among the four nations of the United Kingdom. Of course I understand the principle of devolved government, but the fact is that differing rules sow confusion and ultimately a distrust of a scientific approach. That is surely to nobody’s advantage.
The second lies in the use of local authority boundaries as tier boundaries. While simple, this has caused enormous challenges in some parts of the country. I live in Gosport, where my wife Caroline Dinenage is Member of Parliament. Her constituency is part Gosport Borough, part Fareham, and was initially split in half between tier 2 and tier 4. This meant that it was fine to have social gatherings on one side of the road but literally not the other. That was impossible to explain to constituents and undermined public confidence in the system.
Boundaries must be drawn somewhere but surely not, where possible, through centres of population. I suggest to the Minister that, if preventing the NHS being overwhelmed is the main objective, perhaps a tiering system based on catchment areas to principal hospitals using postcodes would be an equally simple but more logical approach.
Lord Berkeley of Knighton (CB) [V]
My Lords, I will ask the Minister two slightly uncomfortable questions. First, it is always very important, when one tries to set an example, that we look at ourselves. Does the Minister feel that, in terms of attendance and mask wearing, we in the Chamber and at Westminster are setting the right example? Is there anything we could do better?
My second point is this. I have been reading a book, Breathtaking: Inside the NHS in a Time of Pandemic, by Dr Rachel Clarke. Anybody who read this book would think twice about breaking the rules. I want to go further than the Government in some aspects. For example, the fact that going to a party or organising a party might mean you get a £60 or £500 fine should be seen in the light of the fact that it could cause a porter, a cleaner, a nurse or a doctor to visit not merely ICU but the mortuary. If people thought about this more carefully and the penalties were much more draconian, they would think twice about their behaviour. I am shocked that people might get a fine of £60—a parking meter fine—for going to a party, spreading this pandemic and putting so many lives at risk.
Lord Clark of Windermere (Lab) [V]
My Lords, here in snowy Cumbria we have lately witnessed a massive increase in cases of the new mutation of the virus, with Carlisle having almost 1,100 cases per 100,000. One reason for this increase is the influx of thousands of visitors who often unwittingly carry coronavirus.
The guidance for the current lockdown urges people not to travel out of their own district. Under the first lockdown there was similar guidance, but there was a critical difference in that it was enshrined in law. This time, unfortunately, this is not the case; it is only guidance. Thus the police cannot, as they did previously, prevent people entering the county, possibly spreading the disease.
Will the Minister consider this particular proposal to enshrine the guidance in law? Doing so would reduce transmission of the virus and save the lives of many thousands of people.
Lord Flight (Con) [V]
My Lords, it is politically healthy that the UK system has the ability to correct and polish statutory instruments, and that such changes made by government need to secure the approval of both Houses of Parliament. The House of Lords has a useful role in investigating and debating changes to the law made under the affirmative procedure. It is particularly useful that a large number of eminent lawyers sit in the Lords.
The two relevant key instruments currently being addressed reduce the self-isolation period from 14 to 10 days for people in England who have had close contact with someone who has coronavirus. This change also applies to the minimum period of isolation for households switching their support bubbles. The regulations also make changes to the starting date for calculating the isolation period. The Government made the changes following a review by the chief medical officers of the evidence on self-isolating. The regulations shortened the infectious period to 10 days after contact; it was defined as being low, although it was higher than the likelihood of being infectious after 14 days.
The changes to self-isolation period starting points in England were made to bring them in line with the rest of the UK. While there has been some professional questioning of these changes to the regulations, I observe that they have, in the main, been accepted as necessary and appropriate.
Baroness Jolly (LD) [V]
My Lords, all the measures covered in the SIs we are debating will amount to nothing if we fail to defend our borders. I will address the points made by the noble Lords, Lord Reid and Lord Winston, about international travellers.
We have a proposed test-to-release scheme that allows passengers to shorten their required isolation period to five days if they take a private Covid-19 test five days after their arrival and receive a negative result. Information provided to the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee by the department stated that
“the protective effect of testing to release international arrivals after 5 days of self-isolation is only marginally less effective than 14 days of self-isolation”.
Public Health England modelling says that the effectiveness of testing after five days is 85%, after eight days 96% and after 10 days 98%—13% more effectiveness if testing is postponed to 10 days after arrival.
The proposal was examined by the committee, which was told that the new approach mirrored that taken by close partners, but no mention was made of the fact that infection rates have been much lower in those countries than in the UK. The committee was also told that our Border Force will be issuing more people with fines if they have not completed the passenger locator forms, the PLFs. However, if they have not completed the form how are they able to be contacted in order to levy the fine? By comparison, all passengers arriving in Australia, whether citizens or travellers from elsewhere, are required to isolate in a hotel, chosen by Australian immigration, for two weeks at their own expense.
We know that the virus has mutated. That is what viruses do, which makes the situation more uncomfortable. We need to be more ready and defend our borders. We cannot take risks. Will the Minister commit to reviewing the evidence and the department’s decision in these matters?
Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (GP) [V]
My Lords, I make two points—the first on transmission. As the Minister made clear in his introduction, the SARS-CoV-2 virus is hideously out of control. As scientific knowledge has increased, the importance of aerosol transmission and the key place of the need for ventilation in prevention, and not sharing inside spaces, has becoming increasingly obvious, as the noble Baroness, Lady Finlay of Llandaff, highlighted.
It may not be the Government’s intention but the slogan “hands, face, space” places this crucial issue last on the list and appears to make it of lesser importance. There are people, some of whom I have encountered, who think they are safe if they wear a mask, even in a confined space with a stranger, when the science makes it clear that that is not the case.
Are the Government considering an enhanced, expanded education and publicity campaign to stress the importance of ventilation and not sharing space, perhaps utilising something like the excellent graphics produced by the Spanish newspaper El Pais, which clearly illustrates how the risk of the virus being transmitted in confined spaces is increased, and ways of reducing that risk?
Are the Government also considering rethinking the use of the term “Covid-safe”, particularly when applied to workplaces? Given aerosol transmission, risk can be reduced but not eliminated. Broader understanding of that can make us all safer.
Secondly, I ask about the Government’s long-term plans to provide maximum safety in the period when significant numbers have been vaccinated. Current evidence suggests that the vaccines we now have will not provide sterilising immunity and, therefore, vaccinated individuals will still present an infection risk. What plans are the Government making to redesign spaces and practices, look at ventilation, crowding and practical arrangements in schools, hospitals, prisons and other institutions, and in guidance provided to private companies, to minimise prevalence of the virus? They need to prepare and have a plan that would also make us safer from other infectious agents that we know present a continuing danger in this world scarred by the climate emergency and nature crisis.
Lord Balfe (Con)
My Lords, I have two points and a question. On the borders issue, we do not need to get too worked up about the crossing of borders because, after all, people cross the border from London to Nottingham and places such as that. We need to make sure that the test-and-trace mechanism works.
From time to time in the past year, I have been on the Eurostar. One is not allowed on to the train to come back unless one has filled in the form and it has been registered by the border people. They take a copy of the form and register it. That is a condition of getting on the train. We probably need to tighten up there.
My second point is on vaccines. It is obvious that we should have pharmacies administering them. Do we have enough vaccines? Is the Minister satisfied that the amount being produced will be sufficient to get things done? If he wants to give some encouragement to the Prime Minister, he could say to him that if Britain can manage to vaccinate its people faster than the rest of the EU, he will certainly have seen a result of getting Brexit done because it will make him popular.
My third point is a question. Will the Minister tell me, or write, about the position of dentists and dental surgeries? I read the guidance issued at the end of last year and the priority groups included doctors, dentists and nurses, but are dental nurses included? What is the position of staff in dental surgeries? If they are being left to get their own vaccines, that is not satisfactory.
Baroness Wheatcroft (CB) [V]
My Lords, the rules are clear. Those who can work from home must do so. Businesses must do everything that they can to ensure that remote working is made possible. However, there is no doubt that some organisations still prefer to have their staff in the office where they can see them. Some estate agents, for instance, are keeping staff in the office when it is hard to see why that is necessary.
If the Government tell people that they should work from home but employers insist that they travel to the workplace, will they choose to obey the Government or risk disobeying their employer and losing their job? There are penalties for individuals who flout the rules, but can the Minister say what sanctions there are on an employer who puts their staff and the community at risk by insisting that they attend the office?
I echo the question of the noble Lord, Lord Berkeley of Knighton—[Inaudible.] Today, for instance, there are 13 Back-Benchers speaking in this debate from the Chamber, but parliamentary staff have done a remarkable job in ensuring that Peers can work from home. Of course, it is a privilege to debate from the Chamber, but is it essential that so many parliamentarians must work from Westminster?
Finally, on test and trace, could the Minister tell the House just how many people have been traced via the app, and what the average cost of each successful contact is? If he does not have the information to hand, perhaps he could write to me.
Lord Campbell-Savours (Lab) [V]
My Lords, we are told that by February we are to return to tiered arrangements geared to a national vaccine rollout programme, yet we also learned of discussions over a new tier 5, which could introduce even tougher rules.
Before decisions are taken on tier 5 restrictions, I make a plea: please, please, please listen to calls for mandatory masking. I accept that current rules provide for wider usage than was the case some months ago, yet there is still widespread non-observance of the rules. This is my 18th call since last February. I have repeatedly argued that whereas Governments worldwide are pursuing an enforced mandatory masking policy, we in the UK, in almost splendid isolation, challenge worldwide expert opinion and reject real-teeth legislative intervention. Why not strengthen the law in the tier 5 areas when they come?
I remind the House, according to Worldometer, which monitors the virus in 220 countries worldwide, that the highest corona death rates per million population are in Bulgaria, Slovenia, Bosnia and North Macedonia—all part of the former Soviet bloc. Then we have Belgium, followed by the United Kingdom at 1,121 per million population—fifth place out of 220 countries worldwide. Our stats, updated yesterday, exceed even those of the United States of America.
Our policy has been an unmitigated disaster. As President-elect Biden, in Wilmington, Delaware, put it:
“First, I’ll go to every governor and urge them to mandate mask wearing in their states, and if they refuse, I’ll go to the mayors and county executives and get local mask requirements in place nationwide”.
If only we had such leadership.
For the sake of the health of the nation, listen to those of us who want tougher policies on masking and an end to widespread non-observance.
Baroness McIntosh of Pickering (Con) [V]
My Lords, I declare my interest as advising the board of the Dispensing Doctors’ Association, and I would like to focus on the rollout of the vaccinations. Does my noble friend the Minister share my concern that a delivery of over 1,000 vaccines to a rural practice in Suffolk was cancelled at less than a week’s notice? This is happening across the country—in Devon the same as in Suffolk. Dispensing doctors are the ideal vaccinators for the elderly and stand prepared to play their part. Yet notice and certainty of delivery are essential, mindful of the distances and needs of patients in far-flung rural areas to reach the surgery.
