Vaccine news UK – Zero covid strategy IMPOSSIBLE and coronavirus will surge again this year, Vallance and Whitty claim
THE Government's chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance said a "zero Covid" strategy was not possible.
"Our focus needs to be on reducing the levels we have here. That is the key point, to keep things under control," he told the science and technology committee.
"As levels come down test, trace and isolate becomes increasingly important, cluster identification – making sure we understand where there are outbreaks and how to deal with them – and of course the vaccine is going to make a huge difference to all of this," Vallance added.
"I do not think that zero Covid is possible. I think there's nothing to suggest that this virus will go away, at least any time soon.
"It's going to be there, circulating. It may be a winter virus that comes back over winters with increasing infection rates during that period."
Earlier England’s Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty that despite the success of the vaccine rollout, enough virus will remain in circulation this year to cause a rise on cases and deaths.
He said this was due to the numbers of people refusing or unable to take the vaccine as well as the rare few for whom the vaccine does not work.
"Even if you have a relatively small proportion of people still remaining vulnerable, that still equates to a very large number" at risk he said.
"All the modelling suggests at some point we will get a surge in the virus. We hope it doesn't happen soon – it might happen later in the summer if we open up gradually, or if there is a seasonal effect it might happen over the next autumn and winter," he added.
"But all the modelling suggests there is going to be a further surge, and when it happens it will find the people who have not been vaccinated or where the vaccine has not worked. Some of them will be hospitalised and sadly some of them will die."
"That is just the reality of the situation," Whitty said, adding that the vaccine will see the cases to death "go right down, but not right down to zero".
Follow our UK politics live blog below for the very latest news and updates…
- Chiara Fiorillo
RACHEL REEVES SAYS COVID-19 CONTRACTS WERE HANDED OUT TO 'FRIENDS AND DONORS'
Shadow Cabinet Office minister Rachel Reeves said that contracts were handed out to "friends and donors" of the Conservative Party without any transparency.
Asking an urgent question on the Government's publication of Covid-19 contracts, she said: "This question and the answers to it really matter because our frontline workers were not adequately protected with the high-quality PPE that they needed during the course of this pandemic.
"And it matters because it is essential that taxpayers' money is spent effectively and fairly, not handed out to those who happen to have close links with the party of government.
"The Government ran down the PPE stockpile ahead of this pandemic and it came back to haunt us when we need it most. Contracts were handed out, many to friends and donors of the Conservative Party, without any transparency."
- Chiara Fiorillo
SUNAK FACES CALLS TO GIVE NHS WORKERS 15% PAY RISE
Chancellor Rishi Sunak has faced calls to give NHS workers a 15% pay rise to make up for a "decade of lost pay".
Labour MP Zarah Sultana (Coventry South) told the Commons: "NHS workers have seen their pay fall by more than 10% in real terms in the past decade.
"So instead of handing out fortunes to mates and donors, will the Chancellor heed the calls of trade unions and NHS staff and give them the pay rise they deserve – that's 15% to make up for a decade of lost pay?"
- Chiara Fiorillo
RISHI SUNAK DEFENDS GOVERNMENT'S HANDLING OF PANDEMIC
Chancellor Rishi Sunak defended the Government's handling of the pandemic, telling MPs "at all steps in this crisis we have indeed taken the advice of our scientific advisers".
Chief Secretary to the Treasury Bridget Phillipson (Houghton and Sunderland South) said: "A Sage adviser is reported to have said 'I thought the Chancellor was in charge. He was the main person who was responsible for the second wave'.
"Does the Chancellor accept that his refusal to follow the science by pitting public health against the economy led to worse outcomes for both?"
Responding Mr Sunak said: "I'd urge (her) to be a little bit careful about what she reads in the newspaper. At all steps in this crisis we have indeed taken the advice of our scientific advisers.
"If we go back to September which I think she's referring to, at that time as she knows from the Sage minutes herself which are published rather than unsourced quotes in newspapers, that the evidence was finely balanced and there were many things for ministers to consider and the consideration at that point was that the tiered system was working and deserved to be given a chance."
