UK was ‘unprepared’

THE UK was not fully prepared for the pandemic, England’s deputy chief medical officer has said.

Dr Jenny Harries said more testing would have been carried out if tests were available earlier on, and knowledge about asymptomatic transmission could have resulted in a prompt recommendation to wear masks.

Dr Harries said: “We were not fully prepared for this pandemic and, as I’ve said, I’m happy to accept there is an awful lot to learn.”