It seems that successful vaccination sites are being prevented from getting more vaccines, possibly because they are considered to have successfully vaccinated a greater percentage of patients than neighbouring sites. Yet there are media reports that an internet pharmacy—Pharmacy2U—is to be allowed to vaccinate people in supermarket car parks. Where is the infrastructure to support this? A GP practice wanting to operate vaccinations from a car park would currently be prevented from doing so. Remote NHS management teams seem to be dictating how much can be supplied rather than allowing individual practices to request what they require for their population. Thus, there is no certainty of supply and an inability to plan clinics efficiently and effectively. Those with proven expertise in the provision of vaccinations are being prevented from doing their job.
I also raise the concern that over-65s will not be vaccinated before the middle of February, which appears to be a slippage in timing. Yet this age group is as likely to require hospitalisation as those in the four priority groups. Equally, a change to the date and timing of the second dose of vaccination is not supported by the pilots, on the basis of which regulatory approval was given, and flouts the recommendation of all scientific authority, not least the World Health Organization.
Lord Greaves (LD) [V]
Sorry, I did so, and it went back on mute. I beg your pardon. My Lords, I speak again from the hills of east Lancashire, which are not so sunny today.
The Minister said that we are not back to the grim times of last March, but in this part of the world, and many others in the north, we have never really been out of them, apart from a short time in the middle of summer. The misery, loneliness and debilitating frustration of people such as small shopkeepers in town centres continues.
Vaccination is really the Government’s last chance to show that they can do something competently in this area. My noble friend Lady Bowles of Berkhamsted talked about the logistics and the rollout. In my view, at local level it is very important that the local people involved—the hospitals, GPs, pharmacies and local authorities providing facilities—are able to operate with a degree of flexibility.
Too often we have an attitude in this country of tram lines and tick boxes, and people are not able, and do not feel they are able, to do anything at all that is not on their tick list. Yet if people have the vaccines locally, it is very important that they use them, and that we do not get a situation in which there is a surplus of vaccines in a particular place and people do not turn up to get their vaccination, or there are not enough of the priority categories available. People have to be able to use those vaccines. Every vaccine delivered locally and not used will be a disgrace. I ask the Minister to assure us that people will have the flexibility to use them and to get people vaccinated, right up to 100%.
The Deputy Speaker (Lord Faulkner of Worcester) (Lab)
The noble Baroness, Lady Kennedy of Cradley, has withdrawn, so I call the noble Lord, Lord Moylan.
Lord Moylan (Con)
My Lords, we all look forward to a rapid vaccination of the population and a swift return to normality. But, as the noble Lord, Lord Scriven, said, Covid is likely to remain endemic for many decades to come. That means that improved drugs, care and treatment are necessary, with a view to driving down mortality rates even further than our excellent medical professionals have managed so far.
The British RECOVERY programme—RECOVERY as an acronym—is the world’s largest randomised Covid drugs trial. It has given us dexamethasone as the first drug clinically proven to help reduce deaths from Covid, and it has shown that other drugs thought likely to be useful have had little measurable effect. Results from further trials are likely to come through in coming weeks.
When I raised this topic recently in your Lordships’ House, my noble friend the Minister was generous in saying that the Government saw the importance of better treatment and were investing in it. May I urge him now—amid all the other pressures that he faces—to ensure that government heft and resource go with redoubled effect into supporting the development of new treatments, and to undertake to roll successful drugs out rapidly, even if, by contrast with dexamethasone, they cannot be procured for pennies?
Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Non-Afl) [V]
My Lords, it is a pleasure to take part in this debate. The rate of infection is undoubtedly higher now with the ability of the mutated version of the virus to transmit more easily. Control measures have to be put in place and need to be adhered to by all of us—there is a major element of personal responsibility for our own health and the health of our family, friends and communities. As the Minister and other noble Lords have said, the only way out of this Covid dilemma is through the application of vaccines, of which we now have two. I note that the European Medicines Agency has also approved the Moderna vaccine, so I wonder when the UK medicines agency will also approve it.
I have some other questions for the Minister in relation to vaccines. How many doses of each of the vaccines have been ordered for the four parts of the UK, and how many exist in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland? There have been some suggestions in the media that there are problems in securing sufficient quantities in order to vaccinate all the population. When is it estimated that the vaccine implementation programme will be completed? Will it be by the summer, autumn or winter of 2021? Given that taking the vaccine is down to personal choice, what plans do the Government have to exhort people to take it?
There have been some suggestions that there is a global shortage of glass vials to package up the vaccines, with long waits for safety checks and for ensuring that there are enough vaccinators. Can the Minister assure me on those various areas?
Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Lab Co-op) [V]
My Lords, these statutory instruments deal with protecting us from the virus—an area where the Government have, as others have said, a record of overpromising and underdelivering. An example is the test and trace scheme, which was hailed by Ministers as world beating but has turned out to be a miserable failure—except of course for some of the friends of those Ministers, who have made a fortune out of it. Maybe the Minister can tell us in his reply where the noble Baroness, Lady Harding, is and what she is up to now.
Now, as many others have said, success in defeating the virus depends on the efficient delivery of the vaccine. I fear that this is beginning to look like another government debacle. Therefore, first—a question asked also by the noble Baroness, Lady Ritchie—can the Minister tell us how many vials of each vaccine have been delivered to each of the three devolved nations? Secondly, when does he expect all the vaccination centres to be operational? Thirdly, when does he expect them to achieve the vaccination of 2 million people each week, as promised? Finally, what will the arrangements be for reporting regularly to both Houses on the progress of the rollout? From the reports of what happened when the Health Secretary visited Bloomsbury today, and from the letter from MPs of all parties in Birmingham, I fear that things are not going quite as well as the Government hoped and that we will fall behind on the delivery of this vaccine, in spite of the bombastic claims of the Prime Minister that we are again world beating.
Lord Randall of Uxbridge (Con) [V]
My Lords, we should be in no doubt about the seriousness of the current situation, so I have no hesitation in supporting these regulations while recognising the grave impact that they will cause for many—financially, physically and mentally. Undoubtedly, lockdown fatigue is pervading the nation, so I commend the Government, and in particular the Prime Minister, for doing whatever is possible to emphasise the gravity of the current situation.
I am afraid that there is still a small minority of our fellow citizens who either unwittingly or deliberately consider that they do not have to conform to these regulations. However, I commend the innate common sense of the majority of our fellow citizens, who are doing what they can, at sometimes considerable personal cost, to try to curb the spread of this pernicious virus and the new variants that we are seeing. I also echo the points made by the noble Baroness, Lady Wheatcroft, that each of us in this House should consider whether attending the Chamber is absolutely essential.
Many groups deserve our gratitude for working beyond the call of duty. I particularly mention the many teachers, such as my eldest son, who are working in a very difficult environment and whose only concern is the education and welfare of their students. They have not been found wanting in these difficult days.
I pay tribute, too, to all those who continue to find innovative ways to keep their businesses afloat as best they can. For example, Balcony Shirts, garment printers in Uxbridge, is once again producing T-shirts and hoodies for those schooling at home with the logo “Home School Class of 2021”. This proved very popular during the last national lockdown with parents and pupils alike—it was a real morale-booster for many. It is also giving a sizeable proportion of the price to the charity Shelter. That is just one of many examples of the invention born of this pandemic.
Let us earnestly hope that if we all do the right thing we may lift these restrictions before 31 March, but we owe it to ourselves and our fellow citizens not to drop our guard until then.
Baroness Scott of Needham Market (LD) [V]
My Lords, there is no doubt that the appearance of this new variant has taken us into a very difficult situation. As welcome as the vaccine is, we have to acknowledge that getting the whole country protected will not be a very quick process. Therefore, the measures that we take, individually and collectively, while we wait to be vaccinated are absolutely key.
I want to ask the Minister two questions. First, what work is going on to reassess the protocols and procedures that have been developed for workplaces, schools, places of worship and so on to ensure that systems which were fit for purpose with the original virus continue to be so with one that is more transmissible?
Secondly, on an individual basis, I acknowledge that this is anecdotal but I am hearing a lot of stories about people who contract Covid and say that they have no idea how they caught it because they have been really careful and have followed all the guidance and procedures. Is any reassessment going on of the sorts of behaviours that many of us have fallen into the habit of adopting? Are those preventive measures still fit for purpose or should we be protecting ourselves and others differently?
Finally, on a different matter, there is a huge role to be played in a vaccine rollout by volunteers, not just as injectors but in a whole range of ways. My plea to the Government is not to rely on a centralised system of the kind we saw last year, as that just does not work. There is a lot of good will but it needs to be harnessed and used locally, because that is where it can be used to best effect.
Lord Liddle (Lab) [V]
My Lords, I shall focus my brief remarks on the vaccine—the light at the end of this long and very dark tunnel. The Minister is absolutely right that British science has made an enormous contribution to this, and we should be proud of it. It is also an excellent example of public/private partnership, which I have always believed in. However, there are worries. A lot of noble Lords have concentrated on how we speed up the distribution of the vaccine. I endorse the remarks of the noble Lord, Lord McNally, about the use of community pharmacies. We should not leave them out, and we should go for the fastest-possible distribution.
However, what about manufacturing? What are the supply chain problems that limit the amount of vaccine available? I was very struck by an article in this morning’s Financial Times by Gustav Oertzen, who argued that there is a conflict between the public interest in the widest, quickest-possible distribution of the vaccine and the interests of the pharma companies, which want an extended production schedule over as long a time as possible to ensure a payback on their investment. Do the Government recognise this as a problem? If we are to go on a war footing, as the noble Lord, Lord Caine, put it, do we not have to have an honest dialogue with the pharma companies? Ought we not to think about how to incentivise them to produce things more quickly, and, if necessary, would we be prepared, as in wartime, to be more interventionist and have more direct control?
Baroness Neville-Rolfe (Con) [V]
My Lords, as time for scrutiny is so short, I turn to the main area of hope, which is vaccination. Does my noble friend the Minister agree that this Government are likely to be judged by whether they can manage the rollout of the vaccine effectively? The Prime Minister has more or less committed to vaccinating the highest four tiers by the middle of February. If that timetable is not met, excuses will cut no ice, and experience so far does not indicate that matters are proceeding with the urgent ruthlessness that is required.
Unfortunate bureaucratic obstacles, such as requiring vaccinators to be well versed in diversity, were identified weeks ago. Why were this and other similar obstacles not dealt with at once? Why is there not vaccination seven days a week and up to 24 hours a day? That would not require vaccinators to work seven days a week; there is such a thing as flexible working. There is a race between the virus and the vaccine. The victims include our schoolchildren and their life chances, our economy, those stuck in cramped urban homes and those suffering from cancer and other health conditions, so we must have a more rapid rollout.
The health department’s plan is too slow and centralised. Why did it not start injecting the AstraZeneca vaccine until Monday? Every day matters. We need to bring in the private sector, private doctors and hospitals, and of course private pharmacies, as many have said. These people, who run small businesses, will work day and night and together can deliver millions of doses. They can also charge; many people will be prepared to pay for a dose without affecting the NHS rollout. AstraZeneca has indicated that it could gear up supply. We need to bring in tens of thousands of Army members, some to administer jabs and others to organise them.
We need more action and less self-congratulation. I hope that my noble friend the Minister realises the seriousness of this situation.
Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb (GP) [V]
My Lords, once again I congratulate Adam Wagner, the human rights barrister, on analysing and explaining all these coronavirus regulations. At the moment, he is perhaps the only person in the country who can make sense of this variety of regulations; he is doing a huge public service.
The tier system was meant to clear things up. It did at first, but now the situation is even more complicated. It is like a jigsaw puzzle but, however much we like jigsaw puzzles, I think we would probably prefer our facts clear and sharp. These regulations affect the life and liberty of every person in the UK; we really need to understand them properly. So do the police, who have to implement them. Instead of being presented with rules that are clear and obvious, we are being presented with a mess of snakes that we cannot untangle. It would be much more coherent if each new piece of legislation, instead of amending previous legislation, simply revoked all the regulations and introduced new ones. That would improve things because, instead of gathering up dozens of snippets and trying to omit or insert bits and bobs all over the place, we would just be able to read it very simply.
I have a particular question for the Minister. I had an email today from a Green Party city councillor in Lancaster, Tim Dant, who had had serious complaints from two local residents about the Government’s U-turn on the Pfizer vaccination programme. Both concerned people in their 80s who had the first dose of the vaccine and were going to have the second one but their appointment was cancelled. Both pointed out that the process of setting up and then cancelling must have been an expensive waste of precious resources, and they are now frustrated and confused about how vulnerable they are to being infected by Covid. Could the Minister please explain that to me?
Lord Bilimoria (CB) [V]
My Lords, it is absolutely essential that we put the health of our citizens first. The economic impact of the new restrictions is significant. We have to ensure that firms have the cash flow to make it through and that they have a clear line of sight that the support will continue, including the furlough scheme possibly being extended until June. I can say as president of the CBI that British business stands ready to play its full part in the vaccine rollout, increasing massive rapid testing and acting flexibly to support employees, particularly with regard to their mental health.
The vaccines Minister, Nadhim Zahawi, said that 99% of deaths could be stopped by vaccinating the top nine priority groups laid down by the JCVI. The Government have said that there is no shortage of glass vials, for example, and AstraZeneca and Pfizer have said that they can supply vaccines fast enough. The Government have set the target of 13.9 million people to be vaccinated by 15 February, yet the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change recently issued a report saying that the UK could have access to 3 million doses a week by the end of January, 4 million a week by the end of February and 5 million a week by the end of March, so it must have the ability to distribute those. It should be all hands on deck: hospitals, healthcare facilities, car parks, warehouses, offices, everything, including the Armed Forces, which were brilliant with the Nightingale hospitals, and, as I said earlier, businesses—we are all standing by to help.
I want to ask the Minister about airport testing. Nine months after business and the aviation industry were crying out for testing on arrival and before boarding planes, the Prime Minister has finally admitted this week that measures will be brought in. Tests need to be taken 72 hours before departure, as is done in many other countries. Heathrow’s chief executive, John Holland-Kaye, has said that there should be a common international standard. For the first time, Paris has overtaken Heathrow. Let us act on this quickly now.
Baroness Uddin (Non-Afl) [V]
My Lords, I agree with noble Lords that this is indeed a sombre time, with the highest rate of infection and loss of life and intense pressure on our NHS staff and services. I add my voice to the call for mandatory masking, which must be made freely available. I thank Edmund Yeo for his constant supply of masks, which I have been able to distribute among vulnerable women.
I ask the House’s indulgence to focus today specifically on people of Bangladeshi heritage, who are most excessively affected throughout this pandemic—notwithstanding my respect and concern for all those who have lost their lives or are seriously unwell and facing multiple difficulties as a result of these regulations. Consultant doctor Abdul Mabud Chowdhury was the first GP to lose his life to Covid. His family have continued a commendable campaign for safe practices in the NHS for all staff. Every day, I am notified of friends and neighbours of Bangladeshi heritage struggling with socioeconomic conditions alongside reports of Covid symptoms, self-isolation, hospital admission and, tragically, deaths.
I have spoken repeatedly to the Minister and asked him in this Chamber to explain what he and his department are doing to prevent and mitigate these untold sufferings. Noble Lords will agree that we have made colossal advances in data collection and analysis, or the vaccine simply would not have been developed so rapidly. Given that we have known for many months about the disproportionate impact on people of Bangladeshi heritage, has data has been collected on the numbers of reported Covid infections, particularly with the new variations? How many children are affected and what are their ages? How many are men and how many women, and what are their ages? What underlying conditions do they have? How many are self-isolating and how many infections and deaths are there within specific groups? I am deeply concerned not to see any adequate targeted communications under these extenuating circumstances. Will the Minister undertake to share with me and other noble Lords the Government’s strategy and implementation plan to address these issues as a matter of the gravest urgency?
Lord Craig of Radley (CB) [V]
My Lords, I believe that these measures are necessary. I welcome the fulsome support of opposition parties. The weeks ahead are going to be punctuated by further bouts of depressing news. The more that individuals stick to the guidance and instructions, the better. However, as more and more individuals are vaccinated, as I was nearly four weeks ago, there will be growing interest in how the lockdown rules will be changed or relaxed. The Government have made clear and, indeed, trumpeted the importance of vaccination as the route out of lockdown and the damage being done to the economy and society.
It will soon be essential to announce the relaxation of policy. It will presumably lie somewhere between the two extremes—continuing lockdown for all, including those vaccinated, and permitting those who have been vaccinated to return to normal life—but decisions about when and which parts of the economy and education should be opened up will be complex. This must not be a matter for last-minute announcement and muddle. The need for government guidance is already clear; it needs addressing and announcing now, or as soon as data is available, and, I hope, with an agreed approach by all devolved Administrations. It is for the Government to be seen for once to be on the front foot, ahead of the game, to let us all know—and those vaccinated in particular—when we can play our “get out of jail” card for freedom.
Lord Cormack (Con) [V]
My Lords, I am delighted to follow the noble and gallant Lord, Lord Craig, and I do so with a degree of envy: I long to have my vaccine so that I can come back and be in the Chamber with those who are there now. I spent most of the time when we sat from July almost until Christmas in the Chamber and I miss it. I disagree, gently but firmly, with my noble friends Lord Randall and Lady Wheatcroft: we need an effective Parliament, and that means we need Members in the Chamber. It is essential. Even as we have a hybrid Parliament, which is only a one-dimensional Parliament, there must be Members in the Chamber.
These are dark and difficult times for the House, but I also want to refer to something else. Before he said Prayers today, the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Rochester said that our thoughts were with those of our parliamentary colleagues in Washington at the moment. Indeed they should be, and we have a wonderful opportunity to demonstrate how democracy really can work, by working together across party. I make an appeal through my noble friend the Minister—and I beg him to pass this on to the Prime Minister—to bring the leader of the Opposition on board. I am not advocating a national Government, much as I would personally like one, but I believe that the leader of the Opposition, who has demonstrated real statesmanship, should be at the table. There should be daily meetings between him and the Prime Minister, and he should be involved in committees such as COBRA. We are fighting this as a society, and it must be a united society—a united nation—and this would do much to achieve that.
Baroness Fox of Buckley (Non-Afl)
My Lords, when vaccines are developed, they go through clinical trials to check on efficacy and any damaging side-effects. What would happen if the same process were applied to lockdowns and other draconian measures? We would have to ask: do they work? Do the serious side-effects outweigh the alleged benefits of keeping Covid at bay? The Government will not be able to answer this, because they have not even asked the questions. Indeed, when one asks such questions, one is often met with a sneer—“Oh, you are one of those lockdown sceptics”—but despite the tragic numbers dying and our being told that the Government have no choice, I do not think that any of us should be cowed into fatalistically accepting the efficacy or morality of this perpetual lockdown strategy. There are always other options.
Scepticism is branded dangerous and irresponsible. Some are even lobbying big tech to censor sceptical questioning, demonised as “misinformation”. If this Government declare that it is illegal to leave one’s home without a reasonable excuse and accumulate a colossal amount of state power, with unintended but devastating collateral damage inflicted on society, it would be irresponsible not to ask sceptical questions. Remember that scepticism, historically, is what has driven scientific progress, medical breakthroughs and radical change. We are urged to listen to medical experts, so let me quote CMO Chris Whitty, speaking at a parliamentary committee last month:
“At a certain point, society, through political leaders, elected Ministers and Parliament, will say that this level of risk is a level of risk that we think it is appropriate to tolerate”.
This is a key debate, moving forward, and I urge the Government to avoid fear-mongering or boosterism, but to have the courage to admit what they know and what they do not know, and make sure they have the means to be held to account. Will the Minister tell us precisely what measure is being used to decide when freedoms will be restored? How can the public know what success looks like if the goalposts change? Is it cases, hospital admissions, deaths, how we deal with so many catching Covid in hospitals, or the numbers of vaccines? What is it that gives us that hope, really?
There seem to be some irrational aspects to this, with 80 year-olds I know demoralised and confused that they have not received even a letter, never mind a jab, and others demoralised that they have not had the second jab. Finally, if the Government can tear up the rulebook on civil liberties, surely they can tear up the rulebook on risk-adverse regulations when it comes to vaccines. It is the only hope. Be brave.
Baroness Masham of Ilton (CB) [V]
My Lords, the four-tier regulations have been overtaken by the England-wide lockdown. Suddenly, from being in tier 2, we in North Yorkshire found ourselves in lockdown, with so many difficulties and insecurities to cope with. With the devastating news yesterday that 1,000 people died in 24 hours, people are realising how serious the problem has become.
The hope is that vaccination will get on top of this disastrous epidemic. The instructions given when having the Pfizer vaccine are clear:
“You will receive two injections, given 21 days apart. Protection against Covid-19 disease may not be effective until at least seven days after the second dose.”
The Government are now saying that the injections should be given three months apart. This is against the recommendations of the manufacturers and the World Health Organization. Vulnerable elderly people are concerned and confused. What a muddle. Also, many trained medical people have offered to give injections but have been put off by the ridiculous, bureaucratic forms they are asked to sign.
I congratulate the laboratory workers, who are often forgotten, on working so hard in a short time to produce these vaccines, and thank them for doing so. So many people are working, and the volunteers should also be congratulated.
Baroness Altmann (Con) [V]
My Lords, yet again we are rubber-stamping regulations imposing draconian restrictions aiming to protect the country in a war that has already caused countless casualties. Despite ever stricter lockdowns, the virus has accelerated. People are not objects that can be put in a box and locked away. Where is the impact assessment on human lives, or a matrix that demonstrates how each element works? Why are we not pulling out all the stops to win this race? Test and trace is not doing the trick. Winter pressures and an ageing population are against us, and serious staff shortages have reduced NHS capacity below normal winter levels, with Nightingales underused. Can my noble friend explain precisely how the Government are removing bureaucratic delays preventing retired NHS staff returning?
It is almost beyond belief that we do not require a negative Covid test before UK entry. The only way forward seems to be vaccination. We keep hearing about delays in training, approvals or distribution logistics, but Israel has managed to get moving much faster than us. Its medical and military operations have left the UK and EU countries lagging behind.