Rishi Sunak has defended the government's handling of the Covid pandemicCredit: FLICKER/HM TREASURY
- Joseph Gamp
A-LEVEL AND GCSE STUDENTS COULD SEE ASSESSMENTS ADAPTED FOR LOSS OF LEARNING DURING PANDEMIC
Students taking A-level and GCSE exams next year could see their assessments adapted to compensate for learning loss, the acting chief regulator of Ofqual has suggested.
Simon Lebus said the process of recovering lost learning during the coronavirus pandemic is "going to take several years".
He told MPs: "So as far as 2022 is concerned, the thinking at the moment is about adaptations along the lines that had been originally contemplated for this year when exams were still to go ahead.
"That's based on the reality of the cohort taking exams next year will have suffered considerable disruption to their learning.
"Though we would hope not on the scale and the level that has been suffered by this year's cohort so that it would be the reasonable thing to carry out some form of public exams, but that they would be adapted to reflect the learning disruption that has taken place."
- Joseph Gamp
VALLANCE: WORLDWIDE VACCINATION PROGRESS IS 'KEY TO UNLOCKING' INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL
Chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance suggested worldwide progress in vaccinating against Covid-19 was the key to unlocking international travel.
He told MPs on the Science and Technology Committee "inevitably at some point travel will reopen" and "as more countries become vaccinated and as we get the ability to understand how much transmission is reduced by vaccination it makes freer movement across countries much more possible again".
That might involve "certification or whatever" but travel has to reopen in a safe way, possibly with a global screening programme to help detect variants.
He said the issue underlined the point that it was an international effort to vaccinate people "not a national thing" and "therefore vaccines need to get out to other countries as well".
May 17 has been pencilled in as the earliest date for the resumption of international travel.
- Joseph Gamp
PATRICK VALLANCE: WE SHOULD NOT DREAM THAT YOU CAN STOP COVID FROM COMING IN
Asked about the Government's maintenance of a "red list" of countries with concerning variants, Sir Patrick Vallance told MPs: "There is some logic in thinking about where you have got the highest prevalence of either the virus overall or a particular variant.
"But I don't think we should dream that you can stop these things coming in or, indeed, evolving within domestic virus transmission."
- Joseph Gamp
CHIEF GOVERNMENT ADVISER SAYS 'ZERO COVID' STRATEGY IS NOT POSSIBLE
The Government's chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance said a "zero Covid" strategy was not possible.
"Our focus needs to be on reducing the levels we have here. That is the key point, to keep things under control," he said.
"As levels come down test, trace and isolate becomes increasingly important, cluster identification – making sure we understand where there are outbreaks and how to deal with them – and of course the vaccine is going to make a huge difference to all of this.
"I do not think that zero Covid is possible. I think there's nothing to suggest that this virus will go away, at least any time soon.
"It's going to be there, circulating. It may be a winter virus that comes back over winters with increasing infection rates during that period."
- Joseph Gamp
PRINCE CHARLES PICTURED IN PUBLIC FOR FIRST TIME SINCE OPRAH INTERVIEW
The Prince of Wales has been seen in public for the first time since Meghan and Harry's interview with Oprah was aired in the US and UK.
He was seen arriving at Jesus House church in London to view an NHS COVID-19 vaccine pop-up clinic.
Prince Charles was spotted visiting a London Covid pop up vaccine centre on TuesdayCredit: Reuters - Joseph Gamp
HEALTH WORKERS SHOULD GET PROPER COVID REWARD, SAYS NHS ENGLAND HEAD
Health workers should "get a proper reward" for their work in fighting a coronavirus pandemic, the head of England's National Health Service said on Tuesday, increasing pressure on the government over what some call its "reprehensible" pay offer.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been accused of failing to honour his promise to look after health workers fighting COVID-19 by proposing a 1% pay increase for NHS workers with some calling on the government to issue a one-off bonus.
Johnson, who himself was treated in hospital last year when he became severely ill with COVID-19, said on Sunday his government had tried "to give the NHS as much as we possibly can" but would wait to see the conclusion of a pay review.
"I agree with you that coming out of the past year and everything that NHS staff have been through, proper recognition for that is entirely right," Simon Stevens, head of NHS England, told a parliamentary committee.
He also said the long-term plan for the health service had budgeted for a pay increase of 2.1% this year, but he agreed with the government to wait to see the recommendation from an independent review body, due to be made to government in May.
