Sajid Javid today pledges to do all he can to prevent another lockdown in this year.
Writing in the Daily Mail, the Health Secretary says any fresh curbs on freedoms must be ‘an absolute last resort’, adding that the country is in ‘a far stronger position’ at the start of 2022 than it was 12 months ago.
Due to Omicron, the rapidly-evolving Omicron variant of Coronavirus, Coronavirus cases continue to increase. Official figures yesterday showed that up to 41% of patients in Britain with Covid-19 went to hospital to get treatment. Nationally, the figure is 1 in 3.
Mr Javid says the numbers in intensive care units remain stable, meaning ‘we have welcomed in 2022 with some of the least restrictive measures in Europe’. Mr Javid went on: ‘Curbs on our freedom must be an absolute last resort and the British people rightly expect us to do everything in our power to avert them.
Sajid Javid (Health Secretary), said that Britons would have to adjust to the existence of Covid-19.
‘Since I came into this role six months ago, I’ve also been acutely conscious of the enormous health, social and economic costs of lockdowns.
‘So I’ve been determined that we must give ourselves the best chance of living alongside the virus and avoiding strict measures in the future.’
You can also find other developments here:
- A further 189,846 lab-confirmed Covid-19 cases were reported in the UK yesterday – another record for daily reported cases. There were also another 203 deaths.
- According to data from the Office for National Statistics, an estimated 2.33 million people had Covid-19 during the week that ended December 23rd. This is the most ever recorded.
- Britain’s coronavirus heroes are recognised in the New Year Honours today, including knighthoods for Professor Chris Whitty and Sir Patrick Vallance.
- In order to prevent rising Covid infections, over a dozen hospitals nationwide temporarily prohibited visitors.
- In the UK, there has been a decrease in Covid patients in mechanical ventilation. It went from 931 people on November 30, to just 868 December 29.
- Pressure grew for England’s isolation period to be cut from seven to five days after Greece became the latest country to make the move.
- South Africa has lifted its midnight curfew after 21 months of the Omicron wave, which was not accompanied by overwhelming hospitals.
- Britain became one of the first countries in the world to approve a second pill that can treat Covid at home – this time a Pfizer antiviral.
Sajid Javid is the Health Secretary. He said that while he does not rule out another lockdown, any move will be considered an ‘last resort.
His warning was that there would be an increase in NHS patients over the coming month due to the delay between hospitalisations and infections.
Javid claimed that the European government has introduced the most stringent Covid-19 regulations in Europe. He pictured Londoners on Regent Street on Christmas Eve
Britain was also among the first to reopen. This photo shows people in Soho, April 16.
Javid did not rule out another lockdown. Government sources stated that they still needed critical data about the effects of Christmas on Covid’s spread.
The Health Secretary warned: ‘Due to the time lag between infections and hospitalisations, it’s inevitable that we will still see a big increase in people needing care from the NHS over the next month. This will likely test the limits of finite NHS capacity even more than a typical winter.’
However, NHS England figures show the number of patients in hospital ‘with Covid’ is growing almost twice as quickly as the number who are there ‘because of’ the disease.
There were 8,321 patients with coronavirus in NHS hospitals in England on December 28 – but only 5,578 of them were being treated primarily for the disease. One in three Covid victims were admitted to hospital with another condition (e.g., a broken leg).
It is now one in four, up from the December 12th figure of one-in-four. 40% of patients admitted to hospital Covid in the Midlands are now suffering from the virus.
Patients being treated for Covid in England hospitals rose 26 percent from 4,432 in December 21st, to 5,578 seven days later.
However, the proportion of Covid-positive patients who are primarily treated for another condition jumped 51% in that same time period from 1,813 a 2,743.
Two separate charts show that the percentage of patients in adult acute and general hospitals occupied with any condition has fallen from 93% to 87% over the last week. This is helping relieve pressure on NHS.
Carl Heneghan, professor of evidence-based medicine at Oxford University, said: ‘I am worried these figures for people in hospital with Covid – rather than because of it – could bounce us into a lockdown or further restrictions in January.
