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Matt Hancock has been charged with sexism for telling a Labor MP to ‘watch her tone’ after questioning her about the government’s coronavirus testing strategy in the House of Commons today.
Dr. Rosena Allin-Khan, a former Labor deputy leader candidate who also works as an A&E doctor in the fight against the pandemic, said the government’s policy had “cost lives” and asked Hancock to commit to a minimum of 100,000 tests per day. ahead.
In response, an outraged health secretary told the Labor MP that she should “get a page out of the secretary of state’s book in terms of tone.”
Dr. Allin-Khan, who attends shadow cabinet meetings, shared the exchange on social media and later tweeted that she would not “look at her tone” when she challenged the government.
The Health Secretary’s comment sparked an uproar among MPs, and former acting Labor Party leader Harriet Harman called it “creepy.”
The line came after the total number of coronavirus tests fell below the 100,000 target again today, for the third day in a row.
Hancock set the target in early April and the government announced Friday and Saturday that it had exceeded it.
However, the number of tests has not reached the target for three days in a row since then, with 84,806 completed in the 24 hours until 9 a.m. from today.
It occurs when Britain recorded 693 more coronavirus deaths today, to pass the official number of deaths over 29,000. However, ONS data suggests that the actual number of victims could be at least 40,000, giving the UK the highest number of deaths in Europe.
In other developments in the UK coronavirus battle today:
- Dominic Raab issued a shallow warning to Russia and China tonight when he lashed out at ‘predatory’ hackers attacking organizations involved in the fight against the coronavirus;
- At least 12 different strains of coronavirus were circulating in the UK in March, including one that has only been found in Britain, according to a government-funded study;
- Rishi Sunak could cut government wage support from 80 percent to 60 percent in the coming months as part of a plan to get Britain back to work, it was said today;
- Experts warned that the new NHS coronavirus tracking and tracking application could be hijacked by trolls;
- Nicola Sturgeon unveiled her own closing ‘exit strategy’ and suggested she won’t let schools open until August;
- Cities and rural areas could be treated differently when the coronavirus blockade measures are eased, the government’s Chief Scientific Advisor hinted today.
The Secretary of Health (right) disagreed when Dr. Rosena Allin-Khan (left) said that the policy had “cost lives” and told her that she should “get a sheet out of the Secretary of State’s book in terms of tone”.
Dr. Allin-Khan, who attends shadow cabinet meetings and works as an A&E doctor, later tweeted that she would not “watch her tone” when she defied the government.
Hancock said: “I think I could do well to get a sheet out of the Secretary of State’s book in terms of tone.”
The UK now has more confirmed deaths from COVID-19, according to previous statistics from the Bureau of National Statistics, Scottish National Registers and NISRA of Northern Ireland, than any other country in Europe
Speaking in the Commons, Dr. Allin-Khan said: ‘Frontline workers like me have had to see how families are smashed to pieces as we deliver the worst news to them, that the most loved in this world have dead.
‘The testing strategy has been non-existent. Community testing was scrapped, mass testing took time to roll out, and test numbers are now being rigged.
‘Does the Secretary of State commit to a minimum of 100,000 tests each day thereafter?
“And does the Secretary of State acknowledge that many front-line workers feel that the lack of government evidence has cost lives and is responsible for many families being unnecessarily torn apart by pain?”
Hancock replied: ‘I welcome the honorable lady to her position as part of the shadow health team.
I think it would do you good to get a page out of the Secretary of State’s book in terms of tone.
I am afraid that what he said is not true. There has been a rapid acceleration in testing in the past few months, including hitting 100,000 tests a day. ”
His comments sparked an uproar among MPs, with former acting Labor Party leader Harriet Harman calling it “creepy.”
She tweeted: ‘Something creepy about a man telling a woman to watch her tone! Worse yet, he recommends that she adopt another man’s tone. I suggest @MattHancock change yours. ‘
Former Shadow Interior Secretary Diane Abbott told Dr. Allin-Khan: ‘I was seeing questions about health. Absolutely nothing wrong with your tone.
‘Reflects and reverberates with the reality of what you and other NHS workers are experiencing. Hancock is very reckless to be so dismissive.
Shadow Culture Minister Alison McGovern wrote: “I think the words I was looking for are ‘thank you for your service.’
Shadow Attorney General David Lammy said Hancock “should apologize” for his response to a “perfectly objective question.”
He tweeted, “This is no way for the Secretary of Health to speak to an A&E doctor.”
Shadow Home Office Minister Jess Phillips said: “His tone was good, respectful, and I daresay his opinion is more knowledgeable about the front line than the Health Secretary.”
