The Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been urged to publish the scientific evidence of the Covid data he used to cancel Christmas for those in the newly created tier 4. The Prime Minister has stated that the new variant of coronavirus may be up to 70 per cent more transmissible than the previous strain.
However, Carl Heneghan, Professor of Evidence Based Medicine at Oxford University’s Nuffield Department of Primary Care has expressed scepticism over the 70 per cent figure and has called for the release of the scientific data. He has said ‘I’ve been doing this job for 25 years and I can tell you can’t establish a quantifiable number in such a short time frame.’ He went on to add ‘every expert is saying it’s too early to draw such an inference’.
Professor Heneghan did also say that, in his opinion, it currently is a difficult time for the NHS. But he went on to say that any failure to put out the basis of the figures would undermine public trust. He said ‘I would want to have very clear evidence rather than ‘we think it’s more transmissible’ so we can see if it is or not. It has massive implications, it’s causing fear and panic, but we should not be in this situation when the Government is putting out data that is unquantifiable. They are fitting the data to the evidence. They see cases rising and they are looking for evidence to explain it’.
Mr Johnson has said that the 70% figure has come from analysis by government advisory body The New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group. Prime Minister Johnson has said: ‘It’s the best we have at the moment. We have to act on information as we have it because this is spreading very fast’.
Current Affairs Correspondent | My name is Oliver Down I am 22, and a staunch brexiteer. I am a Bristolian lad who studied politics in Leicester. I believe in free speech and accurate journalism and I won’t be afraid to give you “the other side” of the story!
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