NHS chiefs call for the return of masks and limits on indoor mixing as they accuse government of ‘abandoning interest’ in Covid and warn of ‘brutal Easter’ as infections hit record levels
- Health chiefs want Brits to follow new Covid measures to fight the disease
- Last week Covid cases hit the highest since February 2021 at 20,331 infections
- The NHS Confederation accused the Tories of ‘abandoning any interest in Covid’
- It called for people to wear masks in crowded spaces and not meet indoors
Health chiefs want Brits to follow a string of new Covid measures to fight record infection rates in the UK.
The NHS Confederation accused the Government of ‘abandoning any interest in Covid whatsoever’ as hospitals are set to deal with a ‘brutal Easter as bad as any winter’.
Last week Covid cases hit the highest since February 2021 at 20,331 infections.
The NHS Confederation accused the Government of ‘abandoning any interest in Covid whatsoever’ as hospitals are set to deal with a ‘brutal Easter as bad as any winter’
That is despite official tallies having plunged because of No10’s decision to axe the £2billion-a-month mass-swabbing regime.
Meanwhile, a record one in 13 people have coronavirus in England.
The group, which acts as a representative for hospitals and ambulance trusts, called for ‘mitigating actions’ such as not meeting people indoors and wearing masks in crowded spaces.
This would help prevent the spread of the virus, the health and wellbeing organisation told The Times.
It also said the Conservatives needed to have a ‘public information campaign’ to ask people to stay away from A&E unless they have an emergency.
Already overcrowded A&E rooms are suffering from staff shortages as three per cent of staff in the NHS have coronavirus.
Confederation boss Matthew Taylor said: ‘NHS leaders report a clear disconnect between the Government’s Living with Covid plan and the realities at the NHS front line.
‘We have a Government that seems to want to wash its hands of responsibility for what is occurring in plain sight up and down the country.
‘No 10 has seemingly abandoned any interest in Covid whatsoever.’
Last week Boris Johnson admitted he ‘can’t rule out’ plunging the UK into a Covid lockdown again in the future, despite only just releasing the nation from two years of crippling on-off restrictions.
Confederation boss Matthew Taylor said: ‘NHS leaders report a clear disconnect between the Government’s Living with Covid plan and the realities at the NHS front line’
The Prime Minister previously promised the route back to normality was ‘irreversible’, seemingly consigning draconian stay-at-home orders to history.
But the PM has now said it would be ‘irresponsible’ for the Government not to keep a blanket shutdown in its virus-fighting playbook. He added: ‘I’m not going to take any options off the table.’
In an interview with GB News, Mr Johnson added: ‘I want to avoid any such thing ever happening again.’
However, he insisted any decision on bringing back curbs must get the balance right between prioritising public health and saving lives.
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