Omicron risk: where Boris Johnson and his advisers disagree
Prime minister said booster jabs will give ‘the protection you need’ but Sage experts are more cautious
The prime minister appeared to contradict one of his top health officials yesterday on how to respond to the Omicron variant, amid what was described as a “day of muddled messaging” from No. 10.
The head of the UK Health Security Agency, Dr Jenny Harries, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Tuesday morning that everyone should “decrease our social contacts a little bit” in order to limit the spread of Covid-19, and not socialise “when we don’t particularly need to”.
Her comments “caused panic in the hospitality industry”, said The Telegraph, and left Boris Johnson “scrambling to reassure the public that parties, Nativity plays and Christmas itself would go ahead”. When questioned at a Downing Street press conference, he confirmed: “We don’t want people to cancel such events.”
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The PM’s spokesperson also pointed out that the UK Health Security Agency is “an arm’s-length body of government” and that Harries “is not a government minister”.
Her advice has been backed by some fellow experts, however. Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) member Professor John Edmunds, of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said that Harries was “of course, correct” and that “reducing our social contacts now will slow the establishment of this new virus in our country”.
Vaccine claims
Amid an increasing tally of reported UK cases of Omicron, the latest Covid-19 variant of concern, Johnson told the press conference yesterday that “there are good grounds for believing that the boosters will give you, under all circumstances, the protection that you need”.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
But minutes from a Sage meeting held on Monday, seen by the BBC, reportedly indicated that such conclusions are premature.
The government advisers said it was “highly likely” that Omicron can escape immunity caused by previous infection or vaccination “to some extent”, according to the broadcaster.
And although booster vaccines were likely to provide protection against severe disease, hospitalisation and death from most variants in the short term, said the sage experts, “any significant reduction in protection against infection could still result in a very large wave of infections”, which “would in turn lead to a potentially high number of hospitalisations”.
The BBC said the minutes “make it clear that it is too early to know how ill the Omicron variant will make those infected or how that might vary by age”.
Christmas past haunting PM
The mixed messaging came amid fresh fears that the British public might not comply with new Covid restrictions. Ben Spencer, science editor of The Sunday Times, warned that “the clarity with which ministers present the request” will be pivotal to any adherence.
But the push for clarity has been hindered by newly published reports that Johnson and his Downing Street staff broke Covid rules by attending parties at No. 10 in the run-up to Christmas last year.
According to The Mirror, the PM gave a speech at a “packed leaving do” for a top aide last November, when the country was in the grip of the second national lockdown. And just days before Christmas, with London in Tier 3 restrictions, members of his top team reportedly held an unofficial festive bash at Downing Street. A spokesperson did not deny the claims but told the paper that “Covid rules have been followed at all times”.
‘Clear as mud’
The i news site’s chief political commentator Paul Waugh has also warned that “public health is often a matter of the right messaging as much as the right policies, and clarity is crucial”.
But Harries’ comments about decreasing social contact were “bewilderingly vague”, said Waugh. And the government’s “messaging ‘Omi-shambles’ over Omicron” may have “further fuelled suspicions ministers are so nervous of public opinion they fail to be straight about advice received”.
Despite ministerial reassurances, Waugh concluded that “the guidance on ‘social contacts’ will for many seem as clear as mud”.
-
7 beautiful towns to visit in Switzerland during the holidays
The Week Recommends Find bliss in these charming Swiss locales that blend the traditional with the modern
By Catherine Garcia, The Week US Published
-
The Week contest: Werewolf bill
Puzzles and Quizzes
By The Week US Published
-
'This needs to be a bigger deal'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
John Prescott: was he Labour's last link to the working class?
Today's Big Quesiton 'A total one-off': tributes have poured in for the former deputy PM and trade unionist
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Last hopes for justice for UK's nuclear test veterans
Under the Radar Thousands of ex-service personnel say their lives have been blighted by aggressive cancers and genetic mutations
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Will Donald Trump wreck the Brexit deal?
Today's Big Question President-elect's victory could help UK's reset with the EU, but a free-trade agreement with the US to dodge his threatened tariffs could hinder it
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
What is the next Tory leader up against?
Today's Big Question Kemi Badenoch or Robert Jenrick will have to unify warring factions and win back disillusioned voters – without alienating the centre ground
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
What is Lammy hoping to achieve in China?
Today's Big Question Foreign secretary heads to Beijing as Labour seeks cooperation on global challenges and courts opportunities for trade and investment
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Bob Woodward's War: the explosive Trump revelations
In the spotlight Nobody can beat Watergate veteran at 'getting the story of the White House from the inside'
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Trump kept up with Putin, sent Covid tests, book says
Speed Read The revelation comes courtesy of a new book by Bob Woodward
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
'The federal government's response to the latest surge has been tepid at best'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published