Covid-19 Vaccine Roll-out

Debate between Matt Hancock and Kate Osborne

Tuesday 8th December 2020 Commons Chamber

[Matt Hancock]

Yes. That is the hardest part of the vaccine roll-out to deliver by its nature, because of the minus 70°C requirements of the vaccine, but it is absolutely a part of the plan.

[Kate Osborne (Jarrow) (Lab)]

We already know that poorer areas have fewer GPs, so it is crucial that they receive extra resources to ensure that they are not left behind in the roll-out of the vaccine, on which I congratulate everyone involved. Will the Secretary of State assure me that the vaccine will be fairly distributed across the UK and that working-class communities such as mine in the north-east will not be put at the back of the queue again, as they have been so many other times during this pandemic?

[Matt Hancock]

I can absolutely assure the hon. Lady that the fundamental principle of the roll-out is that it must be done according to clinical need and fairly right across every part of the UK, and that is what we are delivering to.

Covid-19: Winter Plan

Debate between Matt Hancock and Kate Osborne

Monday 23rd November 2020 Commons Chamber

[Kate Osborne (Jarrow) (Lab)]

I direct my question to the Prime Minister or even the Chancellor, but I ask it to the Secretary of State. With the infection rates still high across the north-east, it is looking likely that the region will come out of this national lockdown in a worse position than it was in going in. When the tier restrictions were last implemented, local leaders had to fight the Government for a fair amount of funding for our region. Can the Secretary of State assure us that this time the north will not be left behind again? In line with their levelling up agenda, will the Government ensure that all businesses and people receive the correct level of the financial support that they desperately need?

[Matt Hancock]

I am glad to see that the number of cases in the north-east is falling. That is good news and testament to people right across the north-east. Yes, there will be financial support to the councils that are in higher-tier areas, alongside the huge amount of financial support to individuals through furlough and the increase in universal credit, and to businesses.

Covid-19 Update

Debate between Matt Hancock and Kate Osborne

Thursday 15th October 2020 Commons Chamber

[Matt Hancock]

I would be very happy to take up my hon. Friend’s suggestion about the volunteers. I commend to him the social care winter plan, which sets out how we will balance the very difficult issues that he mentions.

[Kate Osborne (Jarrow) (Lab)]

In my constituency, schools are already closing due to confirmed cases of coronavirus. What conversations has the Secretary of State had on routine testing in schools? Will he publish the science behind the decision not to introduce routine testing for teachers and tell us why schools have been issued with only 10 testing kits each?

[Matt Hancock]

We have a testing prioritisation board which takes into account the order of priorities within testing. Of course, as testing expands it means we will be able to use it for more things, including in schools. I look forward to being able to make that progress just as soon as we make the expansion even bigger.

Coronavirus Response

Debate between Matt Hancock and Kate Osborne

Monday 20th July 2020 Commons Chamber

[Matt Hancock]

I do not have anything further to add yet. The problem was that anybody who had had covid at any point and then subsequently died, whether or not from covid, was being counted in this data. Right at the start of the crisis, that was a perfectly reasonable approach to take, but clearly it needs to be reviewed. It is likely that the number of deaths has been overestimated on this measure, hence the urgent review, and I hope to have more information this week.

[Kate Osborne (Jarrow) (Lab)]

We know that, for some, the recovery from coronavirus can be long and often bring with it debilitating symptoms, including fatigue, headaches and pain. What additional support is the Department giving GPs to ensure that they have the necessary resources to care for patients who are suffering with long-term symptoms and to help them come to terms with this, cope and readjust where necessary?

[Matt Hancock]

The hon. Lady asks a very important question. There is increasing evidence that there are some long-term, debilitating consequences of having had covid for a minority of people, and for that minority—which includes at least one Member of this House—it is very substantial. We have therefore started a whole NHS service to support people recovering from covid who have long-term symptoms. Primary care is, of course, an important part of the service that the NHS provides.