My mother is 88, with COPD, heart problems and other risk factors, but has not been called. All military medical support units, pharmacies, dental staff, first aiders and any others trained in administering injections must be fully mobilised. Also, the virus does not stop spreading at night, so where are the plans for 24/7 vaccinations? Could we consider vaccinating all care home residents through the night in those homes and free up daytime hours for other vulnerable individuals? Medical staff, care home staff and teachers should all be receiving vaccines. We must win this war. We cannot keep halting cancer treatments and other urgent treatments and throwing money at people and businesses that are paralysed by this virus. We have a vaccine, and nothing is more important than doing everything possible to deliver it.
Lord Walney (Non-Afl)
My Lords, many noble Lords have already raised concerns and suggestions about the vaccine roll-out. I invite the Minister, when summing up, to cheer us all up, because we have seen the extraordinary capacity of this country to be world-beating in becoming the first country able to vaccinate people. What are the Government doing to understand where the blockages are? Has he been able to pinpoint what Israel has been doing successfully, with the extraordinary achievements in that country? What can the Government bring in short order to this situation? They have shown that they can act quickly. What will change in the coming weeks to speed this up?
My second question is about the Government’s approach to lockdown once the goal of vaccinating the four most vulnerable groups has been reached, a target set for the middle of February. Hopefully, once that has happened, the pressure on the NHS will be very quickly lessened, because far fewer of those getting the virus will require the same level of hospital treatment. Surely then the R number could remain very high—far above one—yet the pressure be alleviated. Are the Government working on the basis that at that point they will relax these restrictions, start to deal with the huge damage that has been caused by the lockdown, and bring back the benefit of being able to move around freely again?
Lord McColl of Dulwich (Con) [V]
My Lords, I fully support these regulations to ensure that appropriate steps are taken in the right place to limit the spread of the virus. The places that need especial care are hospitals, particularly intensive care units. What progress has been made to reduce the number of their staff who are very vulnerable to the virus, such as those with type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and other conditions that are caused by or aggravated by obesity? This measure is difficult with the present staff shortages, which are worsened by illness. Taking the long-term view with the prospect of future pandemics, how much progress has there been with the Prime Minister’s welcome initiative to reduce obesity in the 67% of the population of this country who are in this particular danger?
Lord Mann (Non-Afl)
There is huge support out there for the lockdown, although everyone I know is asking, as am I, why our borders are open, because one thing is certain: if Donald Trump is allowed in during the lockdown, there will be a significant problem for the Government with public opinion.
Looking at the pace at which they are vaccinating, what is Israel doing right that we are not? Can I suggest some reasons to the Minister? My own GP service today is vaccinating for flu but is not allowed to vaccinate for Covid because of new Public Health England rules. I suggest that this is the same reason why pharmacies are not being allowed to vaccinate. It is not because they cannot, since they are vaccinating for flu at the moment, but because of Public Health England rules relating to Covid. I know a nurse, retired after 30 years, who has been re-recruited this week as an assistant and is allowed to vaccinate for flu, but despite that 30 years is not allowed to vaccinate for Covid because of Public Health England rules. Who will get on top of Public Health England? It strikes me that people keep attacking the Government, but the problem I have is with some of the actions of Public Health England, and this demonstrates that. This overcautious approach is delaying and will delay further.
I end not by talking about what is rightly going on with the prioritising of the most elderly and vulnerable, because that is appropriate. In the next stage, I predict that Public Health England will not allow workplaces to vaccinate but will allow the employer to take on the costs, the hassle and the administration. In an area such as the district I live in, 10,000 could be done in a day if they were done in the large workplaces. Then we would really be getting on top of the problem. Which Minister will take on and sort out the bureaucracy from Public Health England?
The Deputy Speaker (Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall) (Lab)
I call Lord Bhatia. He is not there. I call Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth.
Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth (Con) [V]
My Lords, I thank our NHS and care home staff, who are now in the eye of this storm, for all that they do. I agree with other noble Lords about testing at ports and points of entry. Look at the experiences of Australia and New Zealand. It is extraordinary that we have not done this already. I also agree with the noble Lord, Lord Campbell-Savours, about the wearing of masks. We must err far closer to clamping down on this disease and further away from freedom in this regard, and do so very quickly.
Vaccinations are obviously key to all this, and I agree with others who pointed to the experience of Israel. If there is no shortage of supply, and I would encourage the Minister to make clear that there is not, why are we not making more progress than we are currently seeing? We certainly need to use community pharmacists and we should be welcoming volunteers, not making it more difficult for them with some of the extraordinary red tape in the training and questions about deradicalisation and so on. It is monstrous and makes no sense at all.
I hope that the Minister can provide some clarity, disregard his script and tell us why we are not having night clinics and why we are not working at inoculating every day of every week and using every conceivable site for inoculation now? That is what we must do. The nation is crying out for progress on this joint endeavour, standing ready to help in every conceivable way. The Government really need to step up the programme of vaccination, to do so at pace, and to do so now.
Lord Truscott (Ind Lab) [V]
My Lords, these regulations are, unfortunately, necessary; we are where we are. I wish to make four brief points in the time available.
First, we require a national mobilisation on a wartime footing, as many noble Peers have said, to accelerate the rollout of vaccines. Israel, as previously mentioned by the noble Lord, Lord Bourne, and others, is doing it 10 times faster than us.
Secondly, due to the extreme virulence of the new strain of Covid-19, we need to immediately engage local pharmacies and the independent sector in the vaccine rollout, as many noble Lords have said in this debate.
Thirdly, we need to avoid vaccine nationalism, as witnessed in France, and use any vaccine which is safe and effective. I fear that the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine is simply not effective enough to counter the new strain, especially if restricted to one initial dose.
Fourthly and finally, we should mobilise the Nightingale hospitals but be wary of them being used simply as massive vaccination hubs, which can themselves be a source of infection as large numbers of unvaccinated people travel to and from them. The more vaccination is decentralised and broadened out, the better.
Baroness Brinton (LD) [V]
My Lords, the Minister has outlined the severity of this third wave of coronavirus and, with over 1,000 deaths yesterday, it is now all too evident in large parts of the United Kingdom. But I disagree with him, along with my noble friend Lord Greaves, about whether this is less serious than in March. The signs were all there well before Christmas and once again SAGE, with other medical and scientific experts, as well as politicians of all parties, said “Please lock down” before Christmas. Regretfully, once again, our Prime Minister delayed and, despite our wonderful clinicians and support staff, we now see the overwhelming of our NHS in London and the south of the country, with other regions following a few short weeks behind. Today, the Health Service Journal reports that hospitals in the Midlands are likely to be overwhelmed within two weeks. We can see the numbers going up in hospitals all over the country.
All eyes are now on the Government, as vaccines begin to be rolled out. With a more transmissible variant spreading across the country, the infection rate spiralling and hospitals under severe pressure, the Government must use this new lockdown to provide time to roll out vaccine support for those who need it, and to build trust with the public to control the virus, so that we can have a realistic route map back to safety and certainty for the future.
As a nation, we have never sought to vaccinate so many people in such a short time. To ask hospitals, GPs and other health trusts to manage this while they simultaneously try to prevent the NHS being overwhelmed is, frankly, extraordinary and worrying in equal measure, especially in light of the difficulties with barriers to using people such as retired doctors and nurses as vaccinators. Can the Minister say how other volunteers and the military will be used to get to every small town and village in the country to deliver the vaccine 24/7—and I do mean 24/7? If we need to get to 2 million a week before the end of January, and to 30 million to 40 million by Easter, it has to be at that level. It must be available at the most local level and preferably on every high street, whether in a surgery, pharmacy, village or town hall or sports stadium.
So far, all the evidence points to an urban and suburban process, managed by the NHS for the territory it knows, that assumes people have access to private transport. There are reports of people in Cornwall being asked to travel to Bristol for a vaccine, of hundreds of over-80s queueing for hours in the wet and cold to get into surgeries that are too small, and of short-notice delivery cancellations creating chaos and work for hard-pressed NHS staff.
I heard today of a vaccine hub where cars filled with over-80s queued for about 40 minutes beyond the appointment time because there was no space in the car park. Many of the elderly were too frail to even walk from the car park into the centre. Lots of elderly people who seemed cold were shuffling across the car park and then across a road to get into the hub. The wi-fi was down, so registration had to be done on paper, and it was very difficult to socially distance. That all-important 15-minute period of recovery time to check for adverse reaction was in a marquee where the heaters had broken down. The NHS workers and volunteers were all extremely helpful in doing all they could to improve the situation, but the issue was the logistics, including not understanding that elderly people need extra support before and after—as well as when—they receive their injection.
Why is the logistical expertise of the military not being used to its full extent? They demonstrated with the building of the Nightingale hospitals, and then with mass testing in Liverpool, that their expertise is second to none. We need this organisational burden removed from the NHS. Why has Public Health England announced that there will be no deliveries of vaccines on a Sunday? That immediately reduces the capability, when we have plenty of volunteers available to deliver the vaccine into arms. Why are only large pharmacies being used, rather than providing volunteer support to enable them to manage vaccination in small rural areas and villages?
The Minister rightly welcomes the approval of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine as a game-changer but, as my noble friend Lord Scriven has pointed out, the virus will be with us for a long time. Even yesterday, the Prime Minister was still talking about being out of this by the spring. The Government’s communications with the public have been woeful—always trying to give us a bit of good news, which people inevitably cling to when they are worried. Alternatively, the Government have made decisions too late, making people cross and confused, as with the announcement of this lockdown, which once again meant frustration and further exposure to the new variant virus for children, school staff and their families.
We know from epidemiologists that it is likely that we will have future variants and outbreaks, whether small or large, whether here or abroad, for a long time. We must continue to have a full test, trace and isolate system available to respond to this—preferably locally based, as we know that local trace experts and isolation support are much more effective than call centres. Our own data over the last nine months has shown that.
Countries that have implemented successful test, trace and isolate systems have seen fewer cases and far fewer deaths, and built the trust needed to encourage a culture of voluntary compliance with the rules. An isolation policy will work only with effective long-term local test and trace systems, which have to continue to be in place. Yet the Government are silent on how they are to be used, not just during lockdown but after it. Even after many millions of people have received their vaccine, it will still be necessary to keep infection numbers low if we are to lift restrictions successfully and return to normal life. Can the Minister confirm what plans there are to maintain test, trace and isolate for the longer term, so that we do not repeat the problems of the last 10 months? Will the Government look at paying full wages to those on lower incomes who are self-isolating, to help them manage and not leave home?
This morning, I asked the Lord Privy Seal if she could help with the problems faced by care homes, now that insurance for designated Covid settings is almost impossible to get. Without indemnity cover, they cannot take Covid patients; she referred me back to the noble Lord the Minister. NHS Providers is begging the Treasury to help, as hospital beds need to be freed up, but the Treasury is refusing. Please can the Minister take this up with the Chancellor as a matter of extreme urgency to help with this problem, which is not of the care homes’ own making, and which is now blocking beds in hospitals at exactly the time when they need them released at a time of national crisis? Please will he keep me up to date with progress?
