Matt Hancock urged to 'ditch the soundbites and come clean' about how overwhelmed the NHS was by Covid-19
by Sam Volpe · ChronicleLiveHealth unions have warned former health secretary Matt Hancock to "ditch the soundbites" and be honest about how Covid-19 hit the NHS, when he returns to the independent public inquiry into the pandemic to give evidence.
Leaders at both the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and British Medical Association (BMA) - which between them represent thousands of health workers who were on the NHS front line - have demanded Mr Hancock is "transparent" about how overwhelmed the health service was at the height of the Covid crisis. Mr Hancock has been criticised for using previous evidence sessions at the inquiry to say that the NHS was "never overwhelmed".
A year ago, Mr Hancock denied there had been “absence of a plan” and insisted his department “rose to the challenge” of responding to the biggest public health crisis in a century as he gave evidence to the Inquiry. He is to appear again this week to discuss the impact on the health and care system of Covid-19 once again.
Last year, after fellow Conservative politicians Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak had given evidence, North East people to have lost loved ones told ChronicleLive how angry and upset they had been to see the trio of politicians "shirk responsibility" on this issue. Then, in July, Baroness Hallett's first report from the Inquiry laid bare how the UK and its devolved governments "failed their citizens".
Now, as Mr Hancock again prepares to give evidence - on both Thursday and Friday - BMA council chair Professor Philip Banfield said: "To triumphantly, and repeatedly, say that the NHS was not overwhelmed and that this was a great success for himself and the Government is incredibly galling for our members who worked on the front lines during the pandemic – and to whom we owe a debt of gratitude for preventing health services from collapsing entirely.
“It shows a former health secretary who was completely detached from what was happening on the ground."
Prof Banfield said "huge amounts" of healthcare had been "rationed" during the pandemic, and cited cancer services and cancelled elective procedures. He added: "Our members – doctors who worked day and night to care for patients – frequently spoke out about being unable to provide the level of care they knew patients needed and they were trained to provide.
"Staffing ratios were cut and standards were reduced to deal with sheer demand. Doctors and our colleagues were overwhelmed, physically and emotionally - and still bear the mental scars of this moral injury today."
And he added a direct plea to the ex-minister, saying: "Mr Hancock needs to ditch soundbites and be transparent with the public. He owes this both to the public and to health professionals. Only by being honest about the past can we hope to make real changes for the future."
Kate Bell, Assistant General Secretary of the TUC said: NHS staff put their lives on the line to get us through the pandemic. They very least they deserve from Matt Hancock is honesty and accountability.
"The former health secretary must come clean about the readiness and resilience of our health service when Covid struck. This inquiry has heard widespread evidence about how compromised the NHS was following years of underfunding.
"Mr Hancock must explain the political decisions he and other ministers took before and during the virus. He must put the needs the nation before that of his reputation. That’s how we can learn lessons and be ready for future pandemics."
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