‘The high numbers create anxiety in government and the public based on erroneous conclusions.
‘Accurate statistics on true Covid cases hospitalised are required to back up the reassuring data on intensive care admission, which has remained stable, and verify that this variant is not making a large proportion of people severely ill.’
NHS England has pointed out that Covid-positive admissions being treated primarily for something else have to be separated from non-Covid patients, and that the virus can be a ‘significant’ secondary condition. It added: ‘The majority of inpatients with Covid-19 are admitted as a result of the infection.’
SAJID JAVID: ‘I’m acutely aware of the cost of curbs – we must try to live with Covid’
While we made significant breakthroughs in 2021 it also was a year when new threats arose, particularly the Omicron variant, which is still spreading rapidly around the globe.
Despite this new adversary, the steps we took, especially the expansion of this country’s booster programme, meant we saw in the New Year in a far stronger position than we were at the end of 2020.
Even though this is a troubling time, the Office for National Statistics’ latest data shows that one-in-25 English citizens tested positive for Covid-19 last week. Furthermore, hospitalisations continue to increase.
Sajid Javid (Health Secretary), pictured today, stated that patients currently in ICUs are not following the same trajectory as last year’s Alpha wave.
The UK Health and Security Agency recently revealed that Covid-19 is three to eight times more common in people who are not vaccinated.
The Alpha wave was a success, and the numbers are steady in ICUs. We decided to not put in any additional measures before the New Year, and instead welcomed 2022 with some European measures that are least restrictive.
We must not allow restrictions on freedom. The British people expect us to make every effort to avoid them. Since I came into this role six months ago, I’ve also been acutely conscious of the enormous health, social and economic costs of lockdowns. So I’ve been determined that we must give ourselves the best chance of living alongside the virus and avoiding strict measures in the future.
To help us achieve this, we’ve built up three lines of defence which, when taken together, are some of the deepest and the strongest in the world.
First, of course, is the vaccination programme, and we’ve now met our highly ambitious target that we would offer every eligible adult in England the opportunity to get a booster by the end of 2021.
We’ve now met our highly ambitious target that we would offer every eligible adult in England the opportunity to get a booster by the end of 2021
The UK Health and Security Agency has revealed that people without a vaccination are anywhere from three to eight times more likely than those with a valid vaccine to receive Covid-19. It all depends on the age of the person. Every jab can save someone’s life and help them stay out of trouble.
Second, we’ve built up a huge testing infrastructure. We saw the benefits of regular testing over Christmas. Regular tests give us confidence in our ability to live with loved ones. Although it has been a time of massive global demand, we almost tripled distribution of lateral flow tests in December, to 300million, and we’re also tripling the supply for January and February compared to our pre-Omicron plans.
The third line of defense is treatment, which we offer the best antivirals program in Europe. Paxlovid has been approved yesterday by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. This is a leading antiviral treatment. We’ve secured almost three million courses, and Paxlovid will join an array of Covid-19 treatments that we’re making available.
These defenses can keep large numbers of people from going to the hospital. However, even though we’ve seen some encouraging research about the severity of Omicron, its increased transmissibility means it can still lead to significant numbers of hospitalisations.
Due to the time lag between infections and hospitalisations, it’s inevitable that we will still see a big increase in people needing care from the NHS over the next month. This will likely test the NHS’s limits even more than in a normal winter.
I’ve been working closely with the NHS, to make sure it is ready and resilient for what lies ahead. We’ve recruited almost 20,000 more clinical staff since September 2020 and we’re boosting bed capacity too, including through new Nightingale surge hubs within hospital grounds.
As we begin 2022, we also enter our third year in a global pandemic – a pandemic that is still far from over. While we face it in a stronger position because of all the incredible work that’s been done this past year, we all have a part to play in making sure we get off to the best possible start: by keeping each other safe, testing ourselves regularly, and if we’re eligible, by getting the jab.