“I can’t imagine why he doesn’t like his ‘tone’ (obviously, I can imagine it).
Lib Dem interim leader Ed Davey added: ‘Strongly agree with @DrRosena. @ MattHancock’s tone shouldn’t change Rosena’s. It seems that the truth hurt the Secretary of State.
Politicians came out to defend Dr. Allin-Khan and criticized the health secretary for his comment.
Even some celebrities influenced the consequences and attacked Hancock on social media.
Chef Nigella Lawson, whose father Nigel was Chancellor of the Exchequer under Margaret Thatcher, added: “There was absolutely nothing wrong with her tone.”
Douglas Mackinnon, who directed the BBC’s Sherlock and Line Of Duty, said: “Nasty and harassing Matt Hancock.”
Film producer Jemima Goldsmith, married to Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, said online: ‘Her tone @DrRosena was completely reasonable and measured.
“@MattHancock clearly did not like being asked a perfectly legitimate question about the lack of evidence and the manipulation of information.”
Even some celebrities influenced the consequences and attacked Hancock on social media.
Coronavirus test numbers have been running below 100,000 a day again despite a massive capacity expansion, it was revealed last night.
Hancock said there were 85,186 tests in the 24 hours at 9 a.m. on Monday, slightly above the 76,000 recorded on Sunday, but well below the target.
Hancock claimed victory in the race to hit the target on Friday, saying there were 122,000 on the last day of April.
But it later emerged that around 40,000 of them were counted when they were published, rather than when they were actually processed.
The number of people dying each week during the UK coronavirus crisis has been significantly higher, more than double in recent weeks, than the average number of deaths at this time of year.
The government furiously denied setting the numbers to avoid a shameful failure, noting that the evidence does not figure in the numbers when they are returned.
Earlier today, Hancock said tests for asymptomatic NHS personnel will be implemented across the country.
Shadow Health Secretary Jonathan Ashworth said: “ I wonder if he (Mr. Hancock) considered the Imperial (College London) study suggesting weekly assessment of health workers, testing them weekly if they are symptomatic or not, reduces your contribution to transmission by about 25 percent to 33 percent?
“Will you review the evaluation of all health care personnel, whether they have symptoms or not?”
Mr. Hancock replied: ‘Yes, (Mr. Ashworth) has asked questions responsibly and reasonably, and I appreciate your support for the Isle of Wight test, track and trace pilot we announced yesterday.
“We have tested tests of asymptomatic NHS staff now on 16 trusts across the country and those pilots have been successful, and we will implement it further.”
Hancock said privacy is “there by design” as part of the new NHS test, track and trace application.
Conservative MP Laura Trott (Sevenoaks) asked how she plans to alleviate privacy concerns.
Hancock replied: ‘People need to know that the application has privacy in its design, the data it contains is saved on their phone, they do not go to the Government, until, of course, they need to be tested, in which of course they contact the NHS.
“So privacy is there by design, there is cross-party support, according to a very early poll, 80 percent of people on the Isle of Wight want to download it.”
“These are good early signs and we will have a great communications campaign to explain to people the benefits of the test, track and trace program as we implement it across the country.”
Today it was confirmed that 693 other people died of COVID-19 in Britain, bringing the death toll to 29,427 and making Britain the most affected nation in Europe.
And separate figures from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) show that the figure appears to have been above 32,000 by April 24, 10 days ago.
That number is 42 percent higher than the count announced by the Health Department at the time, suggesting that the current total may be more than 40,000; This would mean that COVID-19 has killed more Britons in eight weeks than died for seven months during the Blitz bombings in World War II.
Today’s data confirms that more people have died from the coronavirus in the United Kingdom than in Italy, which is still considered the most affected country in Europe and had suffered 29,079 deaths this morning. The United States alone has had more deaths than Great Britain, almost 70,000, while there have been 25,600 in Spain and 25,200 in France.
Chancellor Dominic Raab also announced today that 4,406 more cases of the life-threatening virus have been confirmed, bringing the official size of the outbreak to 194,990, but the true size of the UK crisis is a mystery due to the controversial decision to abandon generalized testing. Early.
At the Downing Street press conference, Raab also They lashed out at ‘predatory’ hackers attacking organizations involved in the coronavirus fight, saying criminals and ‘hostile states’ were trying to exploit the crisis for their own ‘malicious ends’.
Analyzing the death toll, he added that the magnitude of the disaster in Britain was a “massive tragedy” on a scale the country had never seen before. He declined to speculate on international comparisons.
