COVID-19: Nicola Sturgeon accused of 'contempt' of parliament as row over Scotland-Manchester travel ban continues - Sky News

Nicola Sturgeon has been accused of "discourtesy bordering on contempt" after announcing a Manchester travel ban without consulting Members of Scottish Parliament first.

Both the Scottish Parliament's presiding officer and members of the Scottish Conservatives criticised Ms Sturgeon over the matter, with the first minister being reminded that announcements should first be made in Holyrood.

It is understood that Deputy First Minister John Swinney signed off the legislation last Thursday ahead of First Minister's Questions, where MSPs would have had the chance to quiz Ms Sturgeon on the policy, but that details of the change were not announced until the following day at a press conference.

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Sturgeon 'insulting' Mancunians - Burnham

It comes as Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham accused the Scottish Government of "straightforward arrogance" over the travel ban which.

Enforced from Monday, it stops anyone from Bolton, Manchester, Salford or Lancashire travelling to Scotland and vice versa.

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On Sunday, Mr Burnham accused Scottish officials of being discourteous by not contacting him to discuss the measure being imposed against his region, adding that Ms Sturgeon is treating the north of England with "contempt".

Writing to the first minister, he said his northern constituents deserve "respect".

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But responding to the mayor, Ms Sturgeon accused Mr Burnham of "generating a spat" and noted her "duty to keep Scotland as safe as possible" during the pandemic.

"If he wants a grown-up conversation, he only has to pick up the phone," she told Sky News on Monday.

Mr Burnham said accusations of political posturing were unfounded and that he too is only acting in the interests of his residents as part of a devolved administration.

But there were signs of peace on Tuesday when during a press conference the mayor said he would be in discussions with the first minister on Wednesday over the ban.

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'I'm not interested' in Burnham having spat

"We just want to seek resolution and a better way of doing things going forward. The political route is the route to pursue," he said.

Announcing the new policy last Friday, Ms Sturgeon said the decision was made based on areas of England emerging as coronavirus hotspots.

"Anyone travelling elsewhere in the Greater Manchester or Lancashire area, I'd ask to think carefully about whether your journey is really necessary, because we do see cases rising across that region," the first minister said.

But fellow Scottish politicians including Lib Dem MSP Alex Cole-Hamilton have pointed out that there are some communities in Scotland "with transmission rates equal to that of Manchester".

But the political fallout from the travel ban continued on Tuesday as points of order were raised in Holyrood on the matter.

Scottish Tory Stephen Kerr said policy changes must be announced to the Scottish Parliament first.

"The first minister said nothing to parliament about these new restrictions, the deputy first minister whose name was on the amendment sat a few feet away from the first minister - and the next day, at approximately 12:15, the first minister appeared on television at a staged event to announce the travel ban," he said.

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'Scottish Govt should have picked up phone!'

"Would you, presiding officer, take this opportunity to underline again, to make clear to parliament and all members of this parliament - especially members of the government - that these acts of discourtesy bordering of contempt by the first minister must stop."

Fellow Scottish Conservative Graham Simpson said the travel ban rules are "unworkable and unenforceable" and requested compensation for individuals and businesses who have been financially impacted by the policy.

"How does (Mr Swinney) answer the very fair point that infection rates in part of Greater Manchester like Bolton are lower than Dundee?", he said.

Deputy leader of Scottish Labour Jackie Baillie also echoed the calls for compensation for those with trips to Manchester and Salford arranged.

Mr Swinney replied: "In relation to Manchester and Salford, Manchester was sitting at 348, Salford at 337 - in excess of any case rates within Scotland and well above the Scottish average.

"So we took those decisions based on trying to minimise the contact that we know enables the spread of the virus. That is what the whole restrictions have been about and that was the basis of our decision - to protect people in Scotland from the spread of the virus."

Image: MSPs said the first minister should have made the announcement in Holyrood first

On compensation, Mr Swinney said: "The government does not believe that would be appropriate.

"Travel to the north west of England has previously been prohibited last year, before local levels regulations were introduced and no compensation was offered.

