Asked by: Mark Harper (Conservative - Forest of Dean)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to paragraph 35 of Covid-19 Response: Summer 2021, published on 5 July 2021, if he will publish his contingency plans for reimposing economic and social restrictions at a (a) local, (b) regional and (c) national level.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt - Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons
In September, the Government will undertake a review to assess the country’s preparedness for autumn and winter, which will consider whether to continue or strengthen public and business guidance as we approach the winter, including on face coverings and test, trace and isolate, and will review the remaining regulations.
The Government will maintain contingency plans for reimposing economic and social restrictions at a local, regional or national level if evidence suggests they are necessary to suppress or manage a dangerous variant. Such measures would only be re-introduced as a last resort to prevent unsustainable pressure on the NHS.
Asked by: Mark Harper (Conservative - Forest of Dean)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to paragraph 36 of his Department's guidance, Covid-19 Response: Summer 2021, published on 5 July 2021, whether his definition of appropriate parliamentary scrutiny of the matter of potential covid-status certification would include a vote by the House of Commons prior to any such certification being implemented.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt - Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons
The COVID-status certification review has concluded that, although certification is not required at the present time, it could be a useful tool in the future as a means of keeping events going and businesses open if the country is facing a difficult situation in autumn or winter.
Any future implementation of certification would involve consultation and appropriate parliamentary scrutiny.
No policy decisions have been taken at this time.
Asked by: Mark Harper (Conservative - Forest of Dean)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to paragraph 36 of Covid-19 Response: Summer 2021, published on 5 July 2021, whether appropriate Parliamentary scrutiny will include a vote by the House before the implementation of the proposals set out in paragraph 36.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt - Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons
The COVID-status certification review has concluded that, although certification is not required at the present time, it could be a useful tool in the future as a means of keeping events going and businesses open if the country is facing a difficult situation in autumn or winter.
Any future implementation of certification would involve consultation and appropriate parliamentary scrutiny.
No policy decisions have been taken at this time.
Asked by: Mark Harper (Conservative - Forest of Dean)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to paragraph 26 of Covid-19 Response: Summer 2021 and his Oral Statement of 6 July 2021, Official Report, column 753, what the evidential basis is for the selection of 16 Aug 2021 as the date to implement the policy change on self-isolation after contact with a positive case.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The exemption regarding self-isolation for the fully vaccinated after contact with a positive case is being introduced in mid-August to allow more people to become fully vaccinated, reducing the risk of severe illness.
Public Health England’s (PHE) analysis published on 14 June shows the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine is 96% effective against hospitalisation after two doses and the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine is 92% effective against hospitalisation after two doses. As the vaccine programme progresses, links between cases and hospitalisations weaken. PHE’s analysis shows the vaccination programme has already prevented over 44,500 hospitalisations and 27,000 deaths in England. Consequently, introduction of the change in August will reduce the risk of further transmission, hospitalisations and deaths.
Asked by: Mark Harper (Conservative - Forest of Dean)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to the Answer of 6 July 2021 to Question 25746 on the resignation of the former Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make it his policy to commission the Director General of the Propriety and Ethics Team in the Cabinet Office to investigate and report to him on matters on the conduct of Government Ministers.
Answered by Boris Johnson
Paragraph 1.4 of the Ministerial Code sets out the process for investigating alleged breaches of the Code.
Asked by: Mark Harper (Conservative - Forest of Dean)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Prime Minister, what steps he (a) took on 25 June 2021 and (b) has taken subsequently to establish the facts on the matters which led to the resignation of the former Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on 26 June 2021.
Answered by Boris Johnson
My Rt Hon Friend the Member for West Suffolk wrote to me on 26 June 2021, offering his resignation as Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. I replied the same day accepting his resignation. These letters are a matter of public record.
Asked by: Mark Harper (Conservative - Forest of Dean)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Prime Minister, whether he (a) directly or (b) indirectly commissioned the Independent Adviser on Ministers’ Interests to investigate and report on the matters which led to the resignation of the former Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on 26 June 2021.
Answered by Boris Johnson
My Rt Hon Friend the Member for West Suffolk wrote to me on 26 June 2021, offering his resignation as Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. I replied the same day accepting his resignation. These letters are a matter of public record.
Asked by: Mark Harper (Conservative - Forest of Dean)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Prime Minister, whether he (a) directly or (b) indirectly commissioned the Director General, Propriety & Ethics, Cabinet Office to investigate and report on the matters which led to the resignation of the former Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on 26 June 2021.
Answered by Boris Johnson
My Rt Hon Friend the Member for West Suffolk wrote to me on 26 June 2021, offering his resignation as Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. I replied the same day accepting his resignation. These letters are a matter of public record.
Asked by: Mark Harper (Conservative - Forest of Dean)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of people hospitalised with the B.1.617.2 variant of covid-19 to date were (a) unvaccinated and (b) vaccinated with (i) one dose or (ii) two doses.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
As of 25 May 2021, Public Health England has recorded 5,559 cases of B.1.617.2 infection with 201 cases attending emergency care. Of these 201 cases, 138 were unvaccinated at the time of presentation to emergency care. 52 had received a single dose of vaccine while five cases had received both doses. The vaccination status of six cases is unknown.
Asked by: Mark Harper (Conservative - Forest of Dean)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment his Department has made of the efficacy of vaccination in preventing (a) transmission, (b) hospitalisation and (c) death arising from the B.1.617.2 variant of covid-19.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
Public Health England (PHE) has published early estimates of vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic disease with the B.1.617.2 variant which are available at the following link:
https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.05.22.21257658v1
The number of hospitalised cases and deaths from the B.1.617.2 variant of COVID-19 are currently too small to estimate vaccine effectiveness against these outcomes. PHE will continue to monitor the impact of the COVID-19 vaccines on variant B.1.617.2.