On these Benches, we believe that people want to do all they can to bring Covid-19 under control to keep those who they know and love and our communities safe. I ask the Minister: will decisions, messaging and communicating with the public be more honest, timely and realistic? The vast majority of people want to do the right thing. We all need to work together in this national crisis, and together come out of this third national lockdown back into a safe and secure future, where the safety net is in place in case there are future outbreaks.
Baroness Thornton (Lab)
So, here we are. If the country is weary, I suspect parliamentarians are too. I am trying to work out how many regulations we have done in the last 10 months; perhaps somebody somewhere might be able to tell us. We have four regulations of increasing relevance before us today; all are post implementation. I declare my interest as the non-executive director of a foundation hospital in London.
We on these Benches will support the regulations. We do so while recognising the devastating impact that restrictions will have on our economy, our way of life, our mental health and the well-being of everybody. If we are to restore freedoms for the future and save lives, we all have to behave as if we are infected. I had some sympathy with the noble Lord, Lord Berkeley, when he talked about that because this virus is out of control.
As before, the Government are reacting later than we would have liked. However, unlike before, we now have the vaccines. The Prime Minister did not mention test and trace in his Statement. I would like to know whether this, which was a game-changer for us in the summer, features in the plans for the next six or seven weeks and thereafter. My noble friends Lord Winston and Lord Reid asked this question, as did the noble Baroness, Lady Jolly, and the noble Lord, Lord Mann.
We can only be devastated by the prospect of weeks and weeks—perhaps longer—of people in isolation feeling anxious and lonely. I think that it will be worse this time. I note that the flow of food and gifts to the front line in our hospitals seems slower in appearing this time than in the spring, when the need is actually greater. Our front-line staff are more exhausted and overwhelmed than they were in the spring, as my noble friend Lord Hunt and the noble Lord, Lord Liddle, said.
We can and must rejoice at every care home staff member and resident vaccinated and every older person made safe. We need to focus on getting our unpaid carers vaccinated. I very much welcome the fact that they are now included as priority 6, but there needs to be some discussion about the implementation of that particular priority. We should rejoice when our paid social carers are vaccinated. We have to get clinical NHS workers, auxiliary staff and teaching staff vaccinated as soon as possible. Only when we know they are safe can we breathe more easily.
In the months following the long lockdown last year, 19.6 million prescriptions for antidepressants were issued—a 4% increase on the same period the year before—to more than 6 million people in England, which is the highest number on record. If we are to support lockdown, we need assurances that mental health services will be fully resourced, will stay open and respond to peoples’ needs throughout the lockdown. Can the Minister clarify the conclusion about the amount of funding for mental health created by his right honourable friend the Prime Minister?
The lockdown will have a huge impact on the well-being of our children. The plan to get children safely back to school is a priority, which is why I believe that it is a priority to vaccinate teachers and school staff as soon as we are able. There are thousands of children out of school in overcrowded, cramped accommodation who are unable to access learning properly from home. There are thousands who still do not have access to technology, as my noble friend Lady Massey said. We need to recognise that Covid has exaggerated the inequalities in our society and that we do not want to return to business as usual as this year moves on. We know that there are children at risk of abuse and violence. Many children face the prospect of being locked in their homes with parents who abuse drink and drugs.
Over 62,000 cases were reported in England yesterday —one in 50 have the virus. We know that it is one in 30 of us here in London. There were 3,300 hospitalisations yesterday and it is going up in every region. There were 2,645 people on ventilators and, tragically, over 1,000 died. According to an official briefing given to the capital’s most senior doctors this afternoon, London’s hospitals are less than two weeks from being overwhelmed by Covid in the best-case scenario.
This is a national emergency. The national lockdown is necessary. As my noble friend Lord Foulkes put it —possibly more robustly than I am doing—we should have locked down sooner. The Commons voted this lockdown through on Twelfth Night, yet in the run-up to Christmas, the alarm bells should have been ringing. The Secretary of State reported on the new strain on 14 December. The Prime Minister learned of the rapid spread of the new variant on 18 December. On 21 December, the Chief Scientific Adviser, Sir Patrick Vallance, said that the new strain was everywhere and would rise after the inevitable mixing at Christmas. SAGE met on 22 December and concluded:
“It is highly unlikely that measures with stringency and adherence in line with the measures in England in November … would be sufficient to maintain R below 1 in the presence of the new variant.”
Here we are, two weeks later, with 500,000 infections and 33,000 hospitalisations since 22 December. Why does the Prime Minister, with all the scientific expertise at his disposal and all the power to make a difference, always seem to be the last to grasp what needs to happen? He has not been short of data. He has been short of judgment and, yet again, we are all paying the price.
We will ultimately be released from these restrictions through vaccination. I pay tribute to everyone involved in helping to distribute and administer the 1.3 million vaccine doses so far. It is a great achievement but, as many noble Lords have said, we need to go further and faster if the Prime Minister’s promise that almost 14 million people will be offered the vaccine by mid-February—that is 2 million doses a week—is to be reached. The many solutions offered by noble Lords today need to be taken on board and considered. I did not know that there was the idea that vaccines would not be delivered on a Sunday. How ridiculous is that? I hope the noble Lord will clarify that that is not the case.
Logistics are key to this. From the front line, a doctor’s surgery in the south of England says:
“My group of practices was initially told we would get our first delivery on 28th December. Then 4th Jan. Then 11th Jan. Now we are ‘6th wave’ and it will be 13th, 14th or 15th Jan. We are raring to go, but have no vaccines. WHY?”
In Waverley—in Jeremy Hunt’s constituency—a massive mess-up with the vaccine, which had been outsourced to a company called Procare, meant that 1,100 vaccine appointments were cancelled because there was a manufacturing error and they did not have the vaccine to administer. Of course there will be teething problems, but anecdotal evidence from the debate today suggests that those teething problems are actually quite significant.
How many of the ordered doses have been manufactured? How many have been delivered to the NHS? How many batches are awaiting clearance from the MHRA regulatory clearing process? It would be fantastic to vaccinate 2 million people a week, but we should not limit our ambitions. As other noble Lords have said, we need to scale up to three, five, six million jabs over the next weeks and months.
As my honourable friend Jonathan Ashworth said yesterday, the rule in politics is that it is always better to underpromise and overdeliver, which is certainly a lesson that the Prime Minister needs to learn. Let us hope that 2 million doses is an underpromise and that the Government aim to overdeliver, because would that not be great? Our big target must be to vaccinate more, particularly among NHS staff. Do we have a clear date by which NHS on the front line will receive the vaccine? They need to know. Not only are they exhausted, but it is a matter of morale. They deserve to know when they will be vaccinated.
We support this lockdown today because we know that we have to reduce transmission. That is why we are asking people to stay at home. Not everybody can work from home: there are 10 million key workers in the United Kingdom, of whom only 14% can work from home. Many are low paid and often have to use public transport to get to work in jobs that, by necessity, involve greater social mixing, and they are exposed to risk. Their workplaces need to remain Covid-secure and they need income support if they have to stay at home.
The British public have done so much over the last year and have made great sacrifices. We are a great country, and our people can and will rise to this occasion. All anyone asks is that the Government do the right thing at the right time: make workplaces Covid-secure; vaccinate health workers as soon as possible; introduce decent sick pay and support to isolate; and roll out a mass vaccination programme like we have never seen before. This is a race against time. We will support this lockdown today.
Lord Bethell (Con)
My Lords, we are debating today the 59th regulation in a restriction round—quite a colossal number. They are unfortunate and regrettable, but they are necessary. This Government are committed to making them the best they can be, and I am extremely grateful to noble Lords for their recommendations and suggestions on the restrictions. Let me trot at pace through a few of the recommendations from noble Lords.
Noble Lords are entirely right that money to isolate is an incredibly important element of the effectiveness of isolation. I reassure noble Lords that we are in active dialogue with 314 local authorities to figure out how to make the isolation payments more effective and mobilise charities’ and local authorities’ support for those who need it.
A number of noble Lords brought up travel restrictions. I completely agree with the noble Lords, Lord Winston and Lord Reid, that international travel has been a source of infection for this country in the first and second waves, and continues to be. The prospect of a South African variant that is even more transmissible than the Kent variant puts a spotlight on that threat of infection. That is why we are working on processing new measures, which will be introduced shortly, for pre-flight testing for travellers to Britain, and we look forward to those being announced shortly.
In the meantime, I have to break it to the noble Baroness, Lady Jolly, that test-to-release, which she mentioned, was introduced on 15 December. I get a weekly update on it, and I can reassure her that the evidence to date suggests that the isolation of travellers on test-to-release is much more effective using the testing mechanism than it was on the isolation mechanism. We will probe those figures very carefully, but I am optimistic that that scheme has worked well.
My noble friend Lord Lancaster mentioned the tiering system. It is a grim prospect, but I warn noble Lords that we are unlikely to spring out of this national lockdown straight into the sunny uplands, and a new tiering system will likely be necessary. The right honourable Secretary of State for the Home Office spoke this morning on the radio about the kinds of penalties that she has instructed the police to apply. I reassure the noble Lord, Lord Berkeley, that our approach to the lockdown is effective and implementing all the regulations necessary.
To my noble friend Lady Altmann and to the noble Lord, Lord Foulkes, and others who asked about test and trace, may I just be crystal clear? I sometimes find I am repeating myself on this matter. In the last week of the year, test and trace identified 450,000 people who had Covid and isolated another 350,000 of their contacts. That is an absolutely incredible achievement. No other country has a scheme like it, and it has become repetitive and inaccurate to suggest that it is not making any impact.
The noble Baroness, Lady Thornton, and others asked where community testing might be going. Of course, during a lockdown, the community testing component is not necessary, but I reassure the noble Lord, Lord McNally, and others that we are very committed to it. We are in dialogue with councils at all levels about how they might use community testing, and with schools about once the lockdown is lifted.
A number of noble Lords looked beyond this lockdown to the future. The noble Baronesses, Lady Finlay and Lady Bennett, asked about ventilation and workspaces. That is exactly where our heads are at the moment; we are trying to understand and think through the implications of this pandemic. The reality is that there will be no quick transition. We shall have to think about workplace hygiene. My noble friend Lady Wheatcroft asked how workspaces will have to be reimagined. I very much welcome the suggestions, evidence and recommendations of noble Lords in this area; it is something that both BEIS and DHSC are looking at very closely, and I look forward to updating the House on that.
A number of noble Lords’ questions and comments were about the vaccines, not the regulations. Since that is the hot subject, let me address it directly. I reassure noble Lords that, whatever they may read in the papers about problems and blockages, the rollout of the vaccines is being done at pace. It includes the Army; volunteers are being mobilised, GPs and pharmacies are being recruited and we will hit the numbers that the Prime Minister has committed to. The noble Baroness, Lady Masham, rightly thanked factory workers and others involved in the process of manufacturing and logistical support in supplying these vaccines. It is an incredible process to put together 30 million or 40 million vaccines before the spring at pace in highly delicate, secure and hygienic environments, and to get them to the front line in a way that is temperature-controlled and fulfils the commitment to the MHRA.
