Kevin Fong, Charlotte Summers, and Tim Cook unpick arguments that the NHS was not overwhelmed by covid-19, highlighting its legacy effects on healthcare and lessons for future health crises
During the UK’s covid-19 inquiry we have heard that “there was an inbuilt reluctance to accept that it was possible to get to a point where the NHS was overwhelmed” and that NHS capacity was regarded as “elastic.”1 The question of whether the NHS was overwhelmed during the covid-19 pandemic has become an important point of debate. Some commentators continue to suggest that the NHS prepared for a surge in admissions that did not threaten NHS capacity and unnecessarily suspended services.234
These comments either misunderstand or misrepresent the nature of the threat, the NHS response to covid-19, and the concept of capacity in healthcare services. NHS capacity is a complex property of a complex sociotechnical system; it cannot be described through simple numerical counts of bed spaces, oc
GCHQ backs study into how best to change people s behaviour via social media propaganda campaigns
Britain s cyber spy agency is funding five research projects looking at the biggest threats to national security
10 December 2020 • 6:30am
What did you think of first? Spying, or lunch?
Credit: Joe Raedle/ Filename:
GCHQ has backed a study into how best to change people s behaviour via social media propaganda campaigns.
The cyber spy agency is funding five research programmes across British universities to identify the biggest national security threats to the UK.
Topics including hostile misinformation campaigns, female participation in extremist organisations and cyber attacks on smart buildings will be examined over the next six months.