Westminster whisperers are again busy today saying Government is considering scrapping the rules allowing for travel and wider relaxation of Covid-19 guidelines during Christmas.
Yesterday’s announcement of London going into Tier 3 was preceded by the same whisperers hours before the Secretary of State for Health stood up in Parliament and made it.
Much of the pressure to scrap Christmas Covid freedoms comes via a joint editorial statement from The British Medical Journal and The Health Service Journal.
Both journals are held in high esteem by health professionals and the joint editorial statement is only the second ever in both titles’ 100 year histories.
The statement highlights the value of fast interventions in combating the spread of Covid, and cites the Government being too slow to react earlier this year.
It goes on to warn of the consequences of not reversing the Christmas rules in saying: “It (the Government) should now reverse its rash decision to allow household mixing and instead extend the tiers over the five-day Christmas period in order to bring numbers down in the advance of a likely third wave.”
The warnings predict that not cancelling the Christmas relaxations would see a third wave of Covid-19 overwhelm the NHS in the New Year.
The joint statement highlights that if current transmission rates persist, hospitals in England by New Year’s Eve would house 19,000 Covid patients. The same number reached during the peak of the first wave on 12 April. These predictions are based on the existing Covid environment and do not consider any impact from increased household bubbles and increased travel to see extended family during Christmas.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan this morning called on Government to reconsider the plan to relax rules over Christmas, and is being joined by others.
As the Government’s primary objective at the outset of the Covid-19 pandemic was to avoid the NHS being overwhelmed at all costs. Being now warned in advance that their worst fears could be realised has led many Conservative MPs in voicing concerns to Cabinet colleagues.
Anonymous Whitehall and Westminster sources are being widely quoted currently in unison predicting changes to or the abandonment of the Government’s Christmas rules.
Government for all intents and purposes ‘leaking’ policy prior to announcement is fast becoming a trend, this is now looking like the latest edition.
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Hospitality & Catering News: Christmas relaxation rules to be scraped by Government – 15 December 2020 – Christmas relaxation rules to be scraped by Government.
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