Covid-19 Update Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Department of Health and Social Care
Clive Efford
Main Page: Clive Efford (Labour - Eltham and Chislehurst)Department Debates - View all Clive Efford's debates with the Department of Health and Social Care
Covid-19 Update
Clive Efford Excerpts(3 years, 4 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Sajid Javid
I take it from that that my right hon. Friend is pleased with today’s announcements.
Clive Efford (Eltham) (Lab)
Some have suggested that removing all restrictions in the way that the Secretary of State has announced will create factories for new variants in parts of our communities. What advice has he received from experts about the potential for new variants? What contingencies has he planned for containing such an outbreak if one were to occur?
Sajid Javid
The hon. Gentleman will have heard in my statement that no course of action that we take now is without risk, and I think he understands that. There is still a pandemic—as I said, it is not over—so we will of course continue first to monitor for new variants, and to have border restrictions and some test, trace and isolate procedures in place. Those measures, taken together with the success of the vaccine programme, are the best answer to his question.