Give us facts about the TRUE cost of Covid, ministers told
A SENIOR Tory MP has called for the full cost of lockdowns to be disclosed as he highlighted their ‘extraordinary toll’ on mental health, the NHS and the economy.
Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 Committee of backbenchers, said that figures for excess deaths and lost jobs should be shown alongside Covid-19 statistics.
The influential Tory MP represents a northern constituency, Altrincham and Sale West, which is among those now under the harshest Tier Three restrictions.
In a warning to the Prime Minister, he said that the current lockdown strategy let ‘people fall through the cracks’ and in some cases cost them their lives.
The measures were taking an ‘extraordinary toll’ on peoples’ lives and were having ‘severe’ effects on the economy without continued Treasury support, he added.
Writing on the Conservative Home website, he warned: ‘Suicide rates are up. People are missing out on life-saving operations and essential care.’
‘Millions are struggling with their mental health as restrictions cut them off from friends, family, and other support. Domestic violence is on the rise as women are trapped at home with violent partners.
‘Young people, amongst those least at risk from Covid-19, are paying a huge price. School has been disrupted, formative moments and milestones missed, and now many are confined to their dormitories at university. Does anyone honestly think this is sustainable for a year, or more?’
He added: ‘As we brace for what might be a long-haul fight against the pandemic, the Government must start accounting properly for the real costs of Covid-19.
‘The Department of Health should compile and publish the statistics for excess deaths arising from reduced access to care. The Treasury should do the same for shuttered businesses and lost jobs.
‘The Government is rightly committed to trying to save as many people as possible. A strategy which fixates on Covid patients at the expense of letting other people fall between the cracks does not do this.’