International Health Regulations: Amendments - Question

Part of the debate – in the House of Lords at 2:36 pm on 7 May 2024.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of Lord Markham Lord Markham The Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Health and Social Care 2:36, 7 May 2024

We are talking about two very different things here. One is ensuring that, as a country, we are armed with the information as quickly as possible so that we can act; getting the genomic sequencing of the original strain was vital for us to be able to prepare a vaccine so quickly, so that information sharing is vital. In terms of the impact on our ability to act as a sovereign Government, that is something very different; it is key and understood, and the Covid inquiry now is all about learning lessons. As my noble friend knows, I have personal views about that second lockdown: we need to be looking at the wider impact of that second lockdown in areas such as mental health and other areas in which there was an impact on children, but that is a matter that will always be for the UK Government to decide on.