Patient safety must be our priority. That is why it is done in a thoughtful fashion. While we are very grateful to BrewDog and others for innovative ideas for how to roll out the vaccine—through the middle of the night and what have you—we must get it right. You cannot jab someone’s arm and inject them with a potent vaccine without being absolutely sure that it is the right person in the right place, the right vaccine and in the right conditions. Getting all those stars aligned requires an enormous logistical process, and we are absolutely determined to get it right. We also must have availability of vaccine. I thank Pfizer and AstraZeneca for the enormous lengths that they have gone to to provide millions of doses of vaccines, but it takes time to deliver. At the moment, it is not the NHS that is the limiting factor but the provision of the vaccines.
To achieve that provision, we will deliver through hospitals, GPs, pharmacies and mass centres. Today, we have 107 hospital sites online, and there will be a further 100 by the end of the week; there are 595 GP-led sites, and there will be a further 180 by the end of the week. The mass centres will be open shortly, and they will have a huge impact on the rollout.
Obviously, the big vaccination centres have hugely more impact than small pharmacies and rural doctors, but that is not to say that those are not being prioritised as well. However, I ask for noble Lords’ consideration: the practical matter of getting a vaccine that has to be temperature controlled and comes in large packs of sometimes up to 1,000 doses to small rural pharmacies, community pharmacies and GP practices in the far-flung parts of Britain is an enormous logistical exercise—we have to balance scale and volume with breadth and the niche interest. I think we are getting it right; we have not forgotten anyone, but there will need to be a little bit of time before we can reach everyone.
A number of noble Lords have talked about cancelled trips to the GPs; I completely recognise and acknowledge those stories. It is true that, sometimes, we have to line people up for appointments, and the delivery of the vaccines, which is an extremely delicate task, has not always proved to be as reliable as we might have hoped. We are seeking to iron that out, and I ask for the forgiveness and forbearance of any pensioners or patients who have had to wait for their vaccine. I reassure noble Lords that, if there are cancelled appointments, it is only because we are trying to make maximum use of the stock of vaccines that we have at the moment.
On the volunteer scheme, I completely and utterly agree with all noble Lords who are frustrated and irritated by the large amount of bureaucracy that this has involved. As the noble Baroness, Lady Watkins, rightly pointed out, we have stamped on some of it, but there is more to do, and I think that there is a lesson to be learned about how the NHS and British Government treat volunteers, and we are making a lot of progress on that already.
To my noble friend Lady Neville-Rolfe and others who asked whether we are using the Army, I say yes we are using the Army.
On dentists, I reassure my noble friend Lord Balfe that all those with direct patient care are prioritised for the vaccine, whether they are dentists or dentists’ assistants.
I do not recognise so well the stories of the noble Baroness, Lady Brinton, about logistical problems, with car parks and freezing GP surgeries. I am on a vibrant WhatsApp group with MPs, and I am deluged with hundreds and hundreds of positive stories of quick, polite and accessible service. I would be very grateful if the noble Baroness would write to me with her anecdote; I would be glad to follow it up.
On therapeutics, I am grateful to my noble friend Lord Moynihan for his quite accurate remarks on the importance not of vaccines but of the therapeutics that can assist in recovery. We are grateful to RECOVERY and REMAP, the two big clinical trial schemes that have proved to be a massive global success—and, without giving the game away, I am hopeful for more good news from that direction shortly.
I remind my noble friend Lord Cormack that, although he may get his vaccine soon, immunity does not necessarily mean sterility. While he himself may take the vaccine and, therefore, be protected from the impact of Covid, he may be the carrier of the virus. To those, like myself and my noble friend Lady Penn, who are not candidates for the priority list for the vaccine, we would be extremely wary of anyone who has had the vaccine but is still a carrier of the virus. That is a really important policy point that we will have to wrestle with in months ahead.
I reassure the noble Lord, Lord Truscott, that the Oxford vaccine is extremely good, and just as good as all the others.
Lastly, on the NHS, I completely agree with all those noble Lords who pointed out that the second, or potentially the third, time round is tougher for the NHS: there are mental health issues and capacity issues, and there is the sheer miserableness of being back on the front line again. I live opposite University College London Hospital; the sound of the ambulances arriving through the night wakes me all the time. It used to be once or twice a night, but it has been a dozen times a night for the last month, which is a sombre reminder for me, personally, of the front-line experience of those who work in the NHS. I profoundly thank all those who are spending a tough winter looking after those with Covid and other conditions. We are working hard to get volunteers to support the front line, but I acknowledge that that has been slower than perhaps expected. Some £15 million has been allocated for mental health support for those in the NHS, but more can and should be done, and we are consistently working on it.
By way of winding up, I say that these restrictions are extremely regrettable. The noble Baroness, Lady Fox, demonstrates her anger and frustration; I do not really agree with much of what she says, but the emotional frustration she shares is well expressed, I think. However, I cannot hide from the Chamber that the new variants that have developed in Kent, South Africa and elsewhere present a tough challenge for all of us. We have learned an enormous amount about how to contain the virus and we have a huge amount of hope from the vaccine, but we have a long way to go.
Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (All Tiers) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2020
(3 years, 11 months ago)
Lords ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Lord Bethell
That the Regulations laid before the House on 14 December 2020 be approved.
Relevant document:40th Report from the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee
Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (All Tiers) (England) (Amendment) (No. 4) Regulations 2020
(3 years, 11 months ago)
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Lord Bethell
That the Regulations laid before the House on 30 December 2020 be approved.
Relevant document: 40th Report from the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee. Instrument not yet reported by the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments.
Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (No. 3) and (All Tiers) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2021
(3 years, 11 months ago)
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Lord Bethell
That the Regulations laid before the House on 5 January be approved.
Instrument not yet reported by the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments.
Covid-19: Educational Settings
(3 years, 11 months ago)
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Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Lab) [V]
My Lords, we are here today because of the latest in a long line of government U-turns on education, often just days after a denial that any such change of policy would happen. As an avid reader of Schools Week, I imagine the Minister will have been somewhat embarrassed by Monday’s edition which, under the headline “The back-to-school debacle: a week of blundering U-turns”, outlined a total of five in the previous six days alone. That will take some beating, although I do not doubt that the Government are up to that challenge.
The Statement is welcome, although it poses a number of questions, the first of which is why there is no plan B for exams ready and waiting. It is hardly a surprise that we find ourselves in this position, and there is an urgent need to avoid a repeat of the intolerable situation in which so many young people and their parents found themselves last year—a fiasco that dragged on into August. On the replacement for school and college exams, when does the Minister expect that the alternative arrangements will be announced? There is a need for speed to confirm what the alternative arrangements are for allocating final grades; anything other than a short delay cannot be acceptable.
I pay tribute to everyone who has made it possible to keep pupils learning online: school leaders, teachers and support staff, plus of course parents, who are having to cope as best they can with home schooling, often while juggling childcare or employment. It is essential that every pupil who is not in school be able to continue their education, and the Statement says that the Government are “better placed” to deliver online learning than they were last year. That remains to be seen. The Government need to adopt a plan to get every child online and every school enabled to deliver the necessary digital support. Despite the number of laptops already rolled out, Ofqual has said that as many as 1.75 million children still do not have access to a device. Will the DfE be redeploying officials to help identify those children and ensure that their technical support needs are met?
To the surprise of many MPs, the Secretary of State told them yesterday that children who did not have access to digital devices would be able to return to school, irrespective of their vulnerability or their parents having key worker status. Will this not place an intolerable burden on schools and their staff in delivering online lessons, as well as undermining the effect of the lockdown?
When the Prime Minister announced the cancellation of summer GCSE and A-level exams on Monday he did not even mention BTEC students taking exams this week. Once again, these students, who have missed out on lots of core practical teaching this year, are an afterthought for the Government. They have experienced the same kind of disruption as their peers but, because most have more coursework, it would be easier to grade them reliably without exams.
Today I received an email from a BTEC student who made the point that BTECs are studied in schools as well as colleges and that they involve courses that are an alternative to A-levels—something the young student pointedly said the Secretary of State seems to have overlooked. She is right. Her fellow students due to sit A-levels have had their exams cancelled; yet, worryingly, she was given the choice by her school whether to sit her BTEC exam this week. I do not believe the Secretary of State intended that when he said that each school and college could decide. It seems unfair for such an important decision to be offloaded by the school on to their students.
I turn to early years settings, which are being kept open to all children, not just those deemed vulnerable or with parents with key worker status. How can it be deemed unsafe for schools, colleges and universities to remain fully open and yet it is safe, apparently, for early years settings? When asked if he could explain this, Professor Calum Semple, a member of SAGE, said, “No, I can’t … it may be that a political decision has been made here that nurseries are essential. But it’s not a scientific one”. I hope the Minister can throw some light on that. It is another blow to the early years sector after funding support was removed, while the job retention scheme was extended. That vital support should be reinstated as soon as possible.
Finally, the Statement says that regular Covid testing will take place as a means of reopening schools as soon as possible. Will staff be prioritised for vaccination, and is the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation working on a strategy to vaccinate all education staff to keep them safe?
Lord Storey (LD) [V]
My Lords, I thank the Minister for the Statement. The best place for children to learn is in school. It is a tragedy that the virulence of Covid-19 has forced us to close all our schools.
The past six months have seen constant periods of year groups quarantining in school and outbreaks of Covid forcing schools to close. There have been very few weeks when a whole school has been present. The effect on children’s learning, particularly those from disadvantaged circumstances, has been devastating.
School leaders, teachers and sports staff have been under enormous pressure. They have had to respond to every new demand and every new change. At times, they have struggled to keep going. It is not an exaggeration to say that, every single day, they have been putting their own lives and welfare at risk. It therefore shocks me, nay saddens me, that given everything that school staff have faced—the U-turns, the opening and closing of schools, exams on, exams off, starting virtual lessons from scratch and testing regimes—we are now threatening them with Ofsted if there are complaints about their virtual learning provision. At times, staff were literally on their knees. At the very least, they deserve our thanks and support.
For the vast majority of children and young people, online learning will support their educational development. It is vulnerable pupils and those on pupil premium who are most at risk. It is laudable that laptops are increasingly being made available for virtual learning at home, but this cannot take place if a family cannot afford the cost of internet provision and the monthly payments.
It is absolutely right that GCSEs and A-levels should be examined by teacher assessment, with presumably some form of moderation. Can the Minister assure us that the guidance to schools will take into account the amount of teaching that has taken place and the difficulties that some pupils will face, particularly, again, vulnerable pupils?
I have a few key questions for the Minister. First, as the noble Lord, Lord Watson, asked, will the Government ensure that school staff are a priority for vaccination? Secondly, will the Government publish quality standards for each online lesson and what the sanctions will be if online lessons require improvement? Thirdly, can the Government guarantee that free school meals will be immediately available to children of parents who lose their jobs? Finally, how will pupils who are excluded from school, either for a fixed term or permanently, cope? Presumably, we should consider reinstating them on the rolls of their existing school. While I am talking about children not in school, can the Minister enlighten us as to why the DfE educational settings status portal has been taken down?
This is a difficult time for schools, for parents and for children and young people, particularly those in difficult circumstances. Might the Government consider a Covid pupil premium for vulnerable children which would last for the lifetime of this Parliament?
