Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on household finances of the new requirement to wear personal protective equipment in public spaces.

The Government’s guidance encourages people to make their own face covering at home, using readily available textiles that can be washed, and reused after every use. Guidance on how to make and wear face coverings is available on GOV.UK. In addition, the Government is running a major proactive communications campaign on face coverings to alert the public where they are now required to wear face coverings and educate the public on how to correctly wear one.

Face coverings are not classified as personal protective equipment which is used in a limited number of settings to protect wearers against hazards and risks, such as surgical masks or respirators used in medical and industrial settings. We urge the public not to purchase medical or surgical masks as these must be reserved for health and social care workers who face the greatest risk.