"We are all responsible for putting in place, in our respective parts of the United Kingdom, the financial support to arrangements for business and that's exactly what the government will continue to do here in Scotland."

Earlier, at the opening of the day's business, Presiding Officer Alison Johnstone made a short statement on the matter.

"Concerns have been raised regarding the use of a Government Initiated Question (GIQ) to announce the addition of Manchester and Salford to the list of areas where common travel restrictions apply," she said.

"I understand this mechanism has been used on earlier occasions to make such announcements.

"Notably, in this case the announcement was made by GIQ on Thursday, 17 June, a sitting day when there may have been an opportunity for members to scrutinise the decision in the Chamber.

"I would therefore ask the minister for parliamentary business to reflect on whether GIQs are an appropriate method to use for these announcements on days when parliament is sitting.

Later speaking in Holyrood on Tuesday, Ms Sturgeon announced plans for the easing of restrictions in Scotland on 28 June have been pushed back by three weeks to 19 July.

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2021-06-22 16:20:37Z
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Brexit poll shows ‘limited enthusiasm’ for UK-EU trade deal - Financial Times

British voters have “limited enthusiasm” for the post-Brexit agreement Boris Johnson’s government negotiated with the EU last year, with only one in five describing it as a “good” deal, a survey has found.

However, ahead of the fifth anniversary of the 2016 EU referendum on Wednesday, the poll also found that years of divisive political debate had changed few minds — with four out five people who voted saying they would still vote the same way.

Sir John Curtice, politics professor at Strathclyde university, who led the research for the polling group What UK Thinks and the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen), said the findings were “far from a ringing endorsement” of the Brexit trade deal.

“Five years on, it is difficult to argue that the Brexit referendum has been an unalloyed success,” Curtice wrote, noting Leavers’ limited enthusiasm for the Brexit deal. At the same time, he added, the outcome had reconciled few Remain voters to the Brexit project.

The overall tepid response to the trade deal negotiated by Lord David Frost last year found that even among Leave voters, only one in three felt it was a “good” deal, although that figure reflected the fact that some Leave voters would have preferred to have left the EU on even harder terms, with no deal at all.

The survey was conducted just weeks after the UK left the EU single market on January 1 and is the latest in a rolling series of polls that have been conducted by What UK Think and NatCen since 2016.

The UK-EU Trade and Co-operation Agreement (TCA) did not trigger the significant disruption predicted for UK ports this January, but did cause UK exports to the EU to fall sharply in some sectors such as agrifood, where exports fell by nearly 50 per cent in the first quarter of this year compared to 2019 and 2020. 

Other broader impacts, particularly on professional services and travel, have to some extent been masked by Covid-19, which has sharply reduced leisure and business travel to Europe this year. 

Despite misgivings about the post-Brexit deal, the poll continued to vindicate Johnson’s decision to make good on his 2019 election promise to “get Brexit done”, with dissatisfaction with the UK government’s handling of Brexit falling from a peak of 88 per cent in autumn 2019 during the period of prolonged parliamentary stalemate, to about 50 per cent today.

“The confidence that Leave voters had in the UK government was badly shaken when it appeared that Brexit might not happen, but it has now largely been restored,” Curtice wrote. 

At the same time, the survey found that three out of four Leave voters now expect either immigration to fall or that the economy will be better off — two key metrics of Brexit — indicating that for many voters, “the detail of Brexit matters less than the principle”.

As for whether a rerun of the 2016 Referendum today would see a different result, the poll found it probably would not.

While a clear majority of those who did not vote in 2016 say they would now vote to rejoin the EU, they are likely to be cancelled out by the number of Remain voters who — even though they still wished the UK had remained a member of the EU — would not now vote because of the further upheaval of rejoining. 

“We estimate that a referendum held now on ‘rejoin’ versus ‘stay out’ could well produce a narrow majority (52%) in favour of staying out,” Curtice said.

Looking to the future, Curtice said it was not clear whether public opinion would swing if future difficulties with the UK-EU TCA emerged once Covid-19 restrictions were lifted in the coming months. 

