Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions, if any, the Scientific Advisory Group on Emergencies have had with economists on the economic impacts of the lockdown; and if no discussions have taken place, what the reasons are for not holding such discussions.

The Government makes decisions based on the best scientific evidence, along with consideration of the economic, operational, social and policy implications of any interventions that might be introduced. The remit of SAGE is to provide science advice to the Government, but this is just one part of the picture. Scientific advice from SAGE is often considered alongside advice from other specialisms such as economics. As new scientific questions emerge, the participants at SAGE will change to provide the best available scientific evidence at that time.