Covid-19 Update

Jeffrey M Donaldson Excerpts

Tuesday 23rd June 2020 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I am grateful to my right hon. Friend. This goes to the point that I was trying to make to the House earlier—everybody will want to add something to the great wheelbarrow of measures that we are taking, and at a certain point, there will come a straw that breaks the camel’s back. The problem with cricket, as everybody understands, is that the ball is a natural vector of disease, potentially at any rate. We have been round it many times with our scientific friends. At the moment, we are still working on ways to make cricket more covid-secure, but we cannot change the guidance yet.

[Sir Jeffrey M. Donaldson (Lagan Valley) (DUP)]

May I echo the comments in relation to the victims of the terrible atrocity in Reading? Our thoughts are with their families. I support the Prime Minister’s contention that a four-nation approach is very important. In that context, will he commit to share the rationale, data, scientific evidence and advice upon which these decisions are based with the Northern Ireland Executive and our chief medical officer and chief scientific adviser, to ensure that we continue to take that co-ordinated approach?

[The Prime Minister]

As I informed the House, the chief medical officers of all four home nations were unanimous in their view that the alert level should go down from 4 to 3, and we will continue to work together and share information as we go forward.