covid and therefore tough measures to keep r below one but also required more research and support from the nhs who found it quite difficult because it was a new disease and because of its nature presenting in many different ways, they found that long tarmac difficult to categorise at first and so with simon stephens will work together to bring forward clinics that could look across the range of conditions that are mostly gathered under the term long covid. i cared a lot about this for personal reasons as well as professional. we did not need to sign off from the centre, we just got on with it. do you happen to know, notwithstanding the early days of 2020, the campaign about long covid wasn t launched until october, do you know why there was that potential lag in the communication side of the debate? side of the debate? yes, i think it was essentially side of the debate? yes, i think it was essentially bleak, was essentially bleak, understandably the clinicians found it
of countermeasures. why did you not say those things? say those things? that is not howl would characterise say those things? that is not howl would characterise the say those things? that is not howl would characterise the situation. i would characterise the situation. the first thing is that i am not confident that by this cabinet meeting, i will have known that sage had concluded that containment was lost. and in fact, i don t think that i was told that for a number of days after. as i said, i m not exactly sure when i was told that. but this meeting was the morning after the minutes of sage coming to that conclusion. secondly, at this point in the department and nphet and the health service, we were working extremely hard to prepare for the pandemic. i had commissioned the action plan and work was under way on that and phe. we were attempting and pushing phe to build the testing system and all of the other things we were directly responsible for. as i say, we were
lockdown was on the 25th. i discussed on the 25th. so the i lockdown was on the 25th. one discussed on the 25th. so the - lockdown was on the 25th. one final question. lockdown was on the 25th. one final question. please, lockdown was on the 25th. one final question, please, in lockdown was on the 25th. one final question, please, in relation- lockdown was on the 25th. one final question, please, in relation to - lockdown was on the 25th. one final question, please, in relation to the i question, please, in relation to the tockdown question, please, in relation to the lockdown decision, question, please, in relation to the lockdown decision, mr question, please, in relation to the lockdown decision, mr hancock. i question, please, in relation to the i lockdown decision, mr hancock. could we just lockdown decision, mr hancock. could we just have lockdown decision, mr hancock. could we just have up lockdown decision, mr hancock. could we just have up to lockdown
on the other. and those only finally got resolved at the very start of april with the cdc evidence. fin got resolved at the very start of april with the cdc evidence. on the 11th of march april with the cdc evidence. on the 11th of march at april with the cdc evidence. on the 11th of march at a april with the cdc evidence. on the 11th of march at a cabinet april with the cdc evidence. on the 11th of march at a cabinet meeting, l 11th of march at a cabinet meeting, you saidm iith of march at a cabinet meeting, you said. unless 11th of march at a cabinet meeting, you said. unless individuals - 11th of march at a cabinet meeting, you said. unless individuals were| you said. unless individuals were symptomatic. you said. unless individuals were symptomatic, there you said. unless individuals were symptomatic, there was you said. unless individuals were symptomatic, there was no - you said. unless individuals were symptomatic, there was no point l you said. unles
consensus was that there is no documented asymptomatic transmission therefore policy was based on the assumption that covid transmitted as source. i had by this stage a significant amount of anecdotal evidence and hence i have gone over the sand over this and over this in my mind. if i had just said the science is different, that would not have carried the system with me because i m not representative of the people, if you like, as the secretary of state and the scientific advice was very clear to the contrary. what i could have done was said you know, that may be the formal scientific advice, i am overrunning it and say instead marvellous and asymptomatic transmission, that would have had risks on the other side of assuming spread for it may have been unlikely to happen and but with hindsight of course i wish i had done that hence it is my single biggest regret but what i am trying. mr it is my single biggest regret but what i am trying. . . what i am trying. mr hancock, er