Much would depend on whether the opposition Labour party, which has so far been reluctant to campaign on Brexit issues for fear of alienating Leave voters in target constituencies, was prepared to make an issue of Brexit in the future.

“Proof of the Brexit pudding will be in the eating, and the main course has been delayed by the pandemic,” Curtice told the FT.

“To make a difference, the government’s record will have to be criticised and that will depend on the extent to which the opposition is willing to tackle what they regard as the operational failures of Brexit.”

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2021-06-21 23:01:45Z
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Poorer white pupils neglected for decades, say MPs - BBC News

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"It's nothing short of a scandal" how white working class pupils in England have been "let down and neglected" by the education system for decades, says a hard-hitting report from MPs.

Robert Halfon, education select committee chairman, dismissed "divisive concepts like 'white privilege' that pit one group against another".

Poorer white pupils were falling behind "every step of the way", he warned.

The Department for Education said it was investing in "levelling up".

The report accused the government of "muddled thinking" in failing to target support at the "forgotten" disadvantaged white pupils - who underachieve from early years through to GCSEs, A-levels and university entry.

'Swept under the carpet'

Mr Halfon described it as a "major social injustice" that so little attention had been paid to how white pupils on free school meals underachieved compared with free school meals pupils from most other ethnic groups.

"If you think it's about poverty, then it doesn't explain why most other ethnic groups do much better," he said.

• At GCSE, in 2019, 18% of white British pupils on free meals achieved grade 4 in English and maths, compared with 23% for the average for pupils on free meals
• For university entry, 16% of white British pupils on free meals get places, compared with 59% of black African pupils on free meals, 59% of Bangladeshi pupils on free meals and 32% of black Caribbean pupils on free meals.

Samuel George

The committee warned the scale of the problem, affecting almost a million young people, could not be "swept under the carpet".

The idea of "white privilege" in education was rejected - and the report suggested schools should consider whether using this terminology was "consistent under their duties" in equality legislation.

The committee described "white privilege" as the idea of "societal privilege that benefits white people over other ethnic groups" - and said "privilege is the very opposite to what disadvantaged white children" experience.

Mr Halfon warned its use in education was "divisive" and likely to "promote disharmony".

But a Labour MP on the committee, Kim Johnson, rejected the references to white privilege as trying to "stoke the culture war" and said the report was avoiding the "lack of investment" in education and local communities.

Pupil's view: The 'that's not for me' attitude

"There's this nagging feeling that it's not for me," says 18-year-old Oliver Jones-Lyons, describing the "suspicions" about the value of education that he thinks hold back some white working class communities.

He has been a pupil on free meals at a school near Newcastle and says there is still a concern about the education system harbouring snobbery and class prejudice, even down to stereotypes about regional accents which "mark you out as different".

There's an inclination to turn away from exams and instead say "my dad can get us a job".

"There's a lack of explanation of how education is helping you," Oliver says.

But he argues "the biggest barriers to education are outside education" - in places with limited job opportunities, bad housing, poor public transport and families not able to support their children in school.

And he says that while he describes himself as a "white working class boy" he doesn't like the way that the label is being used to "create more stereotypes".

"It shouldn't be about putting people against each other" or about "culture wars", he says, and rejects the white working class identity being caricatured as being bigoted or narrow minded.

A better description would be people "more likely to undersell ourselves" and to dislike showing off, says Oliver.

But his own ambition has been supported by working with the Social Mobility Foundation charity - and he is waiting to see if he gets the A-levels grades needed to get into Oxford University next year.

The report calls for a targeted use of pupil premium funding for disadvantaged pupils and investment in "family hubs" to reach parents disengaged with education or who might have had a bad experience of school themselves.

Mr Halfon also highlighted a divide between the amount of funding and political focus that helped to improve schools in big cities - while many white working class pupils were in towns which had less investment.

• White working class boys least likely to go to university
• The left-behind towns with lowest university take-up
• Half of universities have fewer than 5% disadvantaged white students

"The rising tide of higher national standards has not lifted the boats of our white lower income communities," said former Ofsted chief, Sir Michael Wilshaw.

