Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make it Government policy to undertake an inquiry into the disproportionate effect of covid-19 on BAME, migrant and low-income workers.

We have no plans to do so. The Minister for Equalities (Kemi Badenoch MP) is leading cross-Government work to understand the disparities in the risks and outcomes from COVID-19 among the black, Asian and minority ethnic community and the relationships between the different risk factors.

Her first quarterly progress report concluded that a range of socioeconomic and geographical factors coupled with pre-existing health conditions were contributing to the higher infection and mortality rates for ethnic minority groups. The report can be found at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/quarterly-report-on-progress-to-address-covid-19-health-inequalities

Findings of the second quarterly progress report included the role of deprivation in the unequal impact of COVID-19 which is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/second-quarterly-report-on-progress-to-address-covid-19-health-inequalities/second-quarterly-report-on-progress-to-address-covid-19-health-inequalities

Tackling deprivation will be the focus of the third quarterly progress report. The Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities has been set up to explore issues faced by ethnic minorities in this country and the challenges identified in the COVID-19 response is a key part of the Commission’s work, which is due to report shortly.