His answer was equally concise: “There’s no point - the virus is already here.”
With those words in a meeting last March, Britain’s border policy was set in stone, not by Professor Whitty but by the Cabinet ministers surrounding him who chose not to query the logic of Prof Whitty and his Sage colleagues.
And from that moment to this, the Government has been accused by detractors of failing to shut the stable door even after the horse had bolted.
For some, it is the decision to allow direct flights from China even after Beijing had banned internal travel - and while Britain itself was in a strict domestic lockdown - that is the most baffling.
Attack on unconscious bias by KPMG boss fuels ministers’ scepticism
Ministers scrapped unconscious bias training sessions for civil servants in England last year saying they do not work
17 February 2021 • 12:30pm
Unconscious bias refers to a theory that people make implicit assumptions about others without realising and then act in accordance with those beliefs
An outburst by KPMG’s deposed chairman that “unconscious bias is complete c -” has added fuel to ministers’ belief that focusing on unspoken prejudices will not improve workplace equality.
Ministers scrapped unconscious bias sessions for civil servants in England last year, claiming that they do not work. The move is being characterised as part of a wider “war on woke” by the Conservatives.
Ministers have ordered Government departments to scrap controversial unconscious bias training after an official study found no evidence it works.
In a significant blow to the woke agenda in Whitehall, the Cabinet Office will today announce plans to end mandatory courses in tackling unconscious bias for civil service managers.
The trendy training works on the assumption that most managers are biased against minorities without even realising it – and teaches them strategies to overcome their unconscious prejudices.
In recent years, the training has spread like wildfire through Whitehall.
In a significant blow to the woke agenda in Whitehall, the Government plans to scrap unconscious bias training for civil service managers. The Department for Work and Pensions (pictured) has spent £112,500 on the training over five years