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Education and Department for International Trade (Baroness Berridge) (Con)
My Lords, first, I pay tribute to all the staff who are making provision available to pupils in our schools and to those who are remote learning. In response to the questions asked by the noble Lord, Lord Watson, first, in relation to for the timing of the decision to close schools, obviously we made it very clear that that would be a last resort. The pace of the spread of the disease was such that, unfortunately, decisions could not necessarily be made as timeously as we would have liked.
For exams, there cannot be a plan B, because the department is working on a number of contingency plans. The disease means that the circumstances presented can be varied. Those contingency plans form the basis of the consultation that Ofqual will set out. We are aware that parents, children and schools need certainty as soon as we can provide it, but Ofqual must first conduct a valid consultation, which will take weeks rather than months.
In relation to online provision, strengthened guidance and direction has been given to schools on the number of hours per day they need to deliver, their accountability, and their monitoring daily to see whether students are engaging with it. We have spent more than £300 million on digital support for online learning, and we have provided considerable support to schools themselves, linking some schools to other schools that were very good at such online provision, and were using technology before the Covid crisis. We have funded schools’ access to either Microsoft Education or Google Classroom, and more than 2 million accounts have been opened. Schools have been enabled to deliver this, which is why the direction is now in place.
By the end of next week, more than 750 million laptops will have been delivered to schools and children. It is not possible for officials in the department to identify the children who need the laptops: that is a job for schools, which know their pupils better than anybody. And yes, a contextual decision can be made by head teachers: if to access to a device or connectivity are a significant problem for a child, the head teacher and school leadership have the discretion to make a place available to that child. But, with the provision that I have just outlined, we do not expect that to involve thousands of children.
BTECs were not an afterthought. The examination and assessment system for BTECs is a rolling system, and when the decision was made to close schools we were aware that, unlike for GCSEs and A-levels, the content for certain of those assessments had already been taught, and children were about to sit the exams this week. Some of those exams are a pathway into work, so we tolds colleges that we would allow them to decide—in consultation with students, obviously, particularly those who needed that assessment to enter the next occupational stage. So it was right to give colleges that discretion.
The early years sector remains fully open, including maintained nurseries and nursery provision within school premises. The data that I have says that children from 0 to five years old are the lowest of all the cohorts in our population for the presence of Covid, and there is no evidence that these settings are a vector of transmission. Early years settings are educational settings, and we have learned more and more over the years about how essential that stage is for very young children. Also, that is one type of education that cannot be delivered remotely, so it is important that those settings remain open.
As for the points raised by the noble Lord, Lord Storey, the expert group on differential learning will still be in place, and that information will be available to the department and to Ofqual. As I have said, there is no evidence of any more of a risk of the disease within school settings. This is really about limiting the number of contacts; they reflect community transmission, and we had to close schools to limit those contacts.
The noble Lord mentioned vulnerable children and the pupils who need teaching the most—disadvantaged children—and their access to the online curriculum. For them it is essential that there be a means of redress if parents raise questions, although of course we expect them to talk to the class teacher and the head teacher about the provision first. Overwhelmingly, schools are doing a wonderful job, but there are certain situations in which, if provision is not good enough, pupils and their parents should have a means of redress. So Ofsted will conduct monitoring visits, and can make a monitoring visit to any grade of school if there is a basis on which to go in because of the quality of remote education.
We are aware that a number of homes rely on the mobile phone network to access broadband for children to access the education curriculum remotely. I pay tribute to a number of major mobile phone networks, which we have worked with. For parents who rely on this, we have arranged for the data cap to be lifted to a level that enables children to access the amount of remote education specified in the direction—either three, four or five hours. It will be lifted every month, on the basis that that additional limit gives those children access. We cannot guarantee what families then do with it, but that is the formula that we have arranged with many mobile phone companies.
As the Secretary of State made clear, there should be some training and support for teachers for the exams. Whether there is a form of moderation is a matter for the consultation. As I have said, there will be issues to do with differential learning loss.
Free school meals are available. The eligibility criteria have not changed. As many noble Lords know, sometimes there is a lag with the census figures used for funding, but this is flexible. We have recommended that schools make food parcels and local vouchers available, not only because the catering suppliers need their business but because they have purchased food. We do not want food waste as a result of schools being closed. However, if those two means do not work, we will have some form of national voucher scheme, but it is important that caterers that were anticipating delivering school meals should use that food, if at all possible.
Settings for alternative provision are open on the same basis. It depends, as some children are dual-registered with their mainstream school still and are under the responsibility of the local authority. Local authorities also have a responsibility for children’s social care.
I had not noticed anything to do with the portal, but schools guidance, including the remote information I have outlined, is up. There is an edtech part of that site, which I encourage noble Lords to look at, because it is easily accessible and all secondary schools and about half of primaries can order more laptops through that site. In relation to catch-up funding, £650 million is going directly to schools. A portion has already been allocated, but we have delayed the other portions based on needing new census figures to accurately give schools the correct sums.
Finally, 60% of tuition partners in the National Tutoring Programme had the ability to move online. The academic mentors, who were the other limb and are important for disadvantaged students, should also have moved remotely. We are doing what we can, but we recognise that reopening is important for children and we will do that as soon as public health allows. We are aware that catch-up has taken on a different dynamic with, sadly, this second decision to close schools.
The Deputy Speaker (Baroness Barker) (LD)
We now come to the 30 minutes allocated for Back-Bench questions. I ask that questions and answers are brief, so that I can call the maximum number of speakers.
Lord Lexden (Con)
I declare my interest as a former general secretary of the Independent Schools Council and the current president of the Independent Schools Association. Is it not essential that the Government give the highest priority to the vaccination of all those who work with such dedication in our country’s schools? Will they consult closely with the Independent Schools Council in settling the detailed arrangements for this summer’s exams and assessments, recognising the close partnership that the council has with maintained sector colleagues?
Baroness Berridge (Con)
I am grateful to the noble Lord for mentioning vaccination, because I forgot to outline the position. We are following independent experts from the JCVI in distributing the vaccine first to those who are most clinically at risk of hospitalisation and death. The single biggest factor, as I am sure noble Lords are aware, is age. I understand that the Prime Minister might be talking about the progress of the vaccination at this very moment. In relation to reopening schools, the testing being rolled out and consideration of the vaccine are very much on the department’s mind. I am due to meet the Independent Schools Council later this month. From previous discussions, I know that it is closely linked to Ofqual and I am sure it will be involved in responding to the consultation on exams. We recognise the concerns and views being expressed by Members on the priority that should be given to vaccinating school staff.
Lord Bilimoria (CB) [V]
My Lords, the Statement clearly states a binding requirement for schools to provide high-quality remote education, yet just over a month ago the Chancellor said in the spending review that, instead of having 100% gigabyte digital coverage, it will now be only 85%. Does the Minister agree that it is now essential, with remote learning and digital access, to have 100%? Secondly, the Statement says:
“Regular testing will take place of staff and students in school”,
yet it implies that many schools are already testing, and we hear that in one large local authority, they have been told not to proceed with the lateral flow tests because of their inappropriateness and reliability. Could there be clear communication from the Government on the effectiveness, worth and necessity of these rapid mass tests?
Baroness Berridge (Con)
My Lords, school staff did a sterling job of setting up testing facilities in secondary schools over the Christmas holidays. The testing will be used for staff, vulnerable children and children of critical care workers attending school. This is also part of looking forward to the reopening, for which this testing may be needed. We are looking at extending it to primary schools, and there are specific arrangements for specialist settings. I have outlined the arrangements we have made on mobile phone coverage for internet access. Also, if there is a particular problem for children with connectivity, at the moment schools can bring them in as a classified vulnerable child.
The Lord Bishop of Durham [V]
I declare my interests as chair of the National Society. I thank the Minister for the Statement and the commitment on the delivery of laptops and 4G to children. Some schools are reporting over two-thirds attendance today, due to children of key workers and vulnerable children. This runs counter to the policy of children staying at home as much as possible and, as such, is seen by school staff as highly risky to them. I have been in touch with a number of them just this afternoon with regard to this. What proportion of school attendance do Her Majesty’s Government think is needed to reduce schools’ role as a virus vector, and what more can be done to enable more vulnerable children to learn from home where hardware and 4G are the issue?
Baroness Berridge (Con)
My Lords, the position was not that there was any increased risk for staff in these settings; the closure reflected the fact that the levels in the community generally were such that we had to close schools to reduce contacts. On attendance, schools are legally obliged to offer those places, but we have seen situations in which they have worked pragmatically, adopting hub models so that they can arrange for all pupils who should have a place in the school to have one. There is no evidence that staff are more at risk. We do not anticipate a public health issue in allowing all this; the guidance—which was cleared by public health—was given to the sector so that we could allow vulnerable children and children of critical care workers into our schools.
Baroness Garden of Frognal (LD)
My Lords, do the Government have any idea of the vast additional workload on teachers, who are suddenly told that they have to teach online instead of in the classroom? I have a daughter who teaches reception; at the beginning of the week she was told that she would be in the classroom but then there was an about-turn. She now faces hours and hours of creating exciting, virtual lessons for her little four year-olds. I share my noble friend Lord Storey’s outrage that this disastrous Secretary of State has suggested that parents should report concerns about teachers to Ofsted. Our wonderful, hard-pressed teachers are working their socks off to comply with last-minute changes and U-turns and to master a completely new way of teaching. Instead of these threats, should the Government not be giving their undivided support to our great teachers?
Baroness Berridge (Con)
My Lords, I have outlined that we recognise the hard work that teachers, teaching staff and all the ancillary staff have been doing, but there will be a few situations in which the best interests of the pupils who need this education mean that there should be some form of accountability. As I said, that is monitoring visits in our schools. Unfortunately, there are some reports of education still not being delivered. However, the guidance is very clear that schools should have an online platform to deliver education. We have moved to that presumption for remote education, but they can use video lessons. Oak academy has made available, with the department’s funding, nearly 10,000 lessons, including special educational needs lessons. I know of schools that have been using that resource. That is entirely appropriate delivery of remote education. One of the things we have seen is the sharing of much more expertise across our best schools through platforms such as this, which we hope will carry on post pandemic.
Lord Lucas (Con) [V]
My Lords, has the Department for Education established a working group to look at the opportunities for radical improvements to education and assessment that have been opened up by the disruption caused by the pandemic, and the response of the education system to it?
Baroness Berridge (Con)
My Lords, there have been significant changes. As I just outlined, we hope we will carry forward certain changes if they are in the best interests of children. There will be a moment to reflect at some point on all the changes that have happened, on the use of online and where it is and is not appropriate. Our focus is on supporting staff and schools to deliver education and to focus on reopening our schools as soon as public health data allows us to.
Lord Empey (UUP) [V]
My Lords, by the time this pandemic is over, virtually two full academic years will have been severely disrupted. I served on the Select Committee of your Lordships’ House on food, poverty and the environment last year. It was very clear that a lot of very severely disadvantaged children were falling further and further behind. While I welcome my noble friend’s announcement about the provision of laptops and connectivity, she will know that a number of people will simply not have the expertise to use the equipment and there will be parts of the country where the signal will not be available. What provisions will be made for an emergency recovery plan when this pandemic is over to prevent these children completely falling out of society and having their life chances severely affected?
