Many people have quite rightly been concerned about the new Omicron
variant of the Coronavirus, which seems to be spreading far more quickly than
any previous variant and in doing so threaten the progress of our Covid
recovery.
Of particular concern is the reduced level of protection that
two doses of the lifesaving vaccine offer against Omicron when compared to
Delta and other earlier variants. However, early research has found that a third
dose of the vaccine is able to neutralise the new variant to a similar extent as
two doses against earlier strains of the virus.
It is all the more important therefore that we all play our
part at this time and answer the call to get the booster jabs over the coming
weeks. To enable as many people as possible to enjoy Christmas the Government
is accelerating our booster rollout significantly in order to ensure all adults
in England are offered a booster jab by the end of the month, with the army
being drafted in to help deliver this monumental national enterprise.
The Government is also easing the requirement to
self-isolate for close contacts of the new variant. From Tuesday onwards, instead
of requiring every Omicron contact to quarantine for 10 days regardless of
their vaccination status, fully vaccinated contacts of a COVID-19 case (whether
Omicron or not) will be asked to take a daily lateral flow test for 7 days to
slow the spread of the virus.
This is a significant step towards minimising disruption
over the holiday period and has been welcomed by many. But in order to achieve
this, the Government is following scientific advice and introducing a series of
light-touch, temporary measures as part of our Plan B response to new and dangerous
variants.
These include asking people to work from home where
possible, extending the requirement to wear a face-covering to most public
indoor venues, like cinemas and theatres, and making the Covid certification mandatory
for entry into a limited number of settings with considerable numbers of people,
like nightclubs and large outdoor events.
Much has been said of the use of Covid certification over
the past week, with some expressing concerns on the social effects and
implications on civil liberties of the so-called ‘vaccine passport’.
But it is wrong to label the Covid certification simply as
such, as a negative lateral flow test will also be sufficient for people to
obtain certification if they have not been able to take both doses of the
lifesaving Covid vaccine for medical reasons or as a personal choice.
We already know that our NHS faces its busiest time of the
year in the coming six weeks, and anything we can do to help ease the pressure
should be done, while buying clinicians and scientists valuable time to
establish the scale and severity of the virus.
Sitting back and watching the virus spread among the
community and cause damage to our health and care provisions without taking any
action whatsoever could ultimately leave the Government with no other choice
but to instigate another lockdown.
Nobody wants that – I certainly do not – and the Government
has made clear that it is doing all it can to avoid us facing the worst-case
scenario with this new variant and therefore having to resolve to the worst
policy option of all.
I appreciate the concerns that some have expressed about our
latest response to the pandemic. No one wants to bring in new restrictions
ahead of Christmas – the season of great joy and much festivity – but unlike
the restrictions of last winter, the vast majority of us will still be able to
proceed with our Christmas plans without disruption under these new measures.
All things considered, I believe the package of measures that
will be introduced under Plan B represents a sensible, balanced, and
proportionate response to the current situation. There will be minimal impact
on the day to day lives of people in our constituency, allowing us to enjoy the
holidays as much as possible, while helping us contain the spread of the virus
and easing pressures on the NHS.
