Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the approach taken by the government of South Korea to tackling COVID-19; in particular, of the impact of multiple localised interventions and the importance of the quality of local relationships in delivering effective interventions.

The Government is monitoring the development of the COVID-19 outbreak around the world, including South Korea. International evidence has been considered alongside a wide range of other evidence to inform the United Kingdom response. The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE), which provides scientific advice to support UK decision-makers during emergencies, monitors the approaches taken by other countries and how it can be useful for the Government. SAGE has published its report of the Impact of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) to reduce COVID-19 mortality and healthcare demand. A copy is attached.

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 GOV.UK 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. This list can be found by searching online for ‘Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE): Coronavirus (COVID-19) response’. It will be updated as SAGE releases papers from recent and future meetings.