- Joseph Gamp
PM: SCHOOLS GOING BACK WILL IMPACT INFECTION RATE
BORIS Johnson warned the return of millions of children to schools across England will push up the Covid infection rate – but insisted his roadmap out of lockdown is still on track.
Speaking at a Downing St press conference on Monday, the PM said the first day back has been a success and reassured parents classrooms are safe, but acknowledged cases will inevitably rise.
Read more here.
- Joseph Gamp
NICK GIBB ON SCHOOL GATES (CONTINUED)
Speaking to the Evening Standard today, Mr Gibb said: “Parents need to be very careful of socially distancing.
“Hands, face, space –that’s still the rule for parents collecting their children from school.
“And they should take their children home. The roadmap doesn’t permit mixing of households at this stage.
“So we are saying that they just need to go straight home after school and keep socially distancing at the school gate as well.”
- Joseph Gamp
MINISTER WARNS PARENTS NOT TO MIX OUTSIDE SCHOOL GATES
Parents have been warned not to mix with other people outside school gates, the schools minister warned today.
Nick Gibb said today that just because kids are back in schools, it doesn't mean adults are allowed to have a catch up and a gossip with other parents.
Read more here.
- Joseph Gamp
RETURN TO SCHOOL MARKS FIRST MILESTONE IN PM'S ROADMAP FROM LOCKDOWN
Yesterday's return of schools marks the first step in the PM's plan to get the country fully out of lockdown on June 21.
Pupils up and down the country headed back to lessons for the first time since December, with a huge mass testing operation under way and extra Covid precautions in place.
Secondary school pupils are being strongly encouraged to wear masks in the classroom until at least the Easter holidays.
Primary school kids won't have to don face coverings, but extra guidance has been introduced saying visitors and staff should use them in areas where social distancing between adults isn't possible such as corridors.
- Joseph Gamp
BACK TO SCHOOL ROUND-UP: WHAT ELSE HAS HAPPENED?
- A union chief said schools could be forced to close again if students refuse to wear masks
- Experts insisted kids are 'absolutely' safe to return to the classroom
- Full details emerged of new safety measures in schools to keep lessons Covid secure
JENNY HARRIES WARNS 'A LARGE NUMBER OF PUPILS' MAY COME OUT OF SCHOOL IN FIRST TWO WEEKS
Deputy chief medical officer Dr Jenny Harries warned there may be "a larger number of pupils" coming out of school in the first fortnight.
But she said that situation should only last for a week or two before calming down.
And a top medical expert has questioned the logic behind not offering children tested in school a follow-up PCR test.
Professor Jon Deeks, an expert in biostatistics at Birmingham University, told the Telegraph: “There is no scientific basis for this, you will be restricting freedoms and keeping children out of school completely unnecessarily.”
- Joseph Gamp
MINISTERS ADMIT ONE IN EVERY 1,000 LATERAL FLOW TESTS RETURNS A FALSE POSITIVE
Ministers have admitted around one in every thousand lateral flow tests carried out returns a false positive.
Under the new rules children who return a positive lateral flow test that was carried out at home will be asked to take a follow-up PCR swab, which is much more accurate.
If that follow-up test comes back negative, they will then be able to return to the classroom immediately.
But students who get a positive result from a lateral flow test at school won't be entitled to a follow-up test and will have to self-isolate for the full 10 days.
Ministers say the discrepancy is because tests at school are being carried out "under supervision in a controlled environment".
- Joseph Gamp
CHILDREN WHO GET A FALSE POSITIVE COVID TEST AT SCHOOL WILL BE BANNED FROM CLASS FOR 10 DAYS
CHILDREN who receive a false positive Covid test administered at school will be banned from the classroom for 10 days, it has emerged.
The new rules on the safe reopening of classrooms have been branded "ridiculous" by scientists who say there's "no rationale" behind them.
Read more here.
- Joseph Gamp
PM HAILS SCHOOLS REOPENING A ‘NATIONAL EFFORT’
THE PM hailed today’s re-opening of England’s schools as the result of a national effort to defeat Covid.
Boris Johnson said the return of millions of pupils to the classroom was made possible only by collective efforts to cut infections.
