Alternative to lockdown would be ‘much worse’
HEALTH Secretary Matt Hancock said that the alternative would be “so much worse” if the Government did not act to announce new lockdown measures.
He told MPs: “We know of the real impacts that these steps will have on so many lives and livelihoods. We know the hardship that will be faced and the jobs lost, we cannot save them all.
“But the alternative of not acting would have been so much worse. When faced with such a deadly adversary, we cannot stand aside and let it spread unchecked through our communities when we know the devastation it would cause.
“Not just to the NHS and not only in the mounting death toll, but I firmly believe the impact on our economy would be worse too. The devastation that the virus would wreak if unchecked would impact the NHS’ ability to treat Covid and non-Covid patients for all those who need treatment in the NHS right now.
“The action we propose right now will help to ensure that the NHS has what it needs to give them the world-class care that we’ve all come to expect.”
Mr Hancock said that there is “no quick fix” to the pandemic and he urged people to “persevere” to get the virus under control.
He told the Commons: “When coronavirus spreads rapidly, it reaches all parts and many of the most vulnerable can only live with care and support from those outside their home or for instance live in multi-generational households.
“So we must protect the most vulnerable from the disease and we will with renewed shielding advice and support for care homes, but we cannot rely on this alone.
“There is no quick fix to this pandemic, there is no silver bullet and what makes this fight so tough is that the virus thrives on all the things that make life worth living – the joy of social contact, the communal events that give us so much happiness and fulfilment.
“But we must persevere together to get it under control.”