Source · Select Committees · Health and Social Care Committee
Recommendation 115
115
Accepted
Although introduced several weeks after it should have been, the national lockdown brought in on...
Conclusion
Although introduced several weeks after it should have been, the national lockdown brought in on 23 March succeeded in reducing the incidence of covid across the country, so that from May 2020 national restrictions were eased. However, tougher restrictions were maintained in areas where infections were higher. For example, the City of Leicester remained in lockdown measures from July to September 2020.179 The North West of England had stubbornly high levels of covid throughout the summer, and restrictions were imposed on Liverpool, Greater Manchester, Blackburn, and eventually the whole of the region on 29 September 2020.180
Government response summary AI-generated
The government accepts the committee's observation, acknowledging that it should have acted faster to introduce measures like social distancing, mask-wearing, and an earlier lockdown in the pandemic's early stages. It commits to learning lessons for future public health emergencies, as reflected in the 'Living with COVID-19' strategy.
Summary of the government's response below — read the verbatim text to verify.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government · verbatim extract
Accepted
The government accepts this recommendation. The government’s decision-making has throughout the pandemic been informed by science and evidence, taking quick and decisive action where necessary, whilst adapting and learning lessons from the COVID-19 experience, in order to inform our preparedness for future crises. During the early stages of the pandemic, the government, with the benefit of hindsight, should have acted faster to introduce measures such as social distancing, mask wearing, and an earlier lockdown. Whilst not formally accepting all the details of the Committees’ findings, the government acknowledges the importance of taking fast, decisive, and preventative action. This is reflected in the Government’s ‘Living with COVID-19’ strategy, which outlines how the country will manage COVID-19 risk in the future, transitioning from government regulation to an approach that places more emphasis on individual responsibility, while maintaining a robust response capability. This includes continued surveillance through the UKHSA; access to vaccines, treatments and tests; and contingency plans for the emergence of new variants. The government is committed to learning lessons from COVID-19 for future public health emergencies and continues to make improvements to its emergency planning and response. This includes work to ensure it is better prepared to address uncertainties and act quickly in the face of new threats, through capabilities such as horizon scanning and stress testing which are covered in response to recommendations 1 and 2.
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