"Two thirds of children on free school meals live in these communities. We will never reduce educational inequality unless we urgently address this longstanding issue," he said.

Parent's view: 'Not a lot of opportunities'

The report argues that vocational routes in education need to be clearly available - showing the connection between qualifications and work.

This chimes with the concerns of Kerry, a mother in Mansfield who is thinking about what jobs will be available for her sons, Bailey and Finley, in the years ahead.

Her own parents stepped from school into factory work, which she says offered secure jobs.

The current world of employment seems more precarious, she says.

"I don't see good jobs arising, I don't think there's much opportunity out there," says Kerry

"I want them to go to college, then get apprenticeships," she says.

The aim is "guaranteed work" and she is worried about the cost of university. "As a parent, I wouldn't be able to fund them to go," says Kerry.

The underachievement is down to a "poisonous mix of place, family and local culture", said Chris Zarraga, director of Schools North East, a regional network of head teachers in one of the areas with the biggest concentrations of disadvantaged white pupils.

He said it meant tackling the consequences of "long-term deprivation", where there might be fifth and sixth generations of workless families.

"Schools can't do it alone," he said, warning that already the pandemic had seen schools having to cope with feeding and clothing pupils.

"We need a cross-party sense of urgency about solving these problems," he said.

Minority or majority?

The report calls for a better way of talking about ethnic differences in achievement - and maps the complications of terms such as "minorities" and "majorities".

There are high proportions of white pupils in areas such as the north east, while in many parts of London, white pupils are in a minority.

A recent campaign launched by Imperial College London to recruit more black science students showed how black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) figures can also conceal complex differences.

The leading science university has more BAME undergraduates than white - but only about 235 out of 10,000 students are black, with the great majority of these BAME students being from Asian backgrounds.

Labour's shadow education secretary, Kate Green, said the MPs' report showed the Conservative Party has "turned its back on these pupils who need most support, from knowingly underfunded free childcare places in early years to cutting the pupil premium".

A Department for Education spokesman said: "This government is focused on levelling up opportunity so that no young person is left behind."

"That's why we are providing the biggest uplift to school funding in a decade," said the DfE spokesman, with £3bn in recovery funding and existing plans to increase school budgets.

"The pupil premium is expected to increase to more than £2.5bn this year, through which schools can support pupils with extra teaching, academic support or activities like breakfast clubs or educational trips," he added.

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2021-06-21 22:09:56Z
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Brexit: Ousted DUP leader says he nominated a First Minister against party's wishes to fight 'damaging' Northern Ireland protocol - Sky News

Edwin Poots, the DUP leader ousted after 21 days in the job, has told Sky News he nominated a First Minister against his party's wishes to fight the Brexit Protocol.

In an exclusive interview, he said: "My focus was on the Northern Ireland Protocol first and foremost because constitutionally that is what is damaging Northern Ireland.

"Our best asset at this moment in time in fighting the Protocol is actually having the Assembly."

Mr Poots, who succeeded Arlene Foster as DUP leader in May, nominated Paul Givan to be First Minister last Thursday.

At the same time, his party was voting in a room next door not to nominate until Boris Johnson addresses their concerns about the Protocol.

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They were furious that the British government had agreed to table legislation on Irish Language rights at Westminster to keep Sinn Fein on board.

Mr Poots said: "I regret the fall-out from it. I think it was the right thing to do and it's the right thing to do to ensure we have maximum leverage.

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"Ultimately it was my intention had we not got success on the Protocol… then I would have been prepared to pull Paul Givan out of that job. That was something which I wished to express but didn't get the opportunity to express."

Asked if he now regretted the ousting of Arlene Foster, Mr Poots replied: "Because I filled the position that Arlene held, people perhaps think I had much greater role in that than I actually had.

"There was lots going on the DUP. There were significant issues there and 85% of the Assembly group had a particular view and that's reflected. I don't wish to make things more difficult for Arlene. She's now moved on."

Image: Sir Jeffrey Donaldson has confirmed he will run for the leadership of the DUP

Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, who has confirmed he will be a candidate, is front-runner to succeed Mr Poots and become the DUP's third leader in two months.

In a statement, he said: "Now, more than ever, we need to unite in the face of threats posed to Northern Ireland by the Protocol.

"Make no mistake, this is the number one issue facing our country, our people an dour place in the United Kingdom."

If Sir Jeffrey remains the only candidate when nominations close at noon on Tuesday, he will be declared leader-elect.

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2021-06-21 17:37:30Z
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Covid booster jabs plan to be announced in weeks, says Hancock – as trials into scrapping isolation u... - The Sun

COVID booster jab plans will be announced in weeks, Matt Hancock said today.

The Health Secretary also revealed trials on dropping isolation rules for double jabbed people are taking place.

🔵 Read ourcoronavirus live blog for the latest updates

Plans for a vaccine booster programme could be available in a few weeksCredit: Chris Eades

Matt Hancock said the data would be ready soon for a plan to be madeCredit: 3

He said it's "something I want to see", with it being brought in as soon as is "reasonable to do so".

Mr Hancock said the Government is working on the booster programme, and said data should be ready in the next few weeks.

He told BBC Breakfast that second jabs offer very strong protection "but there is more protection still that we think that you can get from a booster jab and we're currently trialling which combinations of jabs are the most effective".

"When we know the results of that, then we will set out the full plans for the booster programme over the autumn," he said.

"We've got to make sure we get the logistics right; for instance, GPs have been so heavily involved in this vaccination effort, but GPs have also got to do their day job, so that's something we're working hard on now, and, in the next few weeks, when we get the clinical data through on what's the most effective combinations to have... then we'll set out all the details of the booster programme for the autumn."

Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers, warned the health service needs time to plan for vaccine booster campaigns to make them "business as usual" instead of "emergency response".

"There are a bunch of questions that really do need to be answered in terms of looking forward to the next phase," he told Times Radio.

These include: how long protection lasts, whether people can "mix and match" the vaccines they have had, how new vaccines will be incorporated into the vaccine roster.

PLANS TO COME

They will also cover what the level of protection is against new variants and whether vaccines need "tweaking", what the plan is for vaccinating children, and whether the vaccine can be given alongside the flu jab, he said.

Mr Hopson added: "Flu jabs start in September, so if we're going to do one jab in one arm, one jab in the other, we really do need to know quite quickly.

"And that's why we've called today for the Government to do all it can to get us the answers to those questions. We need those answers really pretty quickly if we're to carry on our fantastic success."

It's hoped that the booster jabs will help prevent an autumn wave of the virus in the UK.

People receiving the booster shot will have to be 30 or over and will need to have been jabbed early on in the vaccine programme.

This could mean people over the age of 75, as well as health and care workers would receive the extra jab as part of the trial.

When we know the results of that, then we will set out the full plans for the booster programme over the autumn.

Matt Hancock

So far in the UK 36.9 million people have received a first dose of a coronavirus jab, with 20.8 million now having had a second.

It comes after Boris Johnson is "unlikely" to bring Freedom Day forward and release England from lockdown on July 5, a Cabinet minister warned today.

Business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said the PM will "err on the side of caution" and stick to the July 19 date for the great reopening.

And he insisted No 10 is set to once more resist pressure from angry Tory MPs to speed up the lifting of restrictions.

His remarks come after health chiefs warned the end of lockdown “can’t be accelerated to July 5” as England is “probably not in the right place”.

Mr Kwarteng said this morning: "Generally we've stuck to the dates that we've said.

"I remember the previous dates, there was a lot of push to try and get April 12 earlier, May 17 earlier, that didn't happen.

"I would always err on the side of caution and I would look to July 19. It could be before but I think that's unlikely."

And youngsters aged 16 and 17 are to be offered a ­vaccine before they head back to school in September, The Sun can reveal.

Ministers want to roll out jabs to children for the first time — subject to approval from top medics, which insiders say could come within weeks.

They also want to offer all A-Level and college students aged 16 and 17 a vaccine in August, before they head back to education in the autumn.

Face mask laws and fines to be BINNED from July 19, Matt Hancock reveals

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2021-06-21 09:01:00Z
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COVID-19: Boris Johnson says it's 'looking good' for 19 July - but won't rule out further lockdowns in the winter - Sky News

The prime minister has said it is "looking good" for 19 July to be the "terminus point" for England's coronavirus restrictions - but did not rule out the prospect of further lockdowns in the winter.

"You can never exclude that there will be some new disease, some new horror that we simply haven't budgeted for or accounted for," Boris Johnson said when asked if he could discount the possibility of reimposing COVID-19 measures later this year.

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'Unlikely' restrictions will lift before 19 July

"But looking at where we are, at the efficacy of the vaccines against all variants that we can currently see, I think it's looking good for 19 July to be that terminus point."

The PM said the country could be in for a "rough winter for all sorts of reasons".

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He continued: "Obviously there are big pressures on the NHS, which is all the more reason to reduce the number of COVID cases now, give the NHS the breathing space it needs to get on with dealing with all those other pressures.

"We're certainly going to be putting in the investment to make sure that they can."

More on Covid-19

Government adviser Dr Susan Hopkins warned at the weekend there may be the need for winter lockdowns if hospitals become "overwhelmed" at some point.

Mr Johnson also played down the prospect of COVID restrictions being lifted early.

When he announced a four-week postponement of step four of England's roadmap out of lockdown - pushing it from 21 June to 19 July - the PM said a review would take place on 5 July to see if action could be taken sooner.

But while Mr Johnson said the vaccination rollout was "going gangbusters", Delta variant case numbers were "sadly going up still".

"It's going up by about 30% a week in cases, hospitalisations are up by roughly the same amount and so, sadly, are ICU admissions into intensive care," he said.

"We've got to be cautious but we'll be following the data the whole time."

Downing Street has also sought to dampen down suggestions of an early unlocking, with the PM's spokesman telling reporters: "We will monitor case data day by day to see if moving forward after two weeks is possible.

"You'll see the data we are looking at - 10,000 cases recorded for the third day in a row on Saturday which is the highest level since 2 February.

"The seven-day average for hospitalisations also continues to rise. ICU intake is also rising."

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Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng told Sky News earlier on Monday that lifting restrictions two weeks early was "unlikely".

Generally we have stuck to the dates we have set. I think now I am very focused on 19 July," he said.

The PM also confirmed the government was "looking at" possibly exempting those who have been fully vaccinated from having to quarantine after returning from abroad.

But he played down suggestions a widespread relaxation of restrictions on international travel was in the offing.

"I want to stress that this is going to be - whatever happens - a difficult year for travel," Mr Johnson said.

"There will be hassle, there will be delays, I am afraid, because the priority has got to be to keep the country safe and stop the virus coming back in."

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2021-06-21 11:48:45Z
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Covid booster vaccine plan to come in a few weeks - Matt Hancock - BBC News

Plans for a Covid booster jab programme in the autumn will be set out in the next few weeks, Matt Hancock has said.

The health secretary said ministers were waiting for results from trials of different combinations of vaccines.

It comes after doctors and NHS trusts said planning for a booster rollout must start now as it will involve bigger challenges.

They said many questions needed answering, including how long immunity from the original Covid jab lasts.

The issue of whether children will be vaccinated also still remains, health leaders said.

• Will vaccines affect my fertility? And other questions
• How can I get my second jab sooner?
• The people feeling vaccine guilt

"We are currently trialling which combinations of jabs are the most effective," Mr Hancock told BBC Breakfast.

"In the next few weeks, when we get the clinical data through on what's the most effective combinations to have… then we'll set out all the details for the booster programme for the autumn."

Among the ongoing trials is the UK's Cov-Boost trial, which is testing different combinations of third doses across England.

A senior government source said the UK would also benefit from new vaccines from Novavax and Valneva, which are awaiting approval from the UK's medicines regulator.

So far, nearly 60% of UK adults have had two jabs of the vaccine, meaning they are fully vaccinated, and more than four in five adults have had their first dose.

People have been rushing to get their vaccines in recent days, with more than one million jabs booked on Friday and Saturday in England after vaccinations opened to all over-18s.

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Ministers have repeatedly said that vaccination is the way out of lockdown, and the delay to England's lockdown ending from 21 June until 19 July was partly to allow more people to get vaccinated.

Some restrictions have been eased on Monday though, the original date for lockdown ending - and what some had dubbed Freedom Day.

The number of guests at a wedding is no longer limited to 30 (although there are capacity rules depending on a venue's size), visiting arrangements for care homes are changing, children can go on overnight trips in groups of 30, and pilots of large events like Euro 2020 games will continue.

And in Wales, rules are also being lifted slightly, including Covid capacity restrictions for music and comedy and the limits on weddings changing in line with a venue's size.

In Northern Ireland, a planned easing of restrictions has been pushed back to at least 5 July, and current rules in Scotland are expected to be extended until mid-July.

The average number of daily confirmed cases of coronavirus is now rising in the UK, with a further 9,284 announced by the government on Sunday. A further six deaths were announced.

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On Monday, Chris Hopson, the head of NHS Providers, which represents NHS hospitals and trusts in England, and Royal College of GPs chairman Martin Marshall said the 19 July target to offer a first dose to all adults was "not so much a finishing line as a staging post".

The government has previously promised there will be a booster programme for the Covid jab - but the health leaders said the prospect of a yearly Covid vaccine would bring "arguably greater challenges", and it was important to know:

• How long will protection from the original double doses last - and will boosters be needed?
• Will people get the same vaccine as the original one they got?
• How will tweaking the vaccines for new variants work?
• Will Covid vaccines be tweaked every year, like the flu vaccine, or will it be more frequently?
• Will children be vaccinated and if so, when, where and how, because of the need to get consent?

They also said combining the Covid and flu vaccine rollouts - for example a Covid jab in one arm and a flu jab in the other - needed to be explored, but that would make the rollout more complex.

And they said there needed to be investment in proper vaccination venues rather than relying on sports stadiums or community facilities.

"Since flu jabs start in September we need ministers and the JCVI - the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation - to really answer those questions as quickly as possible, so we're ready to administer the jabs we need to in the autumn," Mr Hopson told the BBC.

Mr Hopson and Mr Marshall said there needed to be a sustainable approach to vaccination, which meant the NHS could carry on vaccinating while also doing its other work.

"We cannot just carry on as we are, with an emergency response largely delivered by an overstretched workforce," they said.

They are asking questions rather than coming up with solutions but health leaders have identified a major challenge for the coming winter.

Offering a first dose to all adults by 19 July is seen as just a first step in a long haul with Covid.

Given that booster vaccines will be needed, GPs and NHS trusts want to know the logistics of what will be a complex process on top of the usual winter pressures and dealing with the backlog of non-urgent work.

Doctors and their practice teams have gone the extra mile to help deliver the Covid vaccination programme but they want to ensure day-to-day patient care is not compromised.

The flu season might seem some way off but the normal vaccination campaigns and rollout start in September each year.

Hence the call for ministers to come with some answers and longer term plans soon.

Prof Anthony Harnden, deputy chairman of the JCVI, which advises UK health departments on vaccination, said decisions on booster jabs would be "based on the best available evidence" but the committee was also conscious of the need for the programme to be planned by the NHS.

He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme data on how flu and Covid vaccines could react to each other if given together would be available "very soon".

Prof Harnden added that flu could be "potentially a bigger problem" than Covid this winter because of the low prevalence in the last few years, particularly during lockdown, meaning the level of immunity in the population had dropped.

On whether under-18s could be offered a Covid vaccine, he said "we need to think very carefully what the benefits are to children themselves", and the JCVI would be considering this in the next few weeks.

The committee has not yet made a formal recommendation on the matter.

The World Health Organization has previously urged rich countries like the UK to donate doses to poorer countries before organising booster jabs.

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2021-06-21 08:48:58Z
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