‘Government didn’t act quick enough to tackle spread of Omicron’
ACADEMIC: EFFORTS NEED TO BE RAMPED UP GLOBALLY
A LEADING academic has criticised the Government for not moving quickly enough to stop the spread of the Omicron Covid variant.
Dr Arthur Hosie, a microbiologist at Staffordshire University, said the recently-imposed plan B restrictions were inevitable and could have been implemented weeks earlier.
It comes amid concerns about the spread of the Omicron variant, with many leading scientists predicting a rise in hospitalisations that could overwhelm the NHS if left unchecked.
At the time of writing, the Government is reportedly drawing up plans for a two-week lockdown after Christmas.
Dr Hosie said: “I think it was inevitable. If anything, plan B could have been announced even earlier. It is looking likely Omicron will displace Delta as the dominant strain in this country, it’s already looking stronger.
“We need to do what we can to curb the spread of infection. It will result in an increase of hospitalisations despite the vaccine.
“I was watching the coverage of the variant and the South African scientists did a very good job of detecting and sequencing it. Unfortunately, the travel restrictions weren’t in place.
“We didn’t know back then but perhaps if we had gone faster and had pre-departure testing then it may have slowed it down across Europe.
“I think the scientific community is almost holding its breath to see how it will happen. Given the date, we could see 100,000 new cases a day unless we do more to limit it.”
Dr Hosie also said he was “optimistic” vaccines would offer at least some defence against the new variant.
He added: “The early lab results show the vaccines are protective against Omicron, however, it is far too early to find out what will happen.
“There is a real danger in extrapolating lab data and I think it will not always perfectly match real life. There is no info on the real-world scenario. I personally am optimistic the vaccines will have an effect of limiting it but mostly for people with both doses plus boosters.”
He also said the vaccination of people around the world - rather than merely in the UK - should be stepped up, and the question of whether to jab children should be “revisited”.
Dr Hosie said: “It is right to prioritise the vulnerable but we do need to ramp up efforts globally, not just in this country.
“Ultimately, variants arise by chance but there will be more impact if there is less immunity in society. Should we be immunising five to 12-year-olds? I think we need to have that discussion yes. But you can’t just keep jabbing people, there needs to be a lag to let it do its work.
“It is so important to keep kids in education, which they will miss if they are sick. Without a doubt, children have tragically passed away of Covid. It could be avoided through immunisation. It is typically milder in children but I do think we need to revisit the topic.”
When asked if Christmas should be “cancelled” this year, Dr Hosie said people should not abandon their plans. He added: My advice to everyone is to do a lateral flow test.
“Even if you’re fully jabbed. I think more emphasis needs to be on a lateral flow test as opposed to a vaccine passport.
“Plan B is the right thing to do but society needs to take responsibility. If you’re going to a party, if you’re going out, if you’re going to a family house for Christmas, please take a test.”
A Government spokesperson said: “We have taken precautionary action to help slow down the seeding of this variant in the UK from abroad – this will buy time for our world-leading scientists to learn more about Omicron, as there is still significant uncertainty.
“We’ve always been clear that we will respond rapidly if risks from any country increase.”