Minister: Sick will get food delivered. Shops:No chance
Supermarkets blast Hancock over ‘fanciful, bogus’ claims
SUPERMARKETS have rubbished Government claims about mass food deliveries to the sick as ‘fanciful, bogus and misleading’.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock implied talks have been held with retailers to supply groceries through online orders and home delivery to Britons who are self-isolating.
But chains insist they do not have the vehicles and drivers to cope with a sudden spike in demand – and the only way to increase the number might be to call in the Army.
One senior retail source said: ‘Currently the share of groceries bought online is about 6 or 7 per cent across all supermarkets.
‘There are enough vans and infrastructure to supply that 7 per cent. More could be switched on over time but it’s not like flicking a switch.’
The Health Secretary made his claims on BBC’s Question Time on Thursday evening. He said the Government was ‘absolutely confident there won’t be a problem’ with food supply.
However, talks with retailers about home deliveries were only initiated yesterday. The major online grocers – Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Waitrose and Ocado – have a fixed number of vehicles and drivers with little scope to boost numbers.
Senior industry analyst Bruno Monteyne, of stockbrokers Bernstein – who is a former Tesco executive – said online delivery slots will be swallowed up very quickly.
He said: ‘There is a limited capacity for home delivery. So very soon it will probably be near-impossible to get a delivery slot.
‘If we really get to a bad outbreak with major staff shortages, I think there will be a case to be made that the drivers will be better utilised in keeping the shelves full and supporting the core operation of “feeding the nation”.’
He questioned the safety of delivering to people who may be infected with coronavirus, asking: ‘How responsible is it for a self-isolating person to get a driver to deliver to him?
‘Why put the person that feeds you at risk of getting the virus?’
Stores plan to deliver shopping to the doorstep without any need for personal contact, but that may not be possible in all cases. Fewer than one in ten people – 8 per cent – do all their grocery shopping online, according to retail analysts Mintel. A further 11 per cent do most of their food shopping in this way.
Mr Hancock had said on Question Time: ‘The Government has supplies of the key things that are needed and, within the food supply, we are absolutely confident that there won’t be a problem there.
‘Crucially, we are working with the supermarkets to make sure that, if people are self-isolating, then we will be able to get the food and supplies that they need.’
He warned against panic buying, saying there was ‘absolutely no need’ for people ‘to go round buying more than they need’.
However, many have already cleared shelves of hand sanitiser, painkillers and toilet paper. Shops have seen increased purchases of disinfectant, pasta, rice and canned goods. The British Retail Consortium has asked ministers to suspend regulations that limit driver hours and store deliveries.
Chief executive Helen Dickinson said it would ‘ease pressure in the supply chain’.
Meanwhile, Environment Secretary George Eustice held a hastily arranged conference call with retailers yesterday. He said: ‘They reassured me they have well-established contingency plans and are taking all necessary steps to ensure consumers have the food and supplies they need. Retailers are continuing to monitor their supply chains and have robust plans in place to minimise disruption.
‘I will be convening a further meeting with industry, retailers and public sector organisations early next week to discuss support for vulnerable groups who may be in isolation.’
‘Why put that person at risk?’