Politics
Boris Johnson: “I’m not sure the Covid lockdowns worked during the pandemic”
September 29, 2024, 07:38
British Prime Minister Johnson holds a press conference to update the country on the coronavirus pandemic.
Picture:
Getty
Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson has revealed he is no longer sure his decision to put the country into a Covid lockdown worked.
In his new memoir, Johnson said the lockdowns certainly had some effect, but he doubts they made a tangible difference.
He said: There have always been two waves, whether in China, where the lockdowns were ruthlessly enforced, or in Sweden, where they took a more voluntary approach.
There are perhaps limits to human action, the extract continues.
“Perhaps it is not possible for government action to beat back the waves of a highly contagious disease, any more than it is possible to beat back the tide of the Thames.
I'm not saying that the lockdowns haven't brought anything; I'm sure they had some effect.
But were they decisive in pushing back the disease and slowing down this wave?
“All I can say is that I’m not sure anymore.
Boris Johnson during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Picture:
Getty
It comes after Chris Whitty told the Covid inquiry that some observers might say the UK had overestimated the risk the virus posed to the public at the start of the pandemic.
Professor Whitty, the UK's chief medical officer, said he remained concerned about whether the government and its advisers had struck the right balance between public protection and individual freedoms.
He said: I was worried at first. Looking back, I still worry whether we reached the right level of concern, he said.
Either we presented it too much, so that people were incredibly afraid of something when in fact their actuarial risk was low, or we didn't present it enough and, therefore, people didn't not realize the risk to which they are exposed.
I think that balance is really difficult, and probably some people would say we've overdone it, rather than underestimating it. [at] the beginning.
But he said the arguments against widespread Covid restrictions were “patently not true”, and said they should not be followed in a future pandemic – “unless you can demonstrate it”.
Chris Whitty appears at the Covid-19 Inquiry – Module 3 Hearings.
Picture:
Getty
He added: “I think we probably should have been quicker to spot long Covid as it emerged, although I think we were relatively quick and it wasn't obvious we would have could do something different as a result.
“The main thing we could do early on, before we understood better, was reduce the amount of Covid. If you don't get Covid, you don't get long Covid.”
On protecting the elderly and vulnerable, Professor Whitty said there were pros and cons to the policy.
He said: “I think it was beneficial in one way, harmful in another way, and uncertain in a third.”
Asked if he would consider a similar approach in a future pandemic, he added: “There are two things I would definitely do. I think shielding, I'm not sure, that would depend on the situation.
“I really think that risk classification is really important because there are a lot of other things that come from it. And indeed, you don't always know what will come from it when you do it.
“And secondly, I think it's important to put in place a mechanism to support people who have rationally chosen to withdraw from society, to improve their ability to protect themselves.
“I honestly don't know if the particular approach to protection that we've taken is appropriate to use, again, in the event of a respiratory infection.”
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