Major report by MPs on pandemic backs Blackburn with Darwen's Public Health Director
Professor Dominic Harrison says lessons need to be learned
A MAJOR report by MPs on the coronavirus pandemic has backed Blackburn with Darwen’s public health director over the failure to use local authority staff to test for the infection and trace the contacts of positive cases.
It also supports Professor Dominic Harrison’s view that the initial payments given to those in East Lancashire affected by Covid-19 to self isolate were inadequate.
Today’s joint report by the House of Commons Health and Social Care and Science and Technology Committees on ‘Coronavirus: lessons learned’ says: “We must ensure that the UK learns from its experience of Covid-19 and does not repeat mistakes in the future.
“The right combination needs to be struck between centralised and localised measures and in certain cases implementation of pandemic containment measures was too centralised when it ought to have been more decentralised.”
Prof Harrison, who gave evidence to the committees, said: ” I broadly agree with the findings of this important national report.
“It is critical the government addresses the weaknesses identified in our national Covid response as we move into a higher risk period over winter.
“In my evidence I highlighted two key issues – the importance of financial support for frontline workers on low incomes or in precarious employment who need more financial support to self-isolate, and the need to give more funding and control to local authorities for ‘test and trace’ as we were frankly more efficient at delivering this than the private companies commissioned by government.
“We brought in a minimum payment for self-isolation very late in the pandemic – Pennine Lancashire had relatively few working adults able to work at home in 2020 whilst being paid as normal.
“Blackburn with Darwen had 29 per cent of its population able to work at home whilst being paid, Burnley 16, Hyndburn 27, and Rossendale 35, but areas like Richmond–on-Thames had more 70 per cent.
“This inequality was undoubtedly a factor driving higher case rates in those communities who had a bigger percentage of their working population out in frontline work during lockdowns. This inequality has been unfair and unjust.
“The report highlights local authorities were more effective at contact tracing than national call centres.
“I am pleased progress has been made with a more blended national/local model now in place.
“However more commitment is required from central government to make this sustainable.
“We have all paid a very high price both in terms of lives and money for underfunding the services we needed to keep communities and the economy resilient to shocks like coronavirus.
“We now need to act on this important national report.”