Covid-19

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 12:35 pm on 25 May 2021.

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Photo of Emma Lewell-Buck Emma Lewell-Buck Labour, South Shields 12:35, 25 May 2021

South Shields and North Tyneside are interconnected. Today, my community and businesses are incredibly anxious. We know that local lockdowns do not work and inevitably lead to national ones. We know that it is likely that there will be other variants of this virus, which may well be with us for ever. Lockdowns break our economy and society, cause mental distress, delay vital cancer treatments, lead to further unemployment and exacerbate inequalities. Can the Minister explain why the Government’s response—instead of fixing test, trace and isolate, for example—is always more restrictions and endless cycles of lockdown?