The government could bring in even tighter coronavirus measures for England within 24 hours, Matt Hancock has indicated, saying the NHS is “under significant pressure” from fast-rising case numbers across the country.
The health secretary defended the government’s decision to keep open many schools in England, which is being defied by many councils and parents, saying closing schools was “an absolute last resort due to all the negative impacts of that decision”.
It comes as a joint statement from six unions representing teachers and other school staff condemned the “chaotic handling” of the reopening of schools after Christmas, with some parents only learning what would happen with their children’s school on Sunday evening.
But Hancock rejected accusations that the government was again acting too slowly to curb the spread of Covid-19, now being accelerated by the arrival of a new, more easily transmissible variant.
“We have moved incredibly fast to take action when necessary, including on Boxing Day, so we don’t shy away from decisions, difficult as they are,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme. “We have shown that we’re prepared to move incredibly quickly, within 24 hours if we think that is necessary. And we keep these things under review all the time.”
Hancock indicated that one immediate move could be to shift more areas still under the previous highest level of Covid restrictions, tier 3, to tier 4, under which most shops are also closed.
Asked whether the government could act within 24 hours, Hancock said: “We look at the data on a daily basis, and we can see at the moment there are significant rises, especially in the areas that are still in tier 3. But I also come back to this broader point, that it’s on all of us. The thing that stops the spread of the disease is people not coming into contact with other people. That is the sad truth of it.”
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