Public Health

Richard Graham Excerpts

Tuesday 14th December 2021 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

I must make some progress, but I will take further interventions in a moment. I wish to talk about the importance of what we have learned about omicron and the vaccines. Vaccines have proven to be highly effective against previous variants, such as the alpha and delta variants. That has weakened the link between cases, and hospitalisations and deaths, and it has allowed us to reopen our country once more. But recent analysis from the UK Health Security Agency has shown that two doses of a vaccine provide much lower levels of protection against symptomatic infection from omicron when compared with the delta variant. More encouragingly, effectiveness rose considerably in the early period after a booster dose, providing about 70% to 75% protection against symptomatic infection. This data starkly shows the importance of booster doses and why we are working so hard to get many more boosters into arms. I will say more about that in just a moment. Our strategy is to take proportionate action now, to come down hard on this virus and strengthen our defences, rather than waiting until it is too late.

[Richard Graham (Gloucester) (Con)]

Surely the whole point is that we cannot be complacent and assume that this likely huge increase in infections is all going to result in very mild symptoms. What the Government are doing, therefore, is taking modest steps to ensure that if that does not happen, we will be prepared. Will he promise that if this situation does not materialise, he will be able to relax again?

[Sajid Javid]

We all want to relax. I wish I was more relaxed now than I already am. My hon. Friend is absolutely right on that, and I agree with him.

--- Later in debate ---

[Richard Graham (Gloucester) (Con)]

It is a pleasure to follow my hon. Friend the Member for Totnes (Anthony Mangnall), although I will not, alas, agree with every word he has said. Let me start by celebrating some of the things that I think we can all agree on, such as the end of the red list for all 11 countries and the extension of the travel passes for all teenagers. I think many of us can agree that we need to release from quarantine immediately those who are still in quarantine in our country having come from those red list countries.

Today, we vote on four specific measures. First, we have a modest increase in mask wearing, which really can only be opposed by those who strongly oppose it on principle. Secondly, we have an end to the pingdemic of self-isolation in favour of lateral flow tests, which surely everybody can agree is a step forward. Thirdly, we will vote on having mandatory vaccination for NHS workers, which the NHS itself supports. Lastly comes the issue for debate, which I would say is a modest requirement for a lateral flow test to go to venues with more than 500 indoors and 4,000 outdoors. In my constituency, that amounts to Gloucester Rugby, Gloucester cathedral and the ATIK nightclub, and I believe that all of those will be quite capable of administering things effectively.

What is it that the libertarians, led by the eternal cavalier my right hon. Friend the Member for New Forest West (Sir Desmond Swayne), most object to? I believe that they object in principle to new rules being introduced, and struggle slightly with the specifics of what is wrong with the proposals brought forward today. Let us be clear that there is no vaccine passport, nor is this Nazi Germany in any conceivable shape. They are scaremongering, for everybody accepts that the omicron variant rate of infection is moving fast. We cannot be sure how many with omicron will need to be hospitalised, so we cannot wait to do something until the Gloucester Royal and other hospitals are overflowing with people with covid and critical cancer operations have to be cancelled. I do not believe any Member would want to face the family of someone lost because a cancer operation had to be cancelled as a result of the hospital being clogged up with omicron variant covid sufferers.

Is everything perfect? No. I have three suggestions for the Minister and the Departments involved this evening. First, they need to reassure us on the provision of lateral flow tests. We must have them, otherwise people will not be able to get them and fulfil the requirements of these rules. Secondly, we need to look again at the wording on the advisory recommendation that people should:

“Work from home if you can”.

I believe this should be, “Work from home if you wish”. Thirdly and most importantly, the impact assessment makes it clear that the central estimate is that 73,000 NHS workers out of 1.8 million do not want to be vaccinated, and we need to do more about that.