It marks step one of his plan to unlock the country after a year of restrictions to tackle the pandemic.
He declared: “The reopening of schools marks a truly national effort to beat this virus.
“It is because of the determination of every person in this country that we can start moving closer to a sense of normality — and it is right that getting our young people back into the classroom is a first step.”
- Joseph Gamp
SCHOOLS COULD BE FORCED TO SHUT IF NOT ENOUGH PUPILS WEAR FACE MASKS
SCHOOLS could be forced to shut again if not enough pupils wear face masks as they return to class today, parents have been warned.
While there is no legal power to enforce it, guidance from the Government states that masks should be worn by students – as well as teaching and support staff – while indoors.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced last month that secondary school kids are to be tested twice a week and required to wear face masks if it is not possible to socially distance at two metres apart.
Both measures are not compulsory, however, and the Government has said teachers should not send pupils home for refusing.
- Joseph Gamp
UNIFORM COSTS
HARD-UP parents may be able to claim up to £150 to help cover the cost of school uniforms as pupils return to the classroom.
The support is typically available to households on benefits, but the amount on offer varies wildly depending on where you live.
A uniform costs £101.19 per child in secondary school on average, according to a retailer survey by The Schoolwear Association.
The cost means a million kids’ families have to cut back on food and other essentials to pay for it, a report by the The Children’s Society has found.
The charity is backing the School Uniform Bill, which is calling for schools to add a value for money criteria to their uniform policies.
Read more here.
- Joseph Gamp
NURSES COULD BE IN LINE FOR BIGGER PAY RISE
Nurses could be in line for a bigger pay rise after a Cabinet minister today hinted at a U-turn on the 1% offer which has prompted fury and been branded a "slap in the face".
Justice Secretary Robert Buckland said he wants to see NHS staff "recognised in a way that's appropriate" as pressure mounts on the Government to up its miserly proposal.
Health bosses and union chiefs have lambasted the offer, which amounts to just £3.50 a week, with a recent poll also showing 72% of the public would back a more generous settlement.
Mr Buckland hinted that the Government will be prepared to accept those suggestions, which will come after negotiations between independent NHS pay review bodies, unions, and ministers.
He said: "This is the beginning of a process. The recommendations have not yet been made. We've got to remember, of course, that in large other swathes of the public sector there will be a pay freeze save for the very lowest paid. I don't think at the moment we're at the end of this process, we need to see what the recommendations are."
- Joseph Gamp
EXPERTS SAY KIDS COULD SUFFER 'LONGER TERM SCARRING' AFTER BEING AWAY FROM SCHOOLS
Experts believe kids who have spent a long time away from school could suffer “longer-term scarring”.
Prof Russell Viner, president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, told Times Radio: “We closed down our children’s lives.
"The key issues around meeting friends, development socially, learning to trust, learning to be human, learning all of those things, that’s been lost as well as the loss of actual straight-up learning.
“Many of those things can’t be done online. The harms to mental health are very clear."
- Joseph Gamp
UNION LEADER SAYS ATTENDANCE IN MOST SCHOOLS 'VERY ENCOURAGING'
Geoff Barton, General Secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said attendance in most schools was “very encouraging”.
He said the requirement to provide on-site Covid tests had been “onerous” and introducing face coverings in class had been a “minefield” for teachers to navigate.
Dr Mary Bousted, National Education Union chief, said it was possible children may have to return to remote learning.
She said: “I hope, and my members hope, this will be the last time we close schools to the majority of pupils. But the jury’s out.”
- Joseph Gamp
JOY AS MILLIONS OF PUPILS HEAD BACK TO CLASSROOM AND FIRST LOCKDOWN RESTRICTIONS ARE EASED
Millions of kids headed back to school for the first time in months yesterday as the first lockdown restrictions were eased.
Jubilant parents tasked with weeks of home-schooling waved their children off to classes with teachers.
Read more here.
- Joseph Gamp
VIDEO: SCHOOLS GOING BACK WILL IMPACT INFECTION RATE, WARNS BORIS JOHNSON BUT ROADMAP STILL ON TRACK
Schools going back WILL impact infection rate, warns Boris Johnson but roadmap STILL on track
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