UK “lost three opportunities to join EU scheme to buy protective equipment in bulk”

The UK missed three opportunities to be part of an EU plan to buy bulk personal protective equipment (PPE) for healthcare workers, according to reports.

Britain reportedly failed to take advantage of opportunities to obtain items such as masks, gowns and gloves under an EU initiative.

The availability of PPE has been a major problem in the coronavirus outbreak.

It occurs when the Mirror launched the “Protect Us” campaign on behalf of all those who serve Britain in its time of need, demanding PPE for all NHS personnel, caregivers, cleaners, porters, transport workers and anyone else. at risk.

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According to the Guardian, European medical personnel are ready to receive the first PPE worth £ 1.3 billion in days or up to two weeks under the EU scheme involving 25 countries.

A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Assistance said: “We are working day and night with the industry, the NHS, social care providers and the military to ensure the supply of PPE in the coming weeks and months and we will give our NHS and social care sector all they need to deal with this pandemic, including working with countries around the world.

“We are also working with a number of companies to expand production from existing UK fan manufacturers, as well as to design and manufacture new products from scratch, and to acquire thousands of more machines abroad.

“We will continue to work with European countries and others to ensure that we can increase capacity within the NHS, and will consider participating in future joint EU procurement schemes based on public health requirements at that time.”

At Downing Street’s daily briefing on the coronavirus emergency on Monday, First Secretary of State and Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said the government was trying to give front-line staff security on the PPE.

The comments came amid concerns over a shortage of some supplies in some parts of the country.

Mr. Raab said: “We understand the importance of bringing PPE to the front line, whether in nursing homes or on the NHS.

“I think the strongest practical guarantee they will want and can give them is that over the weekend of the bank holiday over 16 million items were delivered and we are working hard on every nerve to deploy them even further and faster.”