Coronavirus: Social Distancing
(asked on 10th June 2020) - View Source
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the validity of the scientific advice on (a) 1m and (b) 2m social distancing guidelines; and if he will publish the advice provided by SAGE to the Government on those measures.
The Government’s public health guidance on COVID-19 is under constant review to ensure it reflects the latest advice from the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) and the latest evidence on the transmission of the virus. The Prime Minister has commissioned a comprehensive review of the two metre social distancing guidance, which will take advice from a range of experts including the Chief Medical Officer and Chief Scientific Adviser as well as behavioural scientists and economists. The review will examine how the two metre guidance is working at the moment, and will look at evidence around transmission in different environments, incidence rates and international comparisons.
SAGE provides scientific advice to support United Kingdom decision-makers during emergencies. In recognition of the importance of transparency in these unprecedented times, SAGE has been publishing the statements and the accompanying evidence it has reviewed on the GOV.UK website to demonstrate how the scientific understanding of COVID-19 has continued to evolve as new data emerges, and how SAGE’s advice has quickly adapted to new findings that reflect a changing situation. SAGE’s most recent advice on transmission of SARS-CoV-2 and Mitigating Measures can be viewed on the GOV.UK website at the following link: