Oral Answers to Questions

Bill Esterson Excerpts

Tuesday 19th October 2021 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

My hon. Friend is right to raise the extra pressures that Kirklees is seeing. Public health officials and local council members are doing everything they can. Extra support is available—something we keep under review—but he is right to raise the importance of the booster programme. The more people who get boosted and the sooner they do so when they are eligible, the better it will be for not just them but the whole community.

[Bill Esterson (Sefton Central) (Lab)]

Across the continent of Europe, mask wearing, ventilation in buildings and the use of green passes for events are commonplace. They also have much lower infection rates, hospitalisations and deaths, so while the Secretary of State addresses the backlog in the roll-out of vaccinations for children and of boosters, will he consider implementing the very good practice that can be seen in other countries?

[Sajid Javid]

In terms of the challenges of the pandemic and the challenges more generally over winter, the Government have set out a detailed plan. It depends very much on vaccinations, treatments, testing and surveillance, but we keep it constantly under review and, should we need to do more, there are contingencies.