Baroness Berridge (Con)
My Lords, we are keenly aware of the effect that the closure of schools has, particularly on disadvantaged children. We are aware that school is a protective factor for many children and that schools are the second-largest referrers to children’s social care.
On disadvantaged children, the holiday activities fund will be in every local authority area from the Easter holidays. There is still also the winter Covid fund of £170 million until the end of March, which is being given to local authorities. That should cover any needs during February half term. The reasons the noble Lord outlined are why we have directed that schools should be in daily contact with children through the remote education they are delivering, so that any children who are struggling, particularly if they have mental health issues, can be brought into school at the discretion of the school leadership.
The Covid catch-up fund that I have outlined has been moved to remote provision. On getting data, the Renaissance Learning partnership, which is gathering information on lost time in education, is looking at how that can now be used now that we have this interruption to education again. We are keen to get the data as soon as we can.
Baroness Grey-Thompson (CB) [V]
My Lords, I draw your attention to my registered interests. The Government are indeed under great pressure, but we know that many children’s health is adversely affected during the usual six-week summer holiday by lack of access to PE. Home educating our children is not easy and, taking into account current restrictions, physical activity might be inadvertently dropped. The Prime Minister repeatedly talks about the importance of exercise, which is fantastic, but what advice will Her Majesty’s Government give to those schools, children and families moving to online learning to help them know what they need to do to remain active and to think about their long-term health?
Baroness Berridge (Con)
My Lords, the noble Baroness raises a very important point; we are aware that many children are living in accommodation with no outside space and limited indoor space. The guidance we published today is obviously for children in school—the full curriculum—so that will cover PE as well as everything else, and there is now a requirement for remote PE lessons with children. There are also links to the advice from Sport England on activity, and it is important to emphasise for everybody that the guidance enables households to get out once a day for exercise. It is very important that families do that.
Daily contact with children is not just about whether they are engaging with the content; it is also about how they are. As the noble Baroness will be aware—I have seen this with children I know—you can sometimes see from their pallor that they are not getting enough activity. This is something to do with well-being that we expect staff to monitor in the children they teach.
Lord Clement-Jones (LD) [V]
My Lords, Teach First has demonstrated the extent of digital exclusion among schoolchildren during the pandemic, and it is a huge concern. Last year, the Government promised a million laptops and tablets, but then slashed many allocations by 80% in October and, in the end, delivered only 500,000. What faith can we have that the extra 500,000 devices can be delivered urgently now, and are they enough? What guarantee of delivery do students have, and when?
Baroness Berridge (Con)
My Lords, the Government have purchased more than a million laptops. The change in the formula to which I believe the noble Lord refers—the change in the allocations—was to get laptops to children already self-isolating at home, and not to have them delivered to schools by a numbers allocation. That was entirely sensible: those children needed those laptops there and then. As I said, by the end of next week, 750,000 will have been delivered. The portal on the DfE website is open to all secondary schools and more than half of primary schools, and the latest response time I have for schools ordering and it being delivered is four to five days from that order. As I said, by the end of next week, we will have delivered 750,000 laptops. The Department for Education is one of the world’s leading purchasers of laptops. This was an enormous order to manufacturers to give our disadvantaged children access to technology.
Baroness Fox of Buckley (Non-Afl)
My Lords, to quote the Statement:
“I would like to reassure everyone that our schools have not suddenly become unsafe, but limiting the number of people who attend them is essential”
when Covid rates are rising. So schools have not suddenly become unsafe; it is about limiting numbers.
Some rather imaginative, frustrated and demoralised sixth-formers I know have a suggestion for the Minister, which is that they would happily meet in limited numbers if she requisitioned a whole range of buildings lying fallow in this lockdown and mobilised a volunteer army of ex-teachers, heads and any number of members of the community who are willing to help, to allow them to study in hotels, hospitality areas or wherever, so that they could have face-to-face teaching and then be able to do their exams.
No matter how much you get Ofsted involved, you will not improve the quality of online teaching. Ofsted could be all over this House, but it would still notice that it is sterile to have a hybrid form of debate. It is sterile to have online teaching, no matter how much Ofsted inspects it.
I have a quick final question. Early years education remains open, which is fantastic, as far as I am concerned, but why cannot primary school pupils aged four, five, six or seven go to school as well, even in small clusters, in a similar way? Surely the science does not stop at three or four. What basis is there for keeping early years open? I do not want it closed, by the way; that is not the conclusion. In other words, reassure us that it is safe and then find imaginative ways of making it safe for face-to-face teaching to carry on.
Baroness Berridge (Con)
My Lords, it is an ingenious suggestion and I am grateful to the noble Baroness for giving me advance notice of it. However, it is one of those things that is easier said than done. It is very difficult to expect schools to operate, even in small groups, over multiple sites. There are issues with health and safety, et cetera, and the logistics of running provision. You are not just running remote provision but running a school over a number of geographical sites. Although it is not the same as face-to-face teaching, it is easier at that age for them to engage online.
The evidence is that the level of the disease in the early years population group is the lowest of all the age groups. Therefore, the decision for early years provision to stay open was made on that basis. For the reasons that I have outlined, and because we are at the other end of the age spectrum for that age group, one cannot deliver that kind of education remotely at all. In terms of numbers, the decision was made to limit primary schools provision to small clusters of vulnerable children and the children of critical workers. Referring back, FE colleges in particular have made a good job of moving their provision online. Therefore, online provision for that age group is the best option at the moment, and follows public health advice.
Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale (Lab)
My Lords, this is just heartbreaking. The situation could have been foreseen and there have been many opportunities since last summer to put in place preparations to help avoid this national catastrophe for so many children and young people. Extra facilities for online learning could even have been used, giving young people a chance to get out of the home and into organised spaces with adult contact outside the family. There certainly could have been greater provision of equipment and recruitment of extra staff and volunteers since this debate started at the beginning of June.
However, I shall focus on two questions. First, in relation to work with telecoms companies to get data access for families who do not currently have it and, therefore, cannot take part in online learning at home, are the Government working with the devolved Governments to make sure that data access is available across the whole United Kingdom? Secondly, when will the Government guarantee to bring back external assessment? It is that, not internal continuous assessment, which is an equaliser across social divides and gives young people a chance to have a certificate matched not to their background or the school that they came from but directly to their abilities and schooling outcomes.
Baroness Berridge (Con)
My Lords, there have been significant preparations and schools are in a different place than they were when we had to impose the initial shutdown in March. I have outlined in detail the provision of technology et cetera. During the autumn term, when schools needed extra staff in order to keep provision, we implemented a specific Covid staff support fund to enable schools to stay open.
As regards external assessment, we agree. Exams were cancelled as a last resort because we recognise that external assessment is the fairest way for students. I have previously outlined to your Lordships’ House that the consultation will, I hope, include groups such as disadvantaged students. It is one of the bases for proposals for changing to actual grades for university because predicted grades are often lower than students’ achievement. Noble Lords will remember that we all become a number when entering for GCSEs and A-levels. They do not know where you come from, who your parents are or what school you went to. That is important, particularly, for instance, for BAME students. Becoming anonymous when taking an examination is important. Assessment should be based solely on one’s work after taking an examination, which is an incredibly important factor that we must not lose sight of.
As regards the devolved Administrations, I assume that the deal is UK-wide. If it is anything other than that, I will clarify. However, we are grateful to the mobile phone providers, which have stepped up in relation to this matter.
Lord Greaves (LD) [V]
My Lords, now that this summer’s exams have been cancelled, is it not a good opportunity to have a serious look at whether GCSEs have come to the end of their usefulness? They should be abolished, certainly in their present form. That is my first question.
Secondly, the noble Lord, Lord Empey, said that students will have effectively lost two school years—certainly one and a half. The Minister herself said that catch-up had taken on a new dimension. Is it not time that at least background planning seriously started taking place to see whether the present school year of 2020-21 should be reset and started again next September, so that children have the opportunity to catch up by doing the year again? There are major problems at the top and bottom ends, but is it not time that this was seriously looked at as a possibility?
Baroness Berridge (Con)
My Lords, in relation to GCSEs, the majority of children in England transition at 16. That may not be the case in other devolved nations and therefore examinations at 16 are an important part of our system. In relation to catch-up, there are of course plans in the department about how to get the information about how behind children are and how we support schools. The noble Lord’s idea is a novel one but, as he indicates, it has mammoth implications. Thinking about the higher education sector, would that be mandatory or voluntary, and would students really want to do it? Also, it would create a huge bulge into higher education at some point. The idea is novel, but it has mammoth implications for the sector. We need to focus on supporting schools in order to get the best education for those children at the moment, and that is what the department is focused on doing.
Baroness Andrews (Lab) [V]
My Lords, I want to come back to the questions asked by my noble friend Lord Watson of Invergowrie about early years. I was shocked that there seemed to be simply a passing reference to early years in the Statement, yet the Early Years Alliance does not share the confidence of the Government or the Minister. It says that nursery workers
“are being asked to remain on the frontline during the most worrying period of a global pandemic with no PPE, no testing and no access to vaccinations”
and the minimum of funding. The Minister has spoken about the science, but she has not told us whether the science covers the position and the vulnerability of nursery workers themselves in those settings. Secondly, why have the Government ceased to provide funding at this point? The Minister must know that the Coram foundation, in its report in December on the state of early years, predicted massive losses of nursery preschool provision in the coming year. It is a deeply worrying situation. Can she answer those two questions now?
Baroness Berridge (Con)
My Lords, the staff in the early years sector have done a sterling job as well, and over 80% of early years were in their settings before Christmas. These are not unsafe environments. We base our decisions on the public health evidence. These settings were given a very small amount of PPE just in case there was a pupil who was symptomatic on the premises, which was the same for schools. Those staff have access to community testing, of which we have ramped up the capacity. The data on which I rely, in relation to the rates of disease among the workforce, are the ONS data that we have. There was no higher prevalence among education staff than in relation to the general population. The sector is being funded on a per-attendee basis now, but I know that the Secretary of State was meeting the sector today or yesterday and we are in close contact with it regarding its sustainability.
Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (GP) [V]
My Lords, my question is about vaccination. I noted the answer from the Minister earlier regarding the Government currently prioritising the most clinically vulnerable in line with the scientific evidence. But do the Government accept that education staff—both teachers and other staff—should be a very high priority, with other crucial essential workers, very soon in the future? If the Government accept that, are plans being made? We heard earlier from the noble Lord, Lord Bethell, about the complex logistics of arranging vaccinations. Are the Government planning to make arrangements to ensure that, should some extra vaccine become available, it would be possible to have plans in place to vaccinate school and other education staff very quickly?
Baroness Berridge (Con)
My Lords, I have outlined that the priority in relation to vaccination is based on that evidence because of the clinical risk of hospitalisation and mortality for the age of the population. I have outlined that, once we have done that cohort of the population, there will obviously be consultation and discussion with the JCVI, the Department of Health and other sectors in relation to who is then prioritised for the next round of the vaccine. However, I will take the comments and views of Members of your Lordships’ House back to